The koala who just couldn’t go on: Final moments of marsupial who died after suffering horror tick infestation on Christmas Eve
- Last moments of koala’s life shared by carer after she was infested with ticks
- The koala was covered in 30 ticks and was in extreme pain when she was found
- Wildlife carer Tennille Bankes removed the ticks, but the koala died hours later
Heartbreaking details have emerged about the final moments of a koala who died after suffering a horror tick infestation on Christmas Eve.
The female koala was brought into the Wildlife Empire sanctuary in Goondiwindi, four hours east of Brisbane, with more than 30 ticks attached to her body.
Sanctuary founder and manager Tennille Bankes said the emaciated koala was in extreme pain as ticks sucked blood from both her ears and face.
Ms Bankes was able to remove all the ticks and give the koala a drink of water, but tragically the marsupial died two hours later.
A koala has tragically died after being brought into a wildlife sanctuary covered in ticks
The koala was brought into the Wildlife Empire sanctuary in Goondiwindi on December 24 with 30 ticks attached to her body. The parasites were removed, but she died hours later
‘This girl gave up her fight yesterday. She got to us at around 6pm, got all of the ticks off, she had a drink and was hydrated but she lost the battle at 8pm,’ Ms Bankes wrote alongside three heartbreaking photos.
‘Completely emaciated and in so much pain.’
She said the impact of drought was a large factor in the rising numbers of koalas being brought into the sanctuary.
Now bushfires have added to the carnage.
‘It’s getting worse. This drought is killing off our koalas,’ she wrote.
Ms Bankes said just one in five koalas brought into her sanctuary ended up being released back into the wild.
Wildlife Empire founder Tennille Bankes said the koala was emaciated and in serious pain
‘I mean the fires are having a huge impact, but people don’t realise the impact this drought is having,’ Ms Banks told Yahoo News.
‘It’s been going on for years.
‘Ordinarily koalas get all the nourishment they need from the eucalyptus leaves, but because everything is so dry now, they’re actually coming down from the trees extremely malnourished.’
Devastating bushfires are believed to have incinerated as many as 8,000 koalas on Australia’s east coast.
Environment minister Sussan Ley said the bushfire-ravaged mid-north coast in NSW, home to as many as 28,000 koalas, may have lost 30 per cent of the species’ local population in recent months.
The estimate comes after wildlife experts warned the unprecedented blazes have threatened the koala with extinction.
‘We’ll know more when the fires are calmed down and a proper assessment can be made,’ Ms Ley told ABC’s AM radio show.
About 12.35 million acres of land have burned nationwide during the current wildfire crisis, with nine people killed and more than 1,000 homes destroyed.
Images shared of koalas drinking water after being rescued from the wildfires have gone viral on social media in recent days
Meanwhile thousands of koalas are feared to have died in a wildfire-ravaged area north of Sydney, further diminishing Australia’s iconic marsupial