Brookfield Zoo is home to koalas for the first time since it opened in 1934. It is one of only 11 zoos in America, and the only one in the Midwest, to host the animals. But 35 years ago, a third-grader from District 91 imagined koalas already lived at Brookfield Zoo.
“Young writers travel the world” was a Review article about the West 40 Annual Writing Talent Search. There were 475 entries and prizes were awarded at a ceremony. “All About Koalas” took home first prize for prose. The winner’s grandfather read it to make sure the author hadn’t received any outside help.
But before we talk about imaginary koalas, let’s meet the zoo’s two recent arrivals. Mark Wanner, the zoo’s associate vice president of Animal Care and Conservation, is also their koala spokesperson. He told us the zoo has a pair of 2-year-old males named Willum and Brumby.
They were born in captivity at the San Diego Zoo, which worked with the Australian government to create a koala breeding program. Brookfield Zoo had to meet their requirements before they could house the koalas.
So they constructed a habitat for the kolas that gives them indoor and outdoor access. Its size exceeds the standards set by the Australian government. The males are very territorial, so they are separated by a 4-foot-high barrier.
Brumby is outgoing, while Willum is shy and reserved. Both have acclimated very well and patrons line up to see them. The koalas subsist exclusively on eucalyptus leaves. They eat three pounds of leaves daily. Afterward, they sleep like newborns, 18-22 hours per day.
Koalas may be extremely cute but they are not cuddly. Zoo employees wear protective full-length gloves to avoid being scratched. Koalas also have sharp teeth and they can be mean and aggressive. Their feet are clawed and they have two digits on the front and back for grasping tree limbs.
Koalas are marsupials who have single births. The “joey” stays in the pouch for five months, before spending a year clinging to their mother’s back. Brumby’s name means “wild horse,” because he loved to ride his mother’s back.
We fact-checked “All About Koalas” with Wanner. It begins with Susie koala and her mom and dad living happily in Australia. Then zookeepers from Brookfield take them away because the zoo was out of koalas.
The koalas had just finished a meal of eucalyptus leaves, when the zookeeper inadvertently left their cage open and they escaped. It was dark and the koalas were trying to find their way home to Australia. They stopped at a river and Susie’s mom swam across with her daughter on her back. They ate some native leaves but they weren’t as good as eucalyptus leaves. They slept in a tree, while Susie dreamed of being back in her mother’s pouch drinking milk.
The next morning, they returned to the zoo and a kangaroo gave them directions to Australia. The koalas returned to the river. They used sticks to push a big log into the river. They got on the log and used the sticks to paddle.
Wanner was satisfied with many elements of the story but refuted the idea that koalas could escape from the zoo. He also had a problem with the koalas sampling native leaves. They strictly eat eucalyptus leaves. Otherwise, he could imagine the koalas’ grasping sticks and using them for paddles. He enjoyed the story so much; he wants to meet the author.
Our daughter, Kelly, is 42 years old now, but she’s still proud of the story’s final sentence.
“They kept paddling.”
