Koala captured grieving dead friend in heartwrenching video
Heartwrenching video has been released showing a koala appearing to mourn a dead friend.
Koala Rescue shared what it said was "heartbreaking" footage of the male koala grieving his lost mate by hugging the dead animal's body.
"(We) received a call from a most concerned member of the public, who reported that they had found a koala on the ground at the base of a tree," it said.
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A koala 'mourning' a dead friend. Koala Rescue
"However, there was also a second koala involved. On arrival the rescuer located both a deceased adult female koala and a second adult male koala.
"It is always devastating to attend a rescue involving a deceased koala, but it was even more heartbreaking to witness the male koala actually holding and hugging the deceased koala."
Rescuers had been called to Coromandel Valley, south-east of Adelaide, to help the pair but there was nothing that could be done for the female.
Koala Rescue said it was sharing the footage to give a rare insight into what it said was the true nature of the animals.
"This type of behaviour is rarely witnessed by our rescuers, but confirms the empathetic and caring nature of koalas," it said.
"Our rescuer retrieved both koalas and after ensuring that the male koala was in good condition, released him nearby.
"This male koala's reaction to death really does represent the truly beautiful nature that koalas are capable of demonstrating."
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