As the summer heat hits South Africa, spare a thought for Australia, which is currently in the midst of a heatwave. And it’s not just humans who need to keep on top of their hydration when the temps rise—animals do, too.
Heat Hits Everyone: Watch a Koala Drink From a Cyclist’s Bottle
As the summer heat hits South Africa, spare a thought for Australia, which is currently in the midst of a heatwave. And it’s not just humans who need to keep on top of their hydration
So, in the heat of a morning ride, when a koala came up to a group of cyclists as they were in the midst of a ride in Adelaide, South Australia, one of the riders stopped to offer the marsupial a much-needed drink out of her water bottle, CNN reported.
“Australian koala bears suffering severe thirst in a heatwave. This koala walked right up to me as I was descending and climbed up onto my bike while I gave him water,” the cyclist wrote in a different Instagram post. “Best thing to happen to me on a ride ever.”
This isn’t the first time a thirsty koala has approached a cyclist mid-ride. Back in January 2018, Matt Sully, also from Adelaide, offered the animal a drink from his bottle as well.
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“It was so hot in them there hills today…The koalas were flagging us down to give ’em water,” Sully wrote. “This little guy called ‘Slurpy’ was so thirsty he emptied my entire bottle.”
According to the BBC, this area of Australia is in a state of emergency because of record-breaking high temperatures and subsequent bushfires that have been going on for months. Last week, Adelaide hit 45 degrees. The heat is a problem across the country, with every state recording 40-plus temps for the first time in history last week.
So if you’re out and about in the heat of Australia—on your bike or just walking around—and happen to stumble upon a koala, it can’t hurt to offer it a few sips of water.