How long does Koalas live? Age of the Koala

Koalas have a reasonable lifespan of around 12 to 15 years. In the wild, the average age of a koala is around 13 years while the maximum recorded age (in the wild) for the koalas is around 18 years. The average ages of the koalas may also vary on the basis of gender, geographic conditions and the availability of the food supplies as well.

The average age of a koala in the wild is 13 years. Female koalas (15 years) live longer than the male koalas (12 years).

For example; according to the records, the female koalas have the tendency to live more than the male koalas. The average age for the female koalas is around 15 years and for the male koalas is around 12 years. Therefore; the female koalas outlive the male koalas by the margin of at least 3 years on average in the wild.

Koalas' average age is 13 years.
The average age of the koalas is around 13 years. Female koalas live longer than the male koalas, have an an average age of 15 to 16 years on average while males have an average age of just 12 years. Photo courtesy of  

Koalas
Reasonable Lifespan Average Age
13 Years Male Koalas
12 Years Female Koalas
15 Years Maximum Age
17 to 18 Years

Average Age of the Koala.
The Average age for the Koala is around 12 to 16 Years. However, some Koalas live longer than this time period as well. This Picture belongs to 

Usually; the koalas in captivity live more than the koalas in the wild. Therefore; their average ages and the maximum ages in the captivity as compared to the wild may also vary. As mentioned earlier that the maximum age for the koala in the wild is recorded to be 18 years. But this may not be an all time maximum age for the koalas.

Koalas in captivity live more than the koalas in the wild. The all time highest recorded age for a koala is 21 years at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Australia.

In captivity the koalas often live for more than 18 years . There are some records which show koalas living for more than 18 years in the captivity. For example; the maximum recorded age for the koala in the captivity at the Lone Pine Koala sanctuary is 21 years which is 3 years more than the maximum recorded age of the koalas in the wild.

Maximum recorded age for the koala is 21 years
The maximum recorded age for the koalas is recorded to be 21 years. A female koala at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary lived for 21 years. Photo courtesy of  

Koalas in Captivity
Live Longer Koalas in Wild
Live Less Maximum Age in Wild
18 Years Maximum Age in Captivity
21 Years Female Koalas
Live Longer

Koalas live for 12 to 16 years.
Koalas live a reasonable age as the time span of 12 to 16 years is very common among many other mammals as well e.g., monkeys, dogs, kangaroos, lions and tigers etc. This Picture belongs to 

Geographic location, availability of the food resources, habitat loss and the droughts also make a big impact on the lifespan of the koalas. In the tougher scenarios only the fittest survives while during good times everyone thrives in terms of their lifespan.

The average ages of the koalas in Queensland region are less than the average ages of the koalas in Victorian region.

For example the average age of the koalas in the Queensland area is less than the average age of the koalas in the Victorian areas. Queensland areas have harsh environment for the koalas, therefore; only the fittest survives in those areas. Victorian areas have favorable environment for the koalas, therefore; every thrives in those areas and the average age is high for the Victorian koalas is high.

Koalas' age also depend on geographic factors and living conditions.
Geographic factors and living conditions also impact the average ages of the koalas. For example the koalas from Queensland region live lesser on average than the koalas from the Victorian region. Photo courtesy of  

Geographic Location
Koala Age Varies Food Supply
Koala Age Varies Queensland Koalas
Live Less Victorian Koalas
Live More

Victorian Koalas live long
Victorian Koalas' live longer as compared to the Koalas that live at the Queensland territories. However, Queensland Koalas live slightly shorter, only because of the fact that the food availability is relatively less. This Picture belongs to  

Interestingly; the early estimates (19th century) regarding the lifespan of the koalas were a lot less than the recent estimates. According to the earlier estimates, the koalas' lifespan was just 4 to 5 years on average. In those days; there were no profound level wild studies on the koalas in the wild and the ages were measured in captivity.

According to the early estimates (19th and 20th century), the average lifespan for the koalas was around 4 to 5 years which was wrong.

Whereas; in captivity koalas could only manage to live for 4 to 5 years because of inappropriate living conditions. Therefore; the early researchers estimated that the koalas live for around 4 to 5 years on maximum.

Early Age Estimates
4 to 5 Years Lifespan Koala Studies
Were not Indepth Age Recorded
Captivity Earlier Estimates
Totally Wrong

Koalas' earlier lifespan estimate was 4 to 5 years in captivity.
The earlier estimated lifespan for the koalas was around 4 to 5 years in captivity which was absolutely wrong. Photo courtesy of  

There is a big mystery about why the female koalas outlive the male koalas? Not much has been studied and established about it so far but what we do know so far is the life for the male koalas in the wild is a lot tougher as compared to the female koalas. The male koalas have to establish their own territory and often have to fight with the rivals or the dominant males.

Why male koalas life less than the female koalas? One key factor includes their lack of access to the best food supplies of Eucalyptus leaves because of territorial conflicts.

Consequently; not all of the male koalas have the best access to the food supplies because of the territorial conflicts while female koalas are tolerated by the dominant male koalas within their territories. Therefore; for the male koalas not having a good access to the better food supplies of Eucalyptus leaves might have a big impact on their marginally smaller lifespan as compared to the female koalas. However; there may be a lot more factors impacting their lifespan as well.

Female Koalas live longer than the male koalas.
The female koalas live longer than the male koalas. Male Koalas usually have to fight for their territories and may not get a suitable territory for their living. Photo courtesy of  

Lastly; if we compare the average lifespan of the koalas with the other animals in the animal kingdom, we will notice that it matches a lot of other animals as well. For example the average lifespan of a domestic cat and dog is around 10 to 15 years. In the wild the average lifespan of the lions and tigers is around 10 to 12 years.

The lifespan or the average age of the koalas is almost identical to the lifespan of the kangaroos, dogs, cats, lions and even tigers.

Similarly; among the marsupial animals the kangaroos also follow the same lifespan of around 10 to 12 years in the wild. Another marsupial, the Wombat lives for around 15 years. Therefore; the koalas lifespan is almost identical to majority of the animals within the animal kingdom.

Koalas' lifespan is identical to the other animals.
The koalas' lifespan is almost identical to the lifespan of majority of other animals as well. Kangaroos almost have the same lifespan as that of the koalas. Photo courtesy of