Bushfire koalas going back to the wild

Australia’s peak bushfire season is rapidly approaching – with all eyes on whether the blazes will be anywhere near as bad as the devastation of last year.

As well as claiming more than 30 lives and destroying thousands of homes – the country’s wildlife was also terribly hit.

One of the worst-affected areas was Kangaroo Island in South Australia – a place renowned for its biodiversity and for one very Australian animal in particular, the koala.

About 50,000 of the cuddly creatures lived there before the fires but it’s now feared as few as 5,000 are left.

Video by Simon Atkinson