koala vs Pacific yam

Phascolarctos cinereus compared with Dioscorea nummularia

Key Differences

• koala is Vulnerable while Pacific yam is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	koala	Pacific yam
Kingdom	Animalia (สัตว์)	Plantae (พืช)
Phylum	Chordata (สัตว์มีแกนสันหลัง)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Mammalia (สัตว์เลี้ยงลูกด้วยน้ำนม)	Liliopsida (Monocots)
Order	Diprotodontia (Marsupials)	Dioscoreales (อันดับกลอย)
Family	Phascolarctidae (Koalas)	Dioscoreaceae
Genus	Phascolarctos (Koalas)	Dioscorea
Species	Phascolarctos cinereus	Dioscorea nummularia

Conservation Status

koala

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~100.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Pacific yam

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	koala	Pacific yam
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.

Pacific yam

Habitat

Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests within the Indomalayan biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Found in Laos. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

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.