In a refreshing break from the anxiety-ridden headlines, five koalas that were rescued from the Australian bushfires have been released back into the wild.
WATCH BELOW: Australia Zoo Takes In Hundreds Of Animals Affected By The Bushfires
Sydney’s Taronga Zoo announced on Monday that the conservation organisation set four koalas and a newborn joey free into Kanangra-Boyd National Park in the state of New South Wales this week.
They are the first of 12 koalas rescued by the zoo to be welcomed back into the wild after the nation’s wildfires ravaged more than 2.5 million acres of land.
“While they have coped well in care, we are delighted to finally send our koalas home,” Kellie Leigh, executive director of Science for Wildlife, said in a statement.
Before releasing the endangered species home, the team assessed the burned area that they were rescued from to ensure trees can provide food for the koalas once again.
RELATED: How You Can Help Animals Affected By The Bushfire Crisis
“The recent rains have helped and there is now plenty of new growth for them to eat, so the time is right,” Leigh added.
To track the koalas’ progress, the team will use already-installed tracking devices first utilised when finding the animals they needed to save from the bushfires.
In March 2020, it was reported that around 5,000 koalas in New South Wales alone are likely to have died in the devastating bushfires.
The remaining seven koalas currently being looked after at Taronga Zoo will be released in the near future.
In a refreshing break from the anxiety-ridden headlines, five koalas that were rescued from the Australian bushfires have been released back into the wild.
WATCH BELOW: Australia Zoo Takes In Hundreds Of Animals Affected By The Bushfires
In a refreshing break from the anxiety-ridden headlines, five koalas that were rescued from the Australian bushfires have been released back into the wild.
WATCH BELOW: Australia Zoo Takes In Hundreds Of Animals Affected By The Bushfires
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