SEASON'S FIRST KOALA JOEYS ARRIVE

Bai’yali and her mum

The season’s first koala joeys have ventured outside their mothers’ pouches, just in time for the NSW school holidays.

Taronga Zoo welcomed the first of three joeys expected for the breeding season. The female has been given the name Bai’yali (pronounced ‘bye-yah-lee’) after the D'harawal Aboriginal word for ‘stringybark’, one of the eucalyptus species favoured by koalas, in honour of NAIDOC Week.

Koala keeper Laura Jones said Bai’yali’s mother Tilly, has taken to her new role remarkably well.

“She’s proving to be a very relaxed and nurturing mum. She’s doing all the right things and her joey is thriving. Bai’yali is fully out of the pouch now and can often be seen holding onto mum and snuggling in her belly when they are resting,” Laura said.

Featherdale Wildlife Park is home to five little Koala joeys this season. Two of the joeys, Ghera and Archer, have started emerging from the pouch, and visitors to the Park can see Ghera (which means Gum Leaf) during their visit. Archer is being cared for by his foster mum, and will soon join the other koala joeys in the Mums and Bubs nursery.

Walkabout Park, north of Sydney, has also welcomed a new addition to their koala family, and is running a competition to name the joey throughout the school holidays. All entries will go into a draw, with the winner given an opportunity to meet the mother and baby.