By JESSE GRAHAM
SAY hello to one of Healesville Sanctuary’s newest residents.
The new female koala, born on New Year’s Eve, has been hiding away in her mother Emily’s pouch for the last few months, but recently decided to come out and say hello.
The joey has yet to be named and has been coming in and out of her mother’s pouch in recent weeks. Keepers think that in two weeks, she’ll have grown too much to go back at all.
She is the first female koala to be born at the sanctuary since 2005.
The Mail had the special opportunity of hopping into the koala enclosure with keeper, Julie Koch, and getting up close to the sanctuary’s new furry friend.
Zoos Victoria is running a competition to name the new koala, and keepers have come up with a shortlist of names, inspired by indigenous plants – Acacia, Banksia, Melli and Hazel.
To put your vote forward in the naming competition, which closes at 5pm on Saturday 13 September, visit www.zoo.org.au/naming-competition.
For more photos, visit mail.starcommunity.com.au.
