Phascolarctidae is a family of marsupials of the order
DiprotodontiaDiprotodontia is a large order of about 120 marsupial mammals including the kangaroos, wallabies, possums, koala, wombats, and many others...
, consisting of only one extant species, the
KoalaThe Koala is a thickset arboreal marsupial herbivore native to Australia, and the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae....
, six well known fossil species, with another 5 less well known fossil species, and 2 fossil species whose taxonomy is debatable but is put in this group. The closest relatives of the Phascolarctidae are the
wombatWombats are Australian marsupials; they are short-legged, muscular quadrupeds, approximately in length with a very short tail. They are found in forested, mountainous, and heathland areas of south-eastern Australia and Tasmania...
s, which comprise the family Vombatidae.
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Phascolarctidae is a family of marsupials of the order
DiprotodontiaDiprotodontia is a large order of about 120 marsupial mammals including the kangaroos, wallabies, possums, koala, wombats, and many others...
, consisting of only one extant species, the
KoalaThe Koala is a thickset arboreal marsupial herbivore native to Australia, and the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae....
, six well known fossil species, with another 5 less well known fossil species, and 2 fossil species whose taxonomy is debatable but is put in this group. The closest relatives of the Phascolarctidae are the
wombatWombats are Australian marsupials; they are short-legged, muscular quadrupeds, approximately in length with a very short tail. They are found in forested, mountainous, and heathland areas of south-eastern Australia and Tasmania...
s, which comprise the family Vombatidae.
The family of the Phascolarctidae dates back to the
Middle MioceneThe Middle Miocene is a sub-epoch of the Miocene Epoch made up of two stages: the Langhian and Serravallian stages. The Middle Miocene is followed by the Early Miocene....
.
Classification
Family Phascolarctidae
- ?Genus †Cundokoala
- ?Genus †Nimiokoala
- †Riversleigh Rainforest Koala
The Riversleigh Rainforest Koala is an extinct species of marsupial, closely related to the modern Koala, that lived 10-16 million years ago in the middle Miocene of Queensland. It exhibits a similar diet as the modern species except for being only a third of its size, but the mouth protruded from...
-
Nimiokoala greystanesi
Genus †Madakoala
- †Madakoala robustus
- †Madakoala wellsi
- †Madakoala devisi
Genus †Litokoala
- †Litokoala garyjohnstoni
- †Litokoala kutjamarpensis
- †Litokoala kanunkaensis
Genus †Koobor
- †Koobor jimbarrati
- †Koobor notabilis
Genus †Perikoala
- †Perikoala palankarinnica
- †Perikoala robustus
Genus PhascolarctosThe genus Phascolarctos consists of 3 species, of which only one is alive today. The largest species was P. stirtoni that lived in the Pleistocene epoch. Giant Koala species are known only from fossils found in the Lake Eyre and Tarkarooloo basins of South Australia. Not much is known of the P....
- †Phascolarctos maris
- Koala
The Koala is a thickset arboreal marsupial herbivore native to Australia, and the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae....
- Phascolarctos cinereus
- †Giant Koala
The Giant Koala was an arboreal marsupial which existed in Australia during the Pleistocene epoch. Phascolarctos stirtoni was about one third larger than the contemporary Koala, and has had an estimated weight of 29 lbs or 13 kg...
- Phascolarctos stirtoni
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