Platypuses that had been rescued from Australian brush fires at the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve have been released back into the wild.
Thanks to the hard work of Dr. Sarah May, the wildlife team leader for the reserve, the platypuses were transported to the Taronga Zoo in Sydney for their protection.
As fires drew closer, the reserve team was able to transport seven platypuses away from danger through their rescue efforts — along with six koalas, nearly 1,000 endangered northern corroboree frogs, 22 brush-tailed rock wallabies, and 26 endangered eastern bettongs.
Zookeepers at the Taronga Zoo were careful to keep the platypuses wild by limiting their interactions with people and making sure they still caught their own food.
After the rains returned and the ponds at Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve refilled, the reserve crew went to work to make sure the environment was safe for the platypuses to return — including water testing and pond surveying for food.
When the platypuses were brought to the site, they ran straight for the water, slid in, and were gone.
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(Cover image: worldswildlifewonders/Shutterstock)