New research highlights the unique dilemma faced by Sydney’s koala population. Populations in south-western Sydney are among the very few in New South Wales still free of chlamydia, a highly contagious disease causing infertility that has severely diminished populations elsewhere in the continent’s eastern states. However, analysis of these koalas shows how vulnerable they are to environmental threats and outbreaks of disease. Highly inbred and with low genetic diversity, they are less likely to adapt to the disease should it arrive on their doorstep.
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