A potentially lethal sexually-transmitted infection has been detected in the last disease-free koala population in one major city, heightening extinction fears for the endangered native marsupial.
Two koalas, part of a population in southwest Sydney already under threat from development, were found infected with chlamydia in September, the New South Wales (NSW) environment department said in a statement on March 21.
The koalas returned a positive result for the disease following their rescue in the suburb of Appin after they were hit by cars.
Chlamydia, a highly contagious bacteria that causes infertility in koalas, has decimated their numbers in NSW, Queensland, and the ACT, where they are listed as endangered.
In NSW, Labor made a 2023 pre-election pledge for a new national park in a bid to save the state’s koalas, but the Minns government is yet to fulfil the promise, drawing criticism from the Greens and conservation groups.
Subsequent testing uncovered no further evidence of the disease in the southwest Sydney population, the department said.
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