go

Are you Alright mate?

Tiago Miranda

A day spent in the Adelaide Hills is not something to complain about. Especially when you are working around nature where humans seem to be absent from your world for the day, apart from your workmates. Trees and animals are present with their distinctive sounds. This one was unique.

Out of the blue, a deep bellowing sound came out of the woods. I was stunned by it as I felt this creature was right next to me. I was wrong.

Far back into the bush, I found this large headed animal with fluffy ears, spoon-shaped nose and tailless body. It was a male Koala, with its peculiar broad face and black nose. It was crawling down this tree and stood in the lower canopy one arm’s distance from me.

I could not deny how amazed I was. For one moment, I felt like touching his fur, but instead I asked him a naïve question: “Are you alright mate?”.

As I thought, no response whatsoever. He continued with his chill attitude, vulnerable as the perfect catch whilst we humans were pondering how cute he was. I am always intrigued with this Australian endemic animal, and people still underestimate his ecological function in the Australian Eucalyptus forests. This reminds me that we humans are just “two-legged creatures”, capable of thinking yes, but commonly it is nothing more than nonsense.

Long save koalas!