If you’ve ever opened a koala book with your little one, you’re sure to have been captivated by their cute faces and fluffy fur. Koalas live exclusively in Australia, not being found anywhere else in the world. They spend much of their time eating and sleeping, but between August and February (the spring and summer in Australia) these little critters breed. Let’s take a look at the first year of a baby koala’s life.

Newborn koalas

Mother koalas are pregnant for only 35 days before they give birth, usually to only one baby called a joey. The newborn koala is only about 2cm long and 1g in weight, and looks like a little pink jellybean. Baby koalas are born without any hair or ears, and are blind. Despite this, the joey is able to make its way to mum’s pouch by itself, relying on its sense of smell and touch to get there. Once it’s safely inside the pouch, the baby attaches itself to one of its mother’s teats, which swells up to stop the joey losing hold of this vital food source. 

Growing

The baby koala stays in the pouch drinking mum’s milk for the first five to six months. By this time its eyes have opened and it can peep out of the pouch. Its ears are also fully formed and it has grown soft dark brown fur. The joey begins to feed on a soft substance called pap, which the mother produces in addition to milk. This is a specialised form of koala poop and contains key nutrients and micro-organisms that enable the baby to begin digesting eucalyptus leaves. It will eat this for around six weeks.

Eating leaves

A joey’s first teeth appear when it is between six and seven months old. Shortly afterwards it starts to eat fresh leaves and grows at a much faster rate, becoming more adventurous. The young koala’s fur becomes lighter and it clings to its mother’s belly while feeding, wrapped safely in her arms. When it reaches 1-2kg in weight, the young koala stops entering mum’s pouch and rides on her back. Eventually it will start making short trips away from her. 

All grown up 

At around a year old, it’s time for young koalas to leave their mums. They typically remain in her home range for a year before moving away to establish their own territory. While koalas are generally solitary creatures, they’ll look for a home close to other koalas with tasty eucalyptus leaves that they can feast on. 

Discover The Koala Who Could

If you’re familiar with The Koala Who Could book by Rachel Bright and Jim Field, you’ll love the new family production, which is touring the UK now. Based on the bestselling koala bear book, it tells the story of Kevin as he learns to embrace change, using stunning puppetry to bring the tale to life. The show is ideally suited to children aged three and above. Book tickets at your local theatre today.