Rinny the Koala (2015-2024)
Obituary
Rinny died in November at Zoo Miami of unknown causes.
Rinny, a nine-year-old female koala, was found dead in her enclosure at Zoo Miami on November 3, 2024. Before her death, she had a decreased appetite and appeared lethargic. Though a necropsy was performed, the cause of her death is unknown. Rinny lived with another male koala named Milo, two hairy-nosed wombats, Matchie’s tree kangaroos, and a cassowary. She was transferred to Zoo Miami in 2018 from the Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia, South Carolina.
Koalas in captivity live drastically different lives than their counterparts in the wild. In the wild, koalas are solitary, yet they are often housed together in zoos. Koalas spend much of their time sleeping, up to 20 hours a day, and are mostly active at night, dawn, and dusk. In zoos, koalas are subjected to visitors throughout the day, which is stressful and disruptive.
Koalas are under intense pressure in the wild due to habitat destruction, climate change, and disease. Australia listed koalas as endangered in 2022. 10% of the koala’s habitat was destroyed in the 2019 Australian wildfires. Land clearing for logging and factory farming continues to fracture and destroy their homes. In addition to degrading their habitat, hotter temperatures and higher humidity mean increased stress on their bodies, making it more difficult for koalas to survive summer heat waves. Koalas, like many animals, including humans, rely on lower nighttime temperatures to cool down after intense heat. As temperatures increase, there are fewer opportunities for koalas to cool.
However, breeding and keeping koalas in captivity is not a solution. Without protecting their habitat in Australia, koalas will have no home to return to. The only way to ensure a future with koalas is to protect their habitats. World Animal Protection urges everyone who loves koalas to avoid zoos and enjoy them in the wild.
