Sydney zoo celebrates healthy koala joeys after months of Australian wildfires

A zoo in Australia is celebrating after two newborn koalas passed their first-ever health check with "flying colours".

Fresh from their mother’s pouches, Ilani and Jasper were weighed and assessed against key milestones at WILD LIFE Sydney Zoo on Wednesday.

The arrival of these joeys marks another successful year of koala breeding for the Darling Harbour attraction, which is designed to help protect the Australian-native species currently listed as vulnerable in the wild.

The country has had to contend with devastating wildfires in the last 12 months and millions of animals were hurt in the blazes.

During the weigh-in, Ilani came in at a strong 1.46kg at almost 10 months of age, while little Jasper was a healthy 805g at almost nine months of age.

Celebrating the positive results, WILD LIFE Sydney zoo keeper, Renee Howell, declared the pair as healthy “with bright eyes, thick fluffy fur and an incredible appetite”.

“These two will be fantastic ambassador animals for their species,” she said.

“Their role will be to educate the public about their wild cousins and just how important it is to be aware of what we as humans can do to protect our wild populations.”

She added: "We, as WILD LIFE Sydney Zoo, work with other zoos to ensure a healthy captive population and genetic diversity amongst these individuals."

Although well on the way to finding their independence, Ilani and Jasper will curl up with their respective mums, Iluka and Nutsy, for another four months before moving around freely on their own.

Read more

'Koala emergency' as report shows thousands died in bushfires