marsupial

Everyday

1. A marsupial is a mammal whose babies are born very small and then grow inside a pouch on the mother's body. tree →
2. Marsupial describes animals of this kind. tree →

In the lessons

In science, marsupials are a group of mammals: kangaroos, koalas, wombats, possums, Tasmanian devils and opossums. Most live in Australia and New Guinea; the opossum lives in the Americas. A baby marsupial is called a joey (for kangaroos and koalas).

Examples

• A kangaroo is a marsupial. tree →
• Marsupials carry their babies in a pouch. tree →
• The koala is a marsupial, not a bear. tree →
• The baby wombat stays in its mother's pouch. tree →
• The opossum is the only marsupial in North America. tree →
• Most marsupials live in Australia. tree →
• Is a platypus a marsupial? No, it lays eggs. tree →

Note

Countable. Trap: the koala is often called a "koala bear", but it is not a bear. The platypus and echidna lay eggs; they are monotremes, not marsupials.