What's in a name? (Part 2)

28 July 2006

So it’s that time of year and the koala keepers are busy deciding on (arguing over!) names for our precious new additions. So far we have Matilda and Mackellar, Oprah and Ellen and Dewdrop and Mist. Can you recognise the themes (e.g. the talk show queens)? We also have three other expecting mums - Kelly, Molly, and Flossy - and boy do the lists next to their names look interesting. Last week it was finally confirmed that Kelly was carrying a boy, who happens to have a very striking face and is really in my opinion, very attractive. I sat there thinking about names and quietly suggested “What about Slater?” (I was a bit embarrassed really, as I have only been a member of the crew for a few months and didn’t feel that I had earned the right to pick out names just yet). Kelly then looks up “It’s perfect, I love it”. I’ll admit that I got a bit teary at this and felt very proud to have given such a beautiful boy a name that has such a famous background. I only hope that young Slater can one day meet his famous namesake.

Over the next few months we will be watching all of our joeys grow. Our final two will soon make themselves known, be given their own unique names and grow up; and before we know it we will be waiting on the arrival of our next batch of youngsters. But me, I’ll be sitting back content in the knowledge that I’ll always have a special bond with a gorgeous young koala and I hope that in the years to come Slater and I can have many happy experiences together. So when you come to the Zoo make sure you head to Koala Island and check out the gorgeous koalas down there... and if you see a spunky young male, blow him a kiss and wish him good luck!

Krysta

What's in a name?

21 July 2006

Ever since I started working at Australia Zoo I have often been asked, "How do you come up with the names for all of your animals when you have so many?". Every department has a different method, and I would love to show you how we here in the koala team pick ours.

After breeding season, there is an air of anticipation as we await the confirmation that our mums are expecting. Once a visual sighting of the joey is confirmed, we all start to write down ideas for names. Now here in the Koala Department we really like our names to run in themes, for example; Flossy and her boy Jaffa (the sweet family), Chloe and her girl Chanel (the perfume family), and Molly and her bub Seanna (both eucalyptus species). The months between June and August are very exciting for us, because this is when joeys start to explore the outside world and when we find out if they are girls or boys. Once we know the gender we go back to our list and pick the most appropriate name.These gorgeous little ones are just now starting to make themselves known, so tune in next week to find out how we're going with naming our new additions.

Photo superstars

7 July 2006

Each day, guests at the Zoo have the fantastic opportunity to get a photograph cuddling one of our beautiful koalas. You can imagine that, with lots of international visitors to the Zoo, these photo sessions are immensely popular and can get very busy. So while we, the keepers and the photographers, are all run off our feet at these busy photo sessions, it's easy to lose sight of the little superstar that has caused all the commotion in the first place - the koala. Most of the time they are just sitting on our arm, waiting patiently for that next cuddle.

While all of our photo koalas are awesome, there are three that deserve a special mention. Jag, Kramer and Minti are true champions at their photo sessions. They are never phased by any noise or commotion and are always happy to sit on "trees" of all shapes and sizes. They've even had some of their "trees" shed a tear at the pleasure of holding them. If you've ever visited the Zoo and had a koala cuddle, chances are it was one of these three boys. They are the stars of thousands of family photographs all over the world!

So from all of the keepers, a heartfelt thanks to Jag, Minti and Kramer. It's always a pleasure working with them.