Simply Wild
Koalas and Their Extraordinary ‘Magic Sauce’
(Essential Ingredients for Survival)
Everyone poops!
There is that old saying:
“If you don’t poop, you die!”
Poop is usually excreted as a waste, but some animals actively re-ingest their poo in a practice called coprophagy.
In this respect, the koala is in a league of their own and goes to great trouble to make this happen for the young.
Eating Poo
Coprophagy, from the Greek “to eat dung,” is common in many rodents, including rabbits, mice, rats, guinea pigs, and other mammals and birds.
While we may think of it as disgusting, it serves a valuable function: It colonizes the lower gut with essential bacteria (‘bugs’) to aid in digestion.
While some of you may have had puppies that also eat their own, this is usually a behavioral thing. They see their mother doing it and for the early part of their life, figure that is what you do.
The Koala’s ‘Magic Sauce’
I studied koala digestion for almost five years. They have a unique process to ensure that their young joeys are equipped with bacteria to help them…
