Koala Bear Essay

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A koala bear’s diet consists almost completely of eucalyptus leaves, however they are known to also eat the stems, flowers and bark of the eucalyptus tree. A koala bear will only eat the leaves of only a few eucalyptus trees and are very picky with their diet and do not like change regarding their diet.
Dental formula of a koala bear: Incisors 3/1; Incisors 1/0; Pre Molars 1/1; Molars 4/4. This adds up to a total number of 30 teeth.
The koala has a space between its incisors and premolars for leaves to be stored until they are ready to be processed by the premolars and molars. The molars and premolars grind the leaves until it forms a paste. This makes it easier for the food to be digested.
The koala's teeth are highly specialized and are a fundamental part of the digestive process. The teeth crush food particles which effectively increases the surface area for the specialized digestive organs
Their incisors are relatively sharp and are used to grab leaves from trees. The large molars are shaped to allow them to cut the leaves, preparing them for further digestion. There is a large space between the incisors and the molars that allows the tongue to move leaves around the mouth.
To make the most of the energy that is taken in in their diet, the koala uses a decreased metabolic strategy that allows it to retain for long periods of time. The highly specialized digestive organs of the koala have adapted in the way that it withdraws the required nutrients from the poorly balanced diet.
The Koala's digestive system is also adapted to detoxify the poisonous chemicals in the leaves. Koalas have a special fibre-digesting organ called a caecum, which is very long (200 cm). The caecum contains millions of bacteria which break down the fib...

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...squirrels, birds and worms.
Dental formula and total dentition
Their molar teeth are adapted for crushing and not for cutting. Dental formula: Incisors 3/3, Canines 1/1, Pre molars 4/4, Molars 2/2 = 40.
Its dentition is regarded as heavy because of their broad high-cusped cheek teeth are better suited for crushing than slicing. Still have sharp, double edged canines
Teeth shape and size
Raccoons have teeth designed to grind plants or tear meat. They have 4 long, sharp canine teeth that are used to tear food and molars to chew food. Since they eat both meat and plants, they have teeth that are necessary in order for both to be digested.
The pH of the stomach in a raccoon is less than or equal to 1.
Most raccoons eat during the night time, as they are nocturnal creatures. They eat every day and are almost always looking for food and eat up to 2kg of food per day.

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