Hello, This is duz😀
There is a lovely smiling animal living in Australia.
It's a quokka that became famous on social media.😍
Quokka always has a lovely smile and is nicknamed the 'happiest animal in the world'.
Today, we're going to have a time to learn about quokka.🧐
『The habitat of quokka』
The animal, called the quokka or kutaka wallaby, lives on the island of Rottnest in southwestern Australia.
Quokka live in wasteland and wetlands, and dig underground and live in groups.
Rotnest Island, the habitat of quokka, is said to mean 'rat nest' in Dutch because Europeans who first saw quokka misunderstood it as a mouse and named it.🐭
The island of Rotnest, home to quarks, has a long environment without their natural enemies, so people are not afraid to approach them.
For this reason, it has become popular for people to take selfies with quokka.📸
『The appearance of a quokka』
Quokka became very popular on social media because she was not afraid of people with her small body, puffy cheeks, round and small ears, and a cute face that seemed to be smiling all the time.
It is greyish brown in color, 40-54cm in height, 2.5-5kg in weight, and 25-30cm in tail, similar to small mammals.
『Characteristics of quokka』
Quocas are kangaroos and small animals that raise their young in their belly bags like kangaroos, and are herbivores and nocturnal like kangaroos. 🦘
The quokka has a gestational period of 27 days and gives birth to one baby at a time.
The island of Rottnest, where quokka lives, is very dry.
Since quokka are kangaroos, they can last a month without water.
『Nickname of quokka』
Quokka became famous for being nicknamed the 'happiest animal in the world', 'walking fine', and 'smiling fine'.
Her smile never left her face, earning her the nickname the 'happiest animal in the world,' but she was listed as an 'endangered animal' in 1996.
Currently in Australia, there is a law where you have to pay a fine just by touching a quokka to protect the endangered quokka 💰
❌If you travel to Australia, a person will pick a quokka. You should not touch it. ❌ It is okay for a quokka to approach a person and touch a person on its own.
There is a fine just by touching a quokka, so it's called a 'walking fine lump', a fine that comes with a smile, and even called an 'Australian IRS employee'. 🤣
『Endangered animal』
As I mentioned earlier, quokka are endangered animals.
The reason quokka is endangered can be largely seen as an 'environmental factor' and an 'artificial factor'.
First, the 'environmental factor' is the natural enemy of quokka.
Red foxes and cats are natural enemies of quokka 🐱
Quokka has gradually narrowed its habitat to avoid the threat of predators, and now it remains only on the island of Rottnest.
Secondly, it's an artificial factor.
The extinction of quarks seems to be due to artificial factors.
Artificial factors include 'the indiscriminate hunting and pioneering activities of Europeans when Australia was colonized.' 🏹
At this time, the number of quarks appears to have decreased significantly 😥
Next, we have 'climate change'.
Global warming is becoming more severe ☀ All of Australia has become drier, causing more wildfires.
In November 2015, wildfires in western Australia destroyed the 🔥 quokka's habitat, killing 90% of it.
Lastly, it's 'abuse'.
There were often incidents where some people liked people and beat, bullied, and killed the approaching quokka. 😡
Among them, two French tourists who visited Australia in April 2015 burned a quokka alive that approached them and greeted them.
The quokka was not seriously injured in the incident, but she suffered burns and two French tourists were fined $4,000.
So far, we've learned about the endangered quokka loved for its cute face.3
If you were curious about quokka, I hope it helped you a little bit, and I hope today's post will help you become more interested in the endangered quokka and help protect your precious life ☺
I'll come back with interesting and informative posts next time! 🤗