By Mara Pattison-Sowden
A YARRA Valley wildlife group has joined the search for injured animals along flood affected areas of the Murray River.
The Help for Wildlife Disaster Response Team was asked for assistance on Monday 10 January, and sent a specialised climbing team to the Murray River near Strathmerton, where they helped rescue a koala joey.
Local wildlife carers had noticed a dead female koala two weeks ago with an open extended pouch showing evidence of a missing joey.
They searched through bogs, floods, and river banks, waded through black water and finally three days later found the tiny orphan koala clinging to a small branch at the top of a 40 to 50-metre-high river red gum in water at the edge of the river.
Help for Wildlife rescued the little orphan koala, weighing just 1.7kg, that was extremely hungry, thin and traumatised. The koala joey was treated on rescue and recovering well with local carers.
These local carers have been travelling daily into the flood affected areas along the side of the Murray River near Strathmerton where the koala joey was found, continuing their search for wildlife in need of help and delivering fresh water as water available is undrinkable.
Some kangaroos and other wildlife remained contained on high ground surrounded by unpassable areas that were flooded and boggy. They were being carefully monitored by local authorities and wildlife carers.
Help for Wildlife president Denise Garratt said the floods had caused a lot of tragedy.
“But it was a good feeling to have a successful outcome with this rescue and a privilege to have been in the position to help fellow carers,” she said.
