KOALA PLIGHT GAINING WORLDWIDE ATTENTION
| Caption: Shanti, a Koala patient suffering from chlamydia /conjunctivitis The message that Koalas are now endangered has been travelling around the globe. The latest person to share this news is Hollywood star Jason Momoa (video below). At Currumbin Wildlife Hospital, 60% of Koala admissions are due to chlamydia, a bacterial infection and one of the largest threats posed to the species’ survival. Dr Michael Pyne OAM said: “Koalas may become extinct in large areas of Eastern Australia as early as 2050 without intervention”. We are thrilled that Currumbin Wildlife Hospital can intervene by being part of a world first Koala Chlamydia Vaccine Research Program. 450 Koalas have now been vaccinated against chlamydia as part of a joint research program with the Queensland University of Technology. The program is ground-breaking in that it involves tagging, physical tracking and a process of re-capture, checking and release over a period of 5 years. The success of the trial is already evident, with 38 joeys and six “grand-joeys” plus signs of a “great grand-joey” born among the vaccinated population. Caption: Dr Pyne in Koala Rehab - Image by Shannon Doyle Chlamydia can cause infertility in Koalas, so these births are a beacon of hope for a species at risk of becoming locally extinct by 2050. 2025 marks the program’s fifth year of operation so now it’s crucial that people support the mission to evolve the research and ensure all Koalas are vaccinated against this deadly disease. A special thank you to the founding supporters of the program:
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