Australia is home to many interesting animals. The kangaroo, the most iconic Australian animal, lives in the desert and forest and is the largest marsupial. The kangaroo is also a delicacy. I have been eating kangaroo in every form possible and in my opinion it tastes like beef. There is even a species of kangaroo known as the Tree Kangaroo that lives in Indonesia and has been seen to jump off trees 18 meters or 60 feet. The wallaby is a smaller version of a kangaroo that will sometimes breed with kangaroos creating wallaroos. Another iconic animal is the koala. The koala lives on a diet of eucalyptus leaves and sleeps for 18-20 hours of the day. The koala has three fingers and two thumbs to help it climb trees. The most bizarre of Australia’s creatures is the platypus. The platypus is a mammal with a bill like a duck and a tail like a beaver, the platypus is the only mammal to lay eggs. Crocodiles live in the Northern Territory and can live in billabongs (swamps) and the ocean. They normally grow to a length of 6 meters or 20 feet and can jump out of the water to catch food. The cockatoo is a white bird with a yellow crest that can fold off the head. A displayed crest means that the bird is scared or curious to make it seem bigger. The dingo is a relative of the dog that can live in the harshest areas of the Australian Outback. Dingos will mate for life and will sometimes mourn themselves to death after the loss of their mate. Camels are originally from the Middle East but can only be found wild in Australia. The camels are dromedary camels and were imported in the mid-1800’s. People now estimate there are about 1,000,000 wild camels roaming the Outback.
