News Animals

Some of Sydney’s koalas are chlamydia-free, but still at risk

Introducing new koalas to mate with would help reduce inbreeding, but could also bring in the disease

A close-up of a gray and white koala clinging to the trunk of a tree with its eyes half-closed. Green leaves and a clear blue sky are visible in the background.

Some koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) living in the Sydney metro area are isolated from other koalas, keeping them chlamydia-free. But the cost is being worryingly inbred.

Carolyn Hogg

By Jake Buehler

Some of Sydney’s koalas are facing an uncompromising dilemma.

The koalas living in one corner of Australia’s largest city are perilously inbred, researchers report February 26 in Conservation Genetics.