Why Do People Hate Koalas?

Go to our sponsor betterhelp.com/minuteearth for 10% off your first month of therapy with BetterHelp and get matched with a therapist who will listen and help.
On the Internet, koalas get an unnecessary amount of hate, so let's debunk some of the most pervasive koala myths! Featuring @tibees
LEARN MORE
**************
To learn more about this topic, start your googling with these keywords:
- Fecal pap: a mixture of contents from an herbivore mother's caecum that colonizes the joey's gut with bacteria.
- Marsupial: a mammal of an order whose members are born incompletely developed and are typically carried and suckled in a pouch on the mother's belly.
SUPPORT MINUTEEARTH
**************************
If you like what we do, you can help us!:
- Become our patron: / minuteearth
- Our merch: dftba.com/minuteearth
- Our book: minuteearth.com/books
- Share this video with your friends and family
- Leave us a comment (we read them!)
CREDITS
*********
Cameron Duke | Script Writer, Narrator and Director
Toby Hendy @tibees | Koala voice
Lizah Van der Aart | Illustration, Video Editing and Animation
Nathaniel Schroeder | Music
MinuteEarth is produced by Neptune Studios LLC
neptunestudios.info
OUR STAFF
************
Lizah van der Aart • Sarah Berman • Cameron Duke
Arcadi Garcia i Rius • David Goldenberg • Melissa Hayes
Alex Reich • Henry Reich • Peter Reich
Ever Salazar • Leonardo Souza • Kate Yoshida
OUR LINKS
************
KZbin | / minuteearth
TikTok | / minuteearth
Twitter | / minuteearth
Instagram | / minute_earth
Facebook | / minuteearth
Website | minuteearth.com
Apple Podcasts| podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...
REFERENCES
**************
Blyton, M. D. J., et al. (2019). Faecal inoculations alter the gastrointestinal microbiome and allow dietary expansion in a wild specialist herbivore, the koala. Animal Microbiome, 1(1). doi.org/10.1186/s42523-019-00...
Can you teach koalas new tricks? (n.d.). ScienceDaily. Retrieved July 19, 2023, from www.sciencedaily.com/releases...
Clode, D. (2022, September 15). Friday essay: the koala - when it’s smart to be slow. The Conversation. theconversation.com/friday-es...
Crowther, M. (n.d.). [Letter to Cameron Duke].
Gaillard, J.-M., et al. (2015). Does tooth wear influence ageing? A comparative study across large herbivores. Experimental Gerontology, 71, 48-55. doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2015....
Logan, M. (2003). EFFECT OF TOOTH WEAR ON THE RUMINATION-LIKE BEHAVIOR, OR MERYCISM, OF FREE-RANGING KOALAS (PHASCOLARCTOS CINEREUS). Journal of Mammalogy, 84(3), 897-902. doi.org/10.1644/bba-002
Logan, M., & Sanson, G. D. (2006). The effect of tooth wear on the feeding behaviour of free-ranging koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus, Goldfuss). Journal of Zoology, 256(1), 63-69. doi.org/10.1017/s095283690200...
Mella, V. S. A., et al. (2019). Needing a drink: Rainfall and temperature drive the use of free water by a threatened arboreal folivore. PLOS ONE, 14(5), e0216964. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone....
Ogura, T., et al. (2019). Koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) utilise volatile compounds to choose preferred Eucalyptus leaves. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research, 7(2), 94-101. doi.org/10.19227/jzar.v7i2.360
Smaers, J., et al. (2021). The evolution of mammalian brain size. Science Advances, 7(18), eabe2101. doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abe2101
Taylor, J., et al. (2006). MR imaging of brain morphology, vascularisation and encephalization in the koala. Australian Mammalogy, 28(2), 243. doi.org/10.1071/am06034
Weisbecker, V., et al. (2015). The evolution of relative brain size in marsupials is energetically constrained but not driven by behavioral complexity. Brain, Behavior and Evolution, 85(2), 125-135. doi.org/10.1159/000377666

[@tibees]

Totally eucalypt-ic video! Glad I could lend a voice to a friend in need 🐨

[@donteattidepods]

👍

[@ChariotduNord]

I RECOGNIZED YOUR VOICE INSTANTLY!! OMG such a pleasure to have a tibees cameo

[@zim_]

Tibees ur voice best in class

[@raybombs]

Im here because of you! Great content😊

[@erongobis5447]

Same

[@anson7064]

Wow.. I never even knew koalas were hated.. Edit: 1.8k likes, 60 replies, overrated comment.

[@Stilllife1999]

Same. If you ask me they are pretty cute

[@FreddieStarWars]

same

[@PramkLuna]

Looks like there's a lot of heat in the wildlife fandom

[@joshuaidugboe214]

1word, chlamydia

[@TheAnimalKingdom-tq3sz]

Perhaps, their fighting calls remind them of demons

[@YoungGandalf2325]

To be fair, if you put a plate of eucalyptus leaves in front of me, I wouldn't eat them either. And Toby did a great koala voice!

[@alphaapple1375]

For those who are familiar with the metric system: At 2:41: "Eucalypus leaves are toxic to most animals but not koalas. That's because you koalas have super-long digestive tracts -- including a 1.8-meter-long caecum -- full of specialized gut bacteria that detoxify the leaves."

[@I_am_him_42069]

gandalf, the only thing that didn't pass was u

[@raybombs]

She is a good koala

[@mikesmith7620]

John Pinette “Where did arugula come from?”

[@lmost]

To be equally fair, you’re not a koala, so it follows that you wouldn’t eat eucalyptus leaves.

[@Croz89]

I don't think think I've seen a lot of Koala hate, people just think they're slow and pretty stupid, especially for a mammal of their size. Kind of like the Australian version of sloths.

[@Stinkee1129]

It’s honestly more of a meme than an actual hate for Koalas

[@baileescott401]

@@Stinkee1129 pretty sure everyone was joking when they said "Koala smooth brain"

[@NativeVsColonial]

@@baileescott401Yeah, when people say someone a donkey, that doesn’t mean people hate donkeys, it’s just a stereotype and a way to express measurements.

[@garethdean6382]

There's far more hated species out there. You can tell because they play evil characters in kid's cartoons. Rats, weasels, coyotes... As for insults, well b**ch is a big one but people LOVE dogs.

[@lightlingzooma-69]

FR! everyone says they’re cute

[@oucyan]

I surprised you didn't bring up the Chlamydia claims. That's what I was looking most forward to learning about

[@elif6908]

It is true but as far as I know chlamydia passed to koalas from humans so it’s not intrinsic to them so maybe they’re excluded it because of this

[@cloudkitt]

that was the only negative thing I knew about koalas, lol.

[@pharynx007]

a concierge in perth told me about that one

[@trla6505]

This was just picking the false or half true , they are in fact stupid screaming beast

[@lynnrolaf7422]

I assumed that this was going to be the primary reason for the Internet hate, too.

[@Avendesora]

Pullin' the "but they think pandas are cute!" like they don't have their own koala-style hate club lol

[@davidshi451]

Lmao pandas need their own defense video

[@BrightEyes83]

i'm in the panda hate club

[@MissThavel_LanguageTeacher10]

@@davidshi451 a KZbinr named casual Geographics already has made one

[@PopeGoliath]

@@BrightEyes83 Comrade!

[@micahphilson]

​@@BrightEyes83I don't hate pandas at all, but I'm in the "They really do cost excessively more to conserve than almost any other animal and contribute minimally to their environment _and_ have a hard time surviving in the wild under optimal conditions, so maybe we should reallocate those funds to keystone species and just focus on conserving pandas in zoos."

[@Ninjaeule97]

Considering poop transplants are a thing, Koalas shouldn't be vilified for that behavior.

[@ToadRoach]

I would go even further, and ask the question: Show me a live birth animal that doesn't consume its mother's poop in some way?

[@JosephsDesign]

I see koalas and pandas in the same boat. Both cute, and both unable to survive in a world altered and degraded by humans. They are really cute and I always love petting them in the zoo in Australia.

[@anonymouscausewhynot]

Wait, *which* zoo lets pet koalas??

[@fish4225]

yeah, they're both equally crap genetic lines

[@JosephsDesign]

@@anonymouscausewhynot The Australian Reptile Park north of Sydney has a thing where you can buy a ticket and the zookeepers take photos of you holding different animals like koalas, crocodiles, and pythons. It costs a bit, but this money supports the animals and it was really incredible experience.

[@timy.9512]

Koalas have actually proven themselves able to survive in an Anthropocene world - even indigenous tales center around them being extremely hard to kill, whether by drought or hunters. Plus they’ve even managed to recolonize much of their former range, even entering Adelaide - which they previously weren’t even native to.

[@MossmanJoeX2]

​@@fish4225Oh wow! I never thought I'd see a fish making bait!

[@Magmafrost13]

Could do a whole series of "the internet hates this animal for entirely incorrect reasons" honestly. Sunfish are another particularly bad case

[@kuronosan]

Was waiting for koala human chlamydia transmission to come up, guess that one's 100% spot on.

[@noytelinu3409]

Yeah. This video is biased

[@SireRose]

​@@noytelinu3409elaborate

[@NoNameAtAll2]

@@SireRose even mythbusters had myths they confirmed

[@just_a_guy9688]

Well, koalas have chlamydia in the first place is because they came into contact with sheep and cattle feces, which were brought in by guess who? Humans.

[@Ornzora]

Human : Koala are so stupid ! Koala : Dude, you're the smartest animal around yet you poop on your own clean water supply for a long time

[@atreidesson]

oh, obviously, just quit pooping! How couldn't we see?

[@Mike_Hoffmann]

Koalas are great, it's the drop bears that give them a bad wrap 😂

[@Titanic-wo6bq]

I didn't know that Koalas were hated; but this is the internet so I'm not sure what I was expecting.

[@whazzup_teacup]

Mocking is a better term than hating. People love koalas but they also love laughing at how bad they seem to be at existing as a species.

[@jasondoe2596]

There's a pretty well-known copypasta that claims they utterly suck and gives a long list of "reasons" (most of which were mentioned in the video). It's pretty amusing should you come across it, but it's not some peer-reviewed article or anything...

[@N12015]

@@whazzup_teacup Just like how Sloths are so awful as species that they were never worth hunting by humans and are used to train young raptors.

[@Bejeodiehrubridjehfoekdjriwknr]

⁠depending on where it's coming from it potentially isn't even mocking so much a sense of humour that is lost on Americans. We tend to take the piss out of things we love the most in Australia and I think this could be lost on Americans, especially if they are reading it through text.

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

I'm glad you brought that up about small brains, because birds are very much intelligent creatures! Especially crows and ravens. People really underestimate the intelligence of crows and ravens. Crows are among some of the most intelligent creatures on our planet (birds in general are; which is why it doesn't make sense bird brain is still used as an insult). Scientists did a study and have discovered they remember your face, they talk about you to other crows, they remember what you did, and more crows will attack if they heard you've done something wrong. Yup, they plan for the future too! Another creature that gets a lot of hate are roaches because they believe all roaches are pests. There are actually 4,500 species of cockroaches in the world, and out of these 4,500 species, just 30 are considered pests. And there can be some very beautiful and cute roaches you can keep as pets like Simandoa cave roaches, hissing roaches, porcelain roaches, Asian emerald roaches, or domino roaches.

[@purrrface9001]

Damn if you hurt a crow you’ll get pecked by many

[@MGSLurmey]

BTW the term for the whole group of smart birds that includes crows and ravens (to save time saying both each time you refer to them) is corvids. This group includes crows, ravens, rooks, magpies, jackdaws, jays, treepies, choughs, and nutcrackers - all of which are highly intelligent!

[@Ildskalli]

I was with you until you mentioned "beautiful" roaches. Erm, no. Beetles can be beautiful, as can be some hymenopterans, praying mantises, and a couple of others... but roaches? No. Hard pass.

[@raraavis7782]

Ok, so those emerald roaches really do look pretty 😅. I'm from Germany, though, where roaches as pests aren't really a thing. So maybe that's why I don't share the general disgust. They're just random insects to me. Big beetles, basically. I wouldn't have an issue holding one, for example.

[@hedgehog3180]

Bird brained does mean something more like scatter brained rather than just being a synonym for idiot, and it isn't exactly inacurate in that sense since birds are very excitable and hop around. However I also don't understand how being compared to a bird could ever be a bad thing, I mean they are so cute, how could being similar to them not just be an objectively good thing?

[@Haze01Smash]

I was expecting to hear more about the danger Australia's drop bears pose to humans.

[@girtbysea7831]

So true. Visitors to Australia really need to be warned about them.

[@Tinkbook]

It's so dangerous, the number of injured tourists each year is getting worse.

[@greensteve9307]

Different species. Koalas are herbivores.

[@Aru_im]

I wonder why a lot of tourists gets injured by them, do you usually see them in the city?

[@lmost]

The North American Jackalope puts the drop bear to utter shame

[@JaniLaaksonen91]

I only heard they're aggressive and might rip your face off with their claws

[@freazeezy]

That's the koalas cousin the drop bear. Easy mistake to make and one that claims the lives of hundreds of tourists each year.

[@davidegaruti2582]

I mean most animals are to be fair

[@Jake12220]

​@@freazeezyno he was right, a wild koala is likely to rip huge gashes in you if you try to pick it up. Drop bears are like a cross between a koala and a polar bear, there normally isn't much left after they get done with anyone unfortunate enough to cross their path.

[@davideostudio2664]

Koalas get that much hatred?! Try holding one like I got to when I visited Australia, they’re SO FLUFFY!!!

[@oxenford539]

they're highly likely to urinate if you hold them. which is bad because they have chlamydia.

[@user-lr8ow2jg4e]

and weak

[@indigofenix00]

It's always annoying when an animal develops a hate culture because of some meme slandering them, especially when the reason for the slander is something as arbitrary as "they don't move much" or "they are struggling with invasive diseases and habitat destruction" as if that's THEIR fault. True, to live off eucalyptus koalas have to be hyperspecialists, but given how absurdly prolific eucalyptus is and how little competition they get, it's a solid niche to specialize in.

[@user-lr8ow2jg4e]

Yea it's completely their fault that they SUCK

[@John-rl9ue]

As an Outside player, the reasons us players don't really like koalas is because they are low-tier builds.

[@N12015]

Low tier? They're BOTTOM tier, almost Sloth-levels of terrible, just like Pandas.

[@ryane5281]

True, plus the drop bear build is more fun and a little overtuned. They might need to add more vegemite in the next patch to help balance it.

[@atreidesson]

​@@N12015oh, so is bottom tier high or mid? Since it's not low by you. Sloths also have good bloodline, I wonder why have they failed so badly. I actually noticed now that Tier is literally a beast in German 😮

[@adpirtle]

Koala hate is news to me. I thought everyone agreed they were just adorable.

[@lmaobox4068]

Everyone with smooth brains like the koala sure will sympathize with koalas

[@00Linares00]

tbf, people stopped sharing the copypasta on reddit after the bushfire that wiped a lot of them out

[@Cyberlisk]

To be fair, I think "hate" is the wrong word, they are pitied as "weak animals", just like Sloths (and actually Pandas as well to a certain degree). Most people do in fact think Koalas are cute.

[@motile_automaton]

No, hate is the perfect word.

[@N12015]

The term indeed is not hate, is mockery... And they deserve it. They're dumb, are sleeping 90% of their life, oftentimes kills one of their twins (like Pandas) and have an awful diet.

[@GalootWrangler]

KOALA: Woe is us. SLOTH: You think you’ve got it rough! They named us after a deadly sin, or vice versa.

[@iamerror1699]

You don't get clicks that way.

[@Angelwitch99]

I had heard some of these thing about Kaolas but even still I have always loved them and I am happy to learn that these things actually aren't as bad as the internet makes them seem and that Kaolas actually deserves more credit than they've been given

[@qlx-i]

... You spelled it wrong

[@-Bill.]

The poop eating thing becomes a funny plot point in the under-appreciated anime - "Seton Academy - Join the Pack" It's full of great animal info!

[@zekegameing4956]

WHO'S OUT THERE HATEING koalas 😡?

[@wolveswordlupus8774]

Casual geographic

[@xBlackShadowsZz]

No one, they just want viewers

[@DOSFS]

More like make fun of, but I get their point. It is misconception.

[@Colonies_Dev]

@@wolveswordlupus8774 😂😂 i follow him

[@bloom4047]

ME 😡💥💯⁉️🔥

[@angelicagaldos]

I love koalas. I have never heard anyone saying bad things about them till now

[@oneguyonascooter9278]

Title: "Why Do People Hate Koalas?" Me: "People hate koalas?"

[@dukelornek]

I realy love content like this that better enlighten our understanding rather then just appeal to our affect.

[@babilon6097]

Smooth talk on behalf of smooth brain. Sorry. Can't think of a joke about koalescing.

[@readjordan2257]

I literally work for a school with a koala as the mascot. This is definitely not a worldwide sentiment.

[@Fiskene]

I actually think the "faecal pap" thing is quite ingenious. The natural world never stops impressing me, but I love how Koalas have evolved to instinctively learn this vital behaviour. And, I mean, it might sound gross to us, but Koalas are only processing plants through their body, and I'm somewhat confident that their tastebuds have evolved to identify these compounds as pleasant rather than foul.

[@charlesajones77]

"The universe is balanced on the back of a giant koala. WHY IS HE SMILING?"

[@thekingofcardboard]

I think koalas are terrible because they adapted to an evolutionary niche that didnt pay off in the slightest.

[@atreidesson]

well they freaking survived, that literally is the only criteria of their niche paying off

[@pat9353]

⁠​⁠@@atreidessonthey only survive because they live in an ecosystem that has no large land predators. Speaking of survival, they’re not doing a great job of that either (although that’s mostly our fault tbf).

[@atreidesson]

@@pat9353 yeah so if somewhere is no predators, one shall go there and easily survive, for his own good. And when someone survives with no predators in sight, it's bad only for the predators! They could've eaten him but never did it. Also notice how no one can prey on civilized humans and that's totally OK

[@AeAeRon]

You didn't address the incredibly obnoxious sounds they make. I used to think they are very cute until I saw a video of them yelling

[@trinefanmel]

Finally some love! I'd argue that all the hate/indifference is part of the reason koalas are endangered and very few people actually care...

[@eljanrimsa5843]

But koalas are not endangered

[@petermanou9083]

You missed the main criticism. From my experience, the main reason people hate koalas is that we spend so much money keeping them from going extinct when there are other animals that actually should get the money because they are more crucial to there respective environments.

[@TessaBain]

Meanwhile, in reality, they're not trying to save them at all and are destroying their habitats. Should probably look up friendlyjordies if you think anyone in power is actually trying to save them instead of just making their corporate owners and, in turn, their own bank accounts, happy.

[@petermanou9083]

@@TessaBain Who cares about "people in power"? My point is that money is donated by individuals for animal conservation, and it is then spent by organizations on koalas instead of animals more important to their local ecosystems. At no point did I mention any governments, or billionaires, or anyone else that could be considered "in power." I just said that, compared to many other animals at risk of extinction, koalas are a waste of money.

[@ARandomGuy24]

They live perfectly fine in gumtrees. All we have to do to not let them go extinct is not cut down their special trees. It isn't hard.

[@petermanou9083]

@@ARandomGuy24 Sure, they live fine in gumtrees, until the gumtrees are on fire. Australia burns very frequently, and when it does, millions get spent on koalas. I'm not saying I'm in favor of koala extinction, but they don't help the local ecosystem and that money can go to animals that do. I'm just saying, koala extinction won't have a huge ramification on the local environment, but there could very will be ecosystem collapses if Dingoes or Woylies go extinct.

[@ARandomGuy24]

@@petermanou9083 They wouldn't have so little that they need to be saved from being burned if so many of their trees weren't already cut down/continuing to be cut down. Fires were burning those trees for tens of thousands of years. They'll grow back quickly. It would fine if the sample size of tries wasn't so tiny and continuing to shrink through non fire related "urban development."

[@HKVC]

I think it's because Koalas are also Chlamydia bears

[@exploshaun]

Hey, the internet have basically the same criticism for pandas too. Bear shape animals exclusively eating nutritionally poor leaves leaving both species endangered when humans invaded their land.

[@sameer1321]

The collab we never expected, but the one we needed!

[@sarahjberman]

We ❤️ Koalas and Tibees!!

[@DeRien8]

Not to mention adult rabbits eat their own feces in a specialized cycle to finish digesting. Gorillas too, but less specialized. Herbivory is hard when you don't have a huge digestive system that ferments well.

[@besmart]

I don't like koalas but it's because their noses are creepy and I can't look at their faces without staring in horror at that tubular thing that looks like a black slug crawling out of their skull. Go stare at a koala picture and you'll agree with me, I guarantee, pure horrorshow

[@ItsDeveloper_]

:/

[@Mark_badas]

Why did you do this to me.😢😢

[@davidshi451]

lmao I was not expecting this hot take, especially from you!

[@DefnitelyNotFred]

Ohhh I like them, makes them look like tiny baby elephants with micro trunks 🤗

[@tbird81]

Used to love koalas, now I want them extinct.

[@lasercraft32]

This sounds like the age old situation of scientist being like "hey we just learned that these animals do this thing for this reason" and the news/social media being like "WHAT? Scientists discovered this animal does this thing!" and oversimplifies it and leaves out the entirety of its context.

[@VestedUTuber]

"The internet has determined that Pandas are the cutest things ever" _Angry Fennec Noises_

[@TheRealBatabii]

"why do people hate koalas?" Man why can't you guys make up your minds on titles?

[@TheRealBatabii]

Now you changed it AGAIN, from "Why the Internet is Wrong About Koalas" to "Koalas Don't Deserve This"

[@TheRealBatabii]

And now you changed it back to the first way. What the hell.

[@YouTubeUzername]

These are just facts about Koalas, no one hates them for these things or in general.

[@weallstilldie]

I think the koalas’ flaws like chlamydia and eating a low nutrient toxic leaf as its only source of flaws are reasons for humans to hold off on expenses in helping the species, as natural selection is as natural as it gets. However, massive fires that are caused by human emissions and kill WAY too many koalas should be taken accounted for and is a good reason for us to help koalas. However, you can’t sit there eating poisonous leaves, unable to use much energy because digesting such leaves uses so much of it, and ask me to put thousands of dollars to help you. At that point, I just have to wonder why they evolved this way.

[@nilnil8411]

Koalas have zero survival skills nor the brain or agility, I wonder how they've survived for this long.

[@HipsterShiningArmor]

I didn’t even know the internet hated koalas. I thought it was dolphins that the internet really hated

[@cutepuddleslime8201]

I never agreed entirely with the Dolphin hate, sure they may show more of an aggressive intelligence than most animals but all animals are menaces to an extent. Dolphins are wild animals who just so happen to have a brain structure kind of like a human, so lumping them in as monsters is a bit unfair. Generally, all wild animals are feisty.

[@jdsonical]

we need a video about the sunfish next

[@GrayBlood1331]

I kept thinking that voice sounded so familiar... and about halfway though the video I was like "Hey! is that tibees?" pretty cool to see people showing up when you least expect it!

[@kennethmoses4900]

No Yank nor perfidious Albionite may slander our furry friends. The Koala is a national treasure! 🐨🇦🇺😤

[@bilgemilk1440]

Great video! I was really hoping you were going to cover Koala Chlamydia because I really don't know if it's true or not that almost all Koalas have STD's

[@Jake12220]

Yep they almost all do, but if you want something really disturbing to look up, check out the mating behaviour of ducks.

[@cancan-wq9un]

I doubt most of the stuff here are meant literally. Like "small brain" thing, it is based on observed behavior, which is far from most mammal behavior. Not every single evolutionary path requires to "advance" the species to ensure survival. Pandas are another example to this, they still exist only because humans want them to, due to their bias towards cute animals. If you are not, you are a goner even if that means the collapse of the ecosystem.

[@chrisjohngrima9761]

Who the hell thinks that honey badgers are "cute" those are terrifying

[@GIRGHGH]

The main reason I don't want anything to do with them is that they're fierce. Cute, sure, cuddly, no way.

[@TheFanatical1]

The thing is, you say all of these things about the brain and then you point out that birds and other smooth-brained creatures can be very smart. But Koalas aren't smart. They're very dumb. That isn't any less true because they have a smooth brain, the smooth brain is what people use to indicate how dumb they are. It might be unrelated, but pointing out actually smart animals that have a different brain structure (and don't even live in the same family) doesn't really help the fact that anyone who has seen a Koala knows it is stupid. When people point out that a Koala has to spend an inordinate amount of effort digesting what is essentially a toxic substance that gives them no real energy (meaning they have to sit around all day and have no evolutionary pressure to do anything but sit around all day), that's a good indication that they're evolutionarily over-specialised. I mean, you can't really *be* over-specialised, but evolutionary specialisation doesn't encourage intelligence because that's almost the the opposite of what a generalist means in an evolutionary context.

[@N12015]

And considering brains waste a lot of power and Koalas have an almost calory-free diet, that means brain neurosis is not a priority.

[@TheFanatical1]

@@N12015 Indeed.

[@ac.creations]

Chlamydia.

[@TheLobsterCopter5000]

I think most people just think Koalas are weird/funny. The closely related Drop Bear is the more vilified species.

[@cerosis]

I love the angry baby looking Koala at the table

[@BoyProdigyX]

Aww, I love you *KOALAS!!* 🐨💚

[@this_is_patrick]

I've never seen anyone _hate_ hate them. They fill in the "cute but dumb" niche on the internet; naturally, everyone makes fun of them for being cute but dumb.

[@mistyblooming]

Whoever voiced the koala has beautiful voice!! Can't stop listening to it..

[@Andy_M986]

Tibees,she has her own KZbin channel.

[@cedrus.forest_.]

no way someone had the balls to say they’re the same

[@alexisevrard8293]

Funny: in France where I live, koala is considered cute fluffy plush. Everybody here would like to cuddle a koala. Keep it up, koalas!

[@scikick]

Absolutely love tibees' dialogues.

[@Gigas0101]

The sound Koalas make was terrifying enough that they are now the template for orcs and bugbears when I run D&D. Love the Aussie Racoons!

[@Kyleplaysgames567]

I think both Koalas and Pandas would likely go extinct if it weren't for us.

[@missnaomi613]

Thanks for the high koalat-y content! ❤

[@TojiFushigoroWasTaken]

Fun fact: Pandas have the most number of naturally birthed twins....but only of the twin usually survives....because the mother fing forgets she had twins and one of them usually starves to death. Like even when she has more than enough resources or in a fing zoo where there are people taking of her 24/7 she does this

[@littledevil8146]

I haven't met any person that hates koalas

[@teainnit27]

In 2006 three men tried to steal a koala from a Queensland, Australia zoo. They gave up after the koala “scratched the shit out of them”, so they stole a crocodile instead. That's good survival instincs if I ever seen any.

[@edoardocastelnovi7154]

These fluffy modaf***ers have the exact same problem of pandas and frankly all other cute balls: they completely overshadow EVERYTHING AND EVERYBODY ELSE, which Always means people get absolutely obsessed by them and do not pay attention to all the other (and usually way more ecologically precious) living beings on Earth. That Is the REAL koala issue

[@KahruSuomiPerkele]

4:15 don't get me wrong, pandas are cute, but they deserve as much hate as koalas for being such weird animals.

[@kovaxim]

When he said "you're not a koala" I thought he was going to say "so stop eating eucalyptus leaves"

[@GraemeGowling]

That Koala sounds australian new zealand and scottish at the same time

[@Owen_loves_Butters]

2:17 That is a good point, but it's also a question of circumstance. Sure, if the leaves are plentiful, it makes sense to only go for the best ones. But if they're scarce, wouldn't any sustenance be better than none? (Maybe they would burn more calories eating and digesting the fallen leaves than they would gain?) Just a curious viewer, not a koala hater.

[@thelastfruitcake]

digestion takes a lot of energy, so it might not be worth it to eat sub-par food when you're starving. For example, people lose calories from eating celery, so eating celery when you're starving might not be the best option. (idk what actually would be the best option in that case since I'm not an expert).

[@Owen_loves_Butters]

@@thelastfruitcake I mean, I pointed out that possibility in my comment

[@thelastfruitcake]

@Owen_loves_Butters yeah, i was confirming what i know about the topic. sorry if my wording wasn't good

[@ncarter7999]

All I got from this 5 minute long video is confirmation that all of the koala myths are basically true. Not sure what the point was. I'm also sad that they didn't talk about koala syphilis.

[@rangertalksdogsgames7996]

You can't change my mind on the fact they sound like Satan getting a pelvic examine

[@craniifer]

It's wild that people will give koalas shit for being dumb and then sing praises about dogs.

[@shorpee4165]

Love how the koala has an Aussie accent

[@BlackGateofMordor]

Kiwi accent.

[@Croz89]

​@@BlackGateofMordor Vowels don't sound right for a Kiwi accent, though I could be wrong.

[@evilgeniusha01]

​@@Croz89Toby is a New Zealand native who currently lives in Australia so her accent is probably somewhere in between.

[@Croz89]

@@evilgeniusha01 Yeah, that would make sense. The way she said the i in "think" sounded pretty Australian, in NZ it sounds more like "thunk" especially in the strongest accents.

[@MrT_Rex]

Like koalas or die

[@antonioandrealencar1639]

Don’t feel like it

[@hoshiro.exsharaen]

You... got my attention right away 😂 I am surrounded by people who love koalas (anyone know which koala I use as my pic?), so I don't know that people hate koalas...

[@JohnSmith-td7hd]

Bunnies eat their own poop, too. They have to. But they don't get sick like humans would, and it's only gross to us so that we don't do it.

[@Tretas.]

Indeed they do, it's called _coprophagy_ and many in the animal kindgom do it, like guinea pigs, chinchillas, etc. But koalas in particularly feed the cubs with the mom's feces in order to help them digesting certain foods -- hippos, pandas, elephants, etc. do this too.

[@ntatenarin]

I feel that MinuteEarth are the only people with the koalifications to talk about this topic. The koalas should feel special as well, as instead of a minute, they got an almost 5 minute, MinuteEarth, video! I like to think of them as nature's pillows.

[@DukeBG]

This video felt like full of straw-man arguments. People don't "hate" hate koalas, they just think they're a dumb barely functional animal that only managed to not go extinct by not really having predators. Only eating eucalyptus, which isn't even really nutritious, so they have to have overly long and complicated digestive tract, not do anything through the day but eat the barely fulfilling eucalyptus and sleep. Which doesn't really make them evolve their brain. So as a species capabilities go, they don't earn much respect.

[@jaybingham3711]

Pretty sure koalas don't have hardly any predators because they are so cute. Also, pretty sure a cage fight against a sloth would be the highest grossing fight ever.

[@atlantianson515]

Regardless of what koalas do, they have to do it to survive. They evolved that way. I think they are absolutely adorable. I've seen videos of Australians collecting them and rendering first aid and medical care to them. Never heard of koala or group of koala attacking humans, so I find it unfathomable that there is so much hate for this animal. If I ever find a koala in trouble, I will definitely go out of my way, spend the last dollar I have, do whatever I can to help. I wonder if they are able to eat anything else other than eucalyptus leaves fresh off the tree. I'll do my research, but now I'm very curious. 🙂😊☺

[@I_am_him_42069]

imagine not being born with probably the single most important thing to your survival

[@Mark_badas]

The ability to walk ? The ability to eat something else then milk ? The ability to have teeth ? Oh wait. That is the case for humans.

[@I_am_him_42069]

@@Mark_badas I'm talking abt the microbes, even then ur reply was irrelevant asl, and ur roast was not it

[@Mark_badas]

@@I_am_him_42069 I know that you mean the microbes but still. A lot of successful animals needs support from parents to be successful. Mammals for example.

[@I_am_him_42069]

@@Mark_badas can u not take a joke bro ?

[@fodkfkdkfkfkfjfjfj]

@@I_am_him_42069 that was the worst joke I’ve ever heard.

[@rangertalksdogsgames7996]

4:09 the argument here is they don't NEED to eat their parents poop. They can still technically eat and digest on their own, but Koalas HAVE to get the bacteria from their mother, otherwise they'll starve on an full stomach because they can't break down the leaves

[@matiassu5604]

So they do need them then? That's like saying you don't need brakes to drive, you'll go from A to B just fine, but will die on impact.

[@rangertalksdogsgames7996]

@matiassu5604 what I'm saying is to get the bacteria needed to digest food, Koalas HAVE to eat their mothers poop, otherwise they have NO WAY of getting the bacteria to digest the one thing they will eat, so they will starve Other animals CAN digest their food without needing to eat their mothers poop. While they may, they don't need to like koalas

[@PizzaRocks]

microbes can be cultured (domesticated) in a lab, so technically, yes, you're right! People just don't want to admit that there are more humane ways to colonize the gastrointestinal tract of koalas and other animals in captivity, and it's much safer, as it will lower the risk of contracting pathogenic strains of E. Coli and bertiella obesa (koala tapeworm) In the wild, I'm not sure if there is a way out of this, but I'm determined to think if you were to try to make it easier for wild specimens to access beneficial microbes, is to transabdominally inject a wild female koala's uterus with cultured organisms to ensure the fetus will get colonized with the microbes before birth so they would no longer need "pap"

[@mixofreak]

Most people think they're cute... just helpless. Without realizing how sharp and strong their claws and paws are.

[@10to1imjokin]

I believe rabbits also produce two different types of poop pellets, one of which they eat again, for the added nutrients.

[@itchy7879]

Love the Tibbies cameo as the koala 😂

[@corporateturtle6005]

Love how they never mentioned how 80% of koalas have klamydia.. lol

[@mandymom2800]

Dogs have contagious venereal cancer which is worse imo

[@Arcterion]

What about half the koala population having chlamydia though?

[@TaliesinMyrddin]

The only "bad" thing about koalas is waking up at night listening to their demonic mating calls, and that's just a fun story to tell foreigners

[@nileshkumaraswamy2711]

‘Sleepy, slow and a bit weird’ sounds like me fr.

[@abcdLeeXY]

Who hates koalas? I wanna see some hands

[@CrushedAria]

Please reconsider your BetterHelp sponsorship.

[@raraavis7782]

Really? Hated? I never knew that. I rather thought, they were the kind of animal that everyone goes all warm and fuzzy over (because they're 'cute'), even though there's nothing all that special about it. I mean, they're special as in unusual, for sure. But it's not like they're some kind of keystone species or something. If they die out...well. It's not a huge tragedy. They're just other animals, that are far more important.