The cuddly-looking marsupial that people recognize as the koala, indigenous to southern and eastern Australia, generally prefers to eat the leaves of the eucalyptus. So how can it be so picky when its meals consist of the same thing every day?

Many Species of Eucalyptus Exist

Koalas know that not all eucalyptus are the same. They tend to choose just a few eucalyptus species, eating leaves and sometimes bark and buds from the tree. This is because eucalyptus plants, generally poisonous to other animals, contain toxic oils that may be “the precursors of toxic compounds of hydrocyanic acid (cyanides),” according to Grzimek’s Encyclopedia of Mammals (Vol. 1). Therefore, of the approximate 650 species of eucalyptus plants in Australia, koalas are able to tolerate up to 50 of them, but they really prefer about 10. The animals know which ones are the safest for their bodies.

Geographical area also determines which species of eucalyptus the animal chooses. Koalas in southern areas prefer to feed on eucalyptus species commonly called manna gum and swamp gum, which are different from the species that koalas in northern areas prefer, which include grey gum, red gums (there are more than one) and blue gum.

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