With all the latest news, it’s easy to forget that Australia’s wildfires happened earlier this year. Hundreds of acres of land burned. People were losing their homes, and others lost their lives. The the wildlife population took a huge hit. Conservationists believe that more than 6,000 koalas were lost in the fires.
A lot of the viral videos from the fires were of good samaritans and firefighters saving and bringing koalas and other wildflife to safety. Not to mention, those same conservationists and animal rescue facilities have been working tirelessly to help with the amount of displaced and injured animals. And finally, some good news surfaced.
At one of the facilities called The Australian Reptile Park, they shared on social media a photo of the the first baby koala born at their facility since the fires. And the internet is swooning.
https://www.instagram.com/tv/CAqlXzBgU7_/?utm_source=ig_embed
The cute and cuddly new joey is a baby girl, appropriately named Ash.
“We have a very special announcement- our very first koala of the season has popped out of mum to say hello! The Sowersby park shared to their facebook page, along with a few adorable photos.
According to researchers, Ash (born to mom, Rosie) is already about 5 months old. Since she has been born she has been hiding out and snuggling in Rosie’s pouch and is just ow making an appearance.
“Ash represents the start of what we’re hoping to be another successful breeding season. It was such an incredible moment when we saw Ash poke her head out of her mum’s pouch for the first time!” one of the keepers said in an interview.
Ash’s appearance couldn’t have come at a better time wither. Her arrival comes just as the park is opening up for the first time since the pandemic. It wasn’t juts the fires that hit them hard, but the park had to remain closed for a few months due to COVID-19.
“Our dedicated staff has been working throughout the lockdown to care for our animals, and now, we’re unbelievably excited to reopen our doors and welcome you back!” the park said in a recent statement on their reopening.
Though the reopening and first birth of a koala are great news, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done in Australia. Conservationists were so shocked at the number of lost koalas in the area that they are trying to get the species classified as endangered. Though there may be a ways to go we look forward to all the progress being made and whats to come.
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