Sydney Zoo’s radical plan to help save koala population

The Sydney Zoo Foundation has given $100,000 to help boost koala numbers by constructing 60 large water towers in fire ravaged areas of the Blue Mountains.

The race is on to save one of our most iconic native animals from extinction.

Thousands of koalas, across numerous species, are feared dead due to the devastating bushfires which have destroyed their natural habitat.

Efforts to save the survivors are ramping up with many organisations raising funds to help keep them alive.

One of the water stations in the Blue Mountains region.

Among those is Sydney Zoo, which has launched a not-for-profit organisation to provide financial support and resources to Science for Wildlife’s Blue Mountains Koala Project.

The Sydney Zoo Foundation has contributed $100,000 to the koala recovery operation and is asking the public to help it raise a further $50,000 to construct and deploy 60 large water towers in fire ravaged areas of the Blue Mountains to help koalas recover over time.

The instalment of water stations will help keep the koala population alive.

According to Science for Wildlife, koalas from this region are the most genetically diverse in Australia, making them incredibly important to the survival of the species.

Right now the biggest threat to our koalas is dehydration and starvation, said Dr Kellie Leigh, executive director for Science for Wildlife.

“We’ve lost millions of animals in the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage area alone. Many habitats have been burnt and the rest are very poor quality due to the drought,” she said.

All funds raised will help the koala population in the Blue Mountains region.

The funds will also support their camera trap project which aims to check where koalas and other species are using these water stations.

“We can target efforts to help koala populations recover over time,” Dr Leigh said.

Sydney Zoo Foundation director, Jake Burgess, said now is the time to get behind saving our koalas.

“With one of the country’s most genetically diverse koala populations it is extremely important to conserve koalas in this local region and do all that we can to make a difference,” he said.

Help the local wildlife by donating here.

Originally published as Sydney Zoo’s radical plan to help save koala population