KOALA, the genus Phascolarctos, and specially P. cinereus, the native bear or native sloth of the Australian colonies. It is a tailless, but pouched animal, about two feet long, with a stout body and limbs, a small head, moderate-sized ears, well-developed feet, and ash-gray fur. It feeds on the tender shoots of the blue gum tree, which the natives climb to effect its capture.