Australian Zoo Welcomes First Koala Joey Born After the Wildfires

The Australian Reptile Park has welcomed Ash, the first koala joey born after the devastating wildfires.

Australian Zoo Welcomes 1st Koala Joey After Wildfire

(Photo: Facebook screengrab/Australian Reptile Park)

Video Editor: Ashutosh Bhardwaj

Amid the gloom caused by the coronavirus pandemic, here is a story that sparks joy.

Ash peeping from her mother’s pouch(Photo Courtesy: Instagram/Australian Reptile Park)

The Australian Reptile Park, a zoo in Australia’s New South Wales, has welcomed a furry bundle of joy – Ash, the first koala joey born after the series of wildfires that devastated the country recently.

The park shared an adorable video of Ash on Facebook. The video shows zookeeper Dan Rumsey greeting Ash, who poked out of her mother’s pouch to greet him back. The video has gone viral on social media.

“Ash is the first koala born at the park since the tragic Australian bushfires and is a sign of hope for the future of Australia’s native wildlife,” the Facebook post read. The koala joey was born in January but the zoo released her video only in May because koala joeys stay in their mothers’ pouch for around seven months before they decide to emerge. Recently, Ash decided to peep at the zookeepers. That’s when they released the video.

Ash’s home New South Wales was declared fire-free in March after almost 240 days. Up to 30 percent of the koala species in the New South Wales area had perished in the devastating wildfires.

The World Wildlife Fund estimates that close to 12.6 million hectares of land was ravaged and more than 1.25 billion animals perished in the wildfires.