The first koala to be born in Africa has finally emerged from his mother’s pouch, the National Zoological Gardens in Pretoria said on Monday.
”The National Zoological Gardens of South Africa implemented its selective breeding programme of its koala population in November last year and are overjoyed by the fact that we now have a youngster to add to the collection,” said the zoo’s executive director, Willie Labuschagne.
Conservation staff at the zoo have reported that the young joey, as young koalas are known, is regularly seen with its head out of mother Renée’s pouch. He was, however, camera shy on Monday — hiding inside the pouch when press photographers wanted to take a snap of him.
The joey, named ”Willie” after the zoo’s director, was born in January but he had to develop further in the pouch before being exposed to the world.
A young koala will remain in the pouch for the first six to seven months, feeding on its mother’s milk. At about 22 weeks its eyes will open and it will begin to peep out at the world from the safety of the pouch.
The conservator in charge of koala care at the zoo, Radion Khoza, says young Willie now weighs approximately 1kg.
”He is now seven months old and will start to eat eucalyptus from the age of eight months. At 12 months, he will be weaned and start to move around more freely outside the pouch,” Khoza said.
The koalas at the zoo are fed eight different species of eucalyptus daily and sleep for up to 20 hours of the day.
A closed-circuit television camera has been placed inside the area where Renée is caring for the joey.
Members of the public who want to see the latest arrival can watch his progress from a television screen mounted on a wall of the viewing area in the Koala House at the zoo. — Sapa