What are native animals?
Answer
Animal species found only in Australia
Explanation
Native animals in Australia include the world's most diverse groups of marsupials and monotremes, alongside thousands of species of birds, reptiles, fish, and invertebrates that have evolved in isolation since the continent separated from Antarctica about 35 million years ago. The country's ancient soils, dry climate, and lack of large carnivores produced fauna unlike any other on the planet.
Marsupials are the dominant native mammal group. They include kangaroos and wallabies (50-plus species across the macropod family), koalas, wombats (three species), Tasmanian devils, quolls, possums, gliders, bandicoots, bilbies, and the small carnivorous marsupials called dunnarts and antechinuses. The red kangaroo, the largest living marsupial in the world, can stand more than two metres tall and travel at 70 kilometres an hour. The koala is now listed as endangered along the eastern coast under federal law, with populations falling sharply since the 2019 to 2020 Black Summer fires.
Australia is also home to the only two species of monotreme in the world: the platypus and the short-beaked echidna. Monotremes are mammals that lay eggs rather than give birth to live young, an evolutionary line that diverged from other mammals more than 160 million years ago. The platypus is also venomous (through male hind-leg spurs), is electroreceptive (detects prey through electrical fields in water), and has a duck-like bill. Both species appear on Australian coins.
Birds, reptiles, and fish round out the country's vertebrate fauna. Australia has about 850 native bird species, including the emu, cassowary, kookaburra, magpie, and the world's most diverse parrot fauna with about 56 species. Reptiles include more than 880 species of snakes, lizards, turtles, and crocodiles, with the saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) the world's largest living reptile at up to seven metres long. Australia is also the country with the highest number of venomous snake species, although bites are rare and antivenom is widely available.
Why this matters for your test
Australia's native fauna includes some of the most distinctive animals on Earth, and recognising the marsupial and monotreme groups gives new citizens a foothold in the country's natural history.
Source: Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond (2024)
