When the first settlers came to Australia just over 200 years ago, they were surprised by the weird and wonderful wildlife they encountered. A bird that runs faster than most land animals, a small bear like tree dweller, hundreds of beautifully colored parrots, the animals were like nothing the settlers had ever seen before. Most were named after the local Aboriginal terms for each animal hence such strange names as Kangaroo, Cockatoo, Koala and Wallaby.
Some were hunted into extinction,…