koala vs Lesser Red-knotgrass

Phascolarctos cinereus compared with Polygonum arenarium

Key Differences

• koala is Vulnerable while Lesser Red-knotgrass is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	koala	Lesser Red-knotgrass
Kingdom	Animalia (животные)	Plantae (растения)
Phylum	Chordata (хордовые)	Magnoliophyta (магнолиофиты)
Class	Mammalia (млекопитающие)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Diprotodontia (двурезцовые сумчатые)	Caryophyllales (гвоздичноцветные)
Family	Phascolarctidae (Koalas)	Polygonaceae
Genus	Phascolarctos (Koalas)	Polygonum
Species	Phascolarctos cinereus	Polygonum arenarium

Conservation Status

koala

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~100.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Lesser Red-knotgrass

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	koala	Lesser Red-knotgrass
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.

Lesser Red-knotgrass

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Found across Europe (11 countries) and North America (United States).

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.