Spread across the globe, from Central and South America to Japan, non-human primates have a toehold that almost spans the tropics, but they never made it to Australia. Christofer Clemente, from the University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia, explains that a marsupial got to grips with life in the trees instead. Equipped with two thumbs on their grasping hands, koalas (Phascolarctos cinerus) rarely descend to the ground and appear to be as comfortable with heights as apes and monkeys. Yet it wasn’t clear whether the cuddly Antipodeans use the same movement strategies as primates for negotiating their arboreal homes. Intrigued, Joshua Gaschk, Celine FrereĢ and Clemente visited the nearby Queensland Zoo (Wildlife HQ) to film koalas’ movements in 3-D as they clambered around their enclosure.
Click here for original story, Aussie icon has the koalafications of both marsupials and primates
Source: Phys.org