14 DAY TRIAL // If really lucky, visitors to Australia's Tarongo Western Plains Zoo might get the chance to lay eyes on an adorable koala joey that was born at this facility towards the end of 2013 and that has only recently made its public debut.
The baby koala, a photo of which is available next to this article, is a lady in the making. It is now merely 8 months old, which is why it spends most of its time clinging to its mother's body.
What's more, caretakers say that, judging by its behavior when humans are close by, the joey is rather shy. Still, it is expected that, once it gets a tad older, it will begin to explore its surroundings on its own.
“Rosea is approximately 8 months old and is a little shy at present, preferring to stay close to mum’s chest, but in the coming months will start to move on to her mother’s back,” keeper Natacha Richards said in a statement.
The joey, named Rosea after a species of flowering eucalyptus, is its mother's first offspring after. However, staff at Tarongo Zoo reassure that the koala mom is doing a great job looking after its little bundle of joy.
According to Zoo Borns, two other koala joeys were born at this wildlife park in Australia in later 2013. However, Rosea is the only one to have until now mustered the courage to emerge from its mom's pouch and face the world.