Koala Joey Colouring

Climb into a eucalyptus tree with a cuddly-looking koala and its joey. Koalas are native only to Australia, living in eucalyptus forests and woodlands along parts of the eastern and southeastern mainland. They spend most of their lives in trees that offer both food and safe resting places. The broad branch, long gum leaves, blossoms, and distant bushland on this page create a gentle home for the pair. An adult koala is usually about 60 to 85 centimetres long and may weigh roughly 4 to 15 kilograms, with size varying by sex and region. Wild koalas often live around 10 to 15 years. They are marsupials rather than bears. Strong curved claws, rough paw pads, and two opposable digits on each front paw help them grip trunks and branches. Koalas eat mostly eucalyptus leaves, which are fibrous and low in energy, so they rest or sleep for many hours each day while their specialised digestive system handles the meal. A baby koala is called a joey. After birth it crawls into its mother's pouch and remains there while it grows. Later the joey rides on her belly or back, learning how to climb and which leaves to choose. Koalas communicate with soft squeaks, bellows, scent, and touch. Their large noses help them inspect leaves, and fluffy ears make their round faces easy to recognise. In this scene, the adult wraps an arm around the joey as they relax together on a sturdy branch. Colour the fur with silver grey, warm grey, brown-grey, or even a gentle blue-grey. Use cream or white on the chest, belly, and fluffy ear edges, and make the joey a slightly lighter shade. The broad nose can be charcoal or black, with tiny white eye highlights. Eucalyptus leaves may be sage, olive, blue-green, or forest green, while the gum blossoms can be pink, red, cream, or yellow. Give the bark patches of tan, grey, cream, and soft brown. Crayons are useful for the rounded bodies and thick branch. Use sharpened pencils for claws, leaf veins, blossom stamens, and furry ear lines. Colour slowly around the embracing paws so the warm family cuddle remains clear.

◫ A4 size✎ Bold outlines♡ Ages 3–8

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