Eighty-seven per cent endemic
No other continent has wildlife so much its own. When Australia separated from the rest of the land, placental mammals had not yet reached it, and the marsupials took every role.
The best known wildlife of Australia takes in the monotremes, the marsupials (such as the kangaroo, the koala and the wombat), and birds such as the emu. Many plants and animal species died out with the first Aboriginal settlements, and others following the European one.
| Group | How they are born | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Monotremes | They lay eggs | Platypus, echidna |
| Marsupials | They bear live young | Kangaroo, koala, wombat |
| Placentals | Bats, rats, dingo |
The monotremes are the only branch of mammals that still lays eggs, and only five species are left in the world: all of them live in Australia or New Guinea.