koala vs Loblolly pine

Phascolarctos cinereus compared with Pinus taeda

Key Differences

koala is Vulnerable while Loblolly pine is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	koala	Loblolly pine
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Coniferophyta (Conifers)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Pinopsida (Conifers)
Order	Diprotodontia (Marsupials)	Pinales (Pines & Allies)
Family	Phascolarctidae (Koalas)	Pinaceae (Pine Family)
Genus	Phascolarctos (Koalas)	Pinus (Pines)
Species	Phascolarctos cinereus	Pinus taeda

Conservation Status

koala

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~100.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Loblolly pine

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	koala	Loblolly pine
Diet	Herbivore	—
Average Lifespan	15 years	—
Average Length	75 cm	—
Average Weight	10.0 kg	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

koala

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, forests, and vegetated habitats.

Range

Found in Australia. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Loblolly pine

Habitat

Typically found in temperate and boreal forests, often at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Asia (Georgia, Taiwan, Turkey), North America (United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia, New Zealand), and South America (Brazil, Uruguay).

koala

Iconic marsupial of eastern and southeastern Australia, koalas weigh up to 15 kg and spend up to 22 hours daily sleeping to conserve energy from their low-calorie eucalyptus leaf diet. Highly specialized to process toxic eucalyptus compounds that would kill most other mammals, they have gut microbiomes uniquely adapted for detoxification. Listed as Endangered in 2022, with populations decimated by chlamydia disease, habitat clearing, and climate change.