Koala Research

Meet ... Uncle Tom

Update 6/10/04: Uncle Tom passed away on 18th September, 2004. We found him with signs of pneumonia, and called on Sandi Murdoch, a local wildlife carer, for advice and help. After days of regular monitoring, she took him in to her shelter for treatment on 14th September.
He rallied at first under her care, but he was old and very weak, and died peacefully in his sleep later that week.

He will be remembered.

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Uncle Tom was one of the first koalas we met in early 2001. He always looked old and very haggard, so must be ancient (for a male koala 14 years is old). His most distinctive characteristic was his contemptuous manner - of all the koalas we see, he liked humans the least!

His nose was unmistakeable - covered with scars, presumably from fighting other male koalas. He was spotty so sometimes we had to rely on the body markings as he wouldn't show us his nose. We think he knew what we wanted and simply refused to give it to us.

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