Koala Rescue

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 Koala Rescue

in the National Park

At the end of my walk 

early this morning

I came across

a wonderful couple

who had rescued an old

and ailing koala

 He had been noticed 

by walkers last night

at the foot of a tree

skinny and weary

too weak to climb

Unable to find him in the dark

they went searching 

early this morning

and tracked him down 

in the bushy undergrowth

I wondered whether

Grandfather koala

was Grey Butt,

shown above,

as koalas tend to keep

to the same foraging corridors

and territory

He will be taken

to the wild life hospital 

and cared for

The lady told me

that there are fewer than ten koalas

in the whole 

Noosa National Park

and where it was once common

to have a sighting

they are now rare

Development and disease

have taken their toll

on the koala community

I think that we have been very lucky

to have had Speckled Butt

as a neighbour

even if only 

for a brief period.

I have not seen him since

the day I posted

of his slumbers

The lady was excited 

to hear of Speckled Butt

Every sighting is good news

when you have a population

dwindling throughout the state

People 

such as these volunteer workers

are so admirable.

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