Feature Article: Getting Some Koala-ty Time

Originally published in the Summer 2024 issue of Trunkline

This summer, your Louisville Zoo is taking you to the “Land Down Under” with the introduction of two new animal residents! Guests can look forward to meeting male koalas, Dharuk and Telowie, in the Australia Zone starting this June. The duo arrives in Louisville from San Diego Zoo in California. Visitors to the Zoo’s Australia Zone will come nose-to-nose with this beloved symbol of Australia in the newly renovated, former red panda habitat.

Despite their large, rounded ears and resemblance to bears, koalas are actually marsupials, like kangaroos and wombats. Koalas give birth to live, undeveloped young that crawl into a pouch on the female’s abdomen, where they continue growing.

Assistant Director Steve Taylor, with the Louisville Zoo since 1975, has seen many species come and go. He expressed his excitement in welcoming koalas to Louisville once more. “They’re always a guest draw,” he said. The unique animals were temporarily featured at the Zoo during the 1980s, then again in the early 2000s. “They’re a unique animal that captures people’s hearts. And it’s a fascinating species.”

Taylor also said that before the koalas’ arrival, many preparations were undertaken in San Diego and here in Louisville. Assistant Mammal Curator Jessica Cunningham traveled to San Diego two weeks before the pair departed to complete additional training and prepare for their transfer and care. Meanwhile, the Louisville Zoo team was renovating the former jaguar exhibit into a phenomenal space for red panda, Sundara, while simultaneously transforming Sundara’s former home into a perfect space for two male koalas — complete with separate living areas.

Cunningham shared that “except during mating seasons, koalas are solitary figures. Dharuk and Telowie are both adult males and, due to their territorial nature, each has their own “bachelor pad,” meaning separated habitats with individual off-exhibit areas. That lets them roam freely in their own area without the added stress of encountering another male or crossing into his heavily marked territory.”

A staff member from San Diego Zoo also flew to Louisville to view and approve the koalas’ accommodations before the duo arrived. Once the exhibit spaces were approved, Cunningham and another keeper from the San Diego Zoo escorted Dharuk and Telowie by plane to their new home.

Cunningham said that visitors to the new exhibit should expect to see sleepy koalas nine times out of ten. “Koalas eat a very low-quality diet. Eucalyptus is not very nutritious, but that’s all koalas eat. It takes their bodies a long time just to be able to process that food for a little bit of energy!”

The word “koala” is believed to originate from the Dharug language, spoken by Aboriginal people in Australia. “Koala” means “no drink,” which may be a reference to the marsupial’s low water intake. These animals stay hydrated through the water content in the eucalyptus leaves that form the bulk of their diet.

The new koalas will eat eucalyptus grown on one of only two eucalyptus farms in the United States, all of which specialize in supplying zoos. The San Diego Zoo grows their own eucalyptus and can overnight eucalyptus to Louisville if one of the farm partners is not able to fill an order quickly.

Along with their restricted diet, human development and subsequent habitat destruction are the greatest threats koalas face in the wild. Motor vehicles are an increasing source of danger for koalas, which wander into roadways in search of food or shelter and are struck by cars. Bushfires, too, have had a devastating effect on koala numbers in the wild. In 2020, the Louisville Zoo donated a portion of its conservation fund to Zoos Victoria’s Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund in response to the widespread bushfires that devastated Australian wildlife.

Dharuk and Telowie join the Louisville Zoo family with no end-date as part of an agreement with the Australian government. Come learn about our iconic new friends and how you can help them thrive. You may even want to give them a hearty “G’Day Y’all!” as you pass by.