Southside’s own koala sanctuary gets off the ground

Chandler could soon be home to the southside’s own koala sanctuary with a rescue group purchasing land for a new homebase.

Queensland Koala Society founder Angela Christodoulou at the new centre at Belmont. Picture: Brian Bennion

THE FIRST stage of what is hoped to be a wildlife sanctuary is being established at Chandler by the Queensland Koala Society.

The non-profit wildlife rescue group has purchased a 2.5 acre property at Old Cleveland Rd to expand its rehabilitation work.

Founder Angela Christodoulou said her plan was to eventually turn the site into a wildlife sanctuary open to the public.

After working as a wildlife rescuer at the RSPCA, Ms Christodoulou branched out on her own five years ago and two years ago established Queensland Koala Society Inc.

She has rescued 478 koalas in the five years and raised and rehabilitated more than 400 orphaned or injured animals from gliders to bandicoots and owls.

Her band of volunteers have been busy setting up enclosures on the property with two koala enclosures 7m long and 4m high and enclosures for birds and bandicoots.

The group plans to plant 200 eucalypt trees on the site to feed the koalas and is calling for volunteers to join a future planting day.

Five rescued koala joeys have been transferred to the Chandler site including two rescued from bushfires in Toowoomba and two from fires from Gympie

“After the fires there is no leaf and mums were dumping their babies,” Ms Christodoulou said.

“The two at the Gympie fires were found without mum, clinging to each other and when they were rescued they had to go together so Australia Zoo rang me and asked if I could take them.”

The group had been caring for orphaned and injured wildlife on their own properties but with the recent drought and bushfires, they had been inundated with wildlife to rehabilitate and had to find a dedicated home.

“The animals were going into the hospital, RSPCA, Australia Zoo and taken to carers,” Ms Christodoulou said.

“Since the fires up until December, I had 60 animals – gliders, birds, koalas, bandicoots and feathertail gliders. I had everything coming in from the fires, the drought. It is a lot less now, but I still have the five koalas which will be long term.

“It is good for the area. I just think it’s vital to have a facility like this close to our bushland in the southeast suburbs. This is a koala hotspot.”

To volunteer for the group, phone [phone].