The Wider Image: From disease to bushfires, Australia's iconic koalas face bleak future
Tracey, who volunteers for the animal rescue agency, Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service, also knows as WIRES, cares for twin koala joeys, who have been diagnosed as being underweight, and their mother named Gladys, who were rescued from an area where urban development is encroaching on koala habitat, at a rehabilitation enclosure next to her home, in Wedderburn, Australia, September 11, 2020. Koala conservationists are focusing more than ever on the city as population growth in metropolises like Sydney - home to a fifth of Australia's 25 million population - drives demand to clear forests and make way for homes. Traffic safety signs normally associated with tight corners and speed bumps now show the risk of koalas crossing the road in developed suburbs. "We do need housing to live in but there needs to be a balance and there needs to be a balance to ensure that these species survive," said Tracey. REUTERS/Loren Elliott SEARCH "KOALAS ELLIOTT" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES