No hugs for cuddly koalas at Hong Kong's Ocean Park

Three koalas from South Australia will greet visitors from Tuesday in their new habitat in Ocean Park - but hugs and noise are not allowed.

Although visitors can get as close as one metre to the marsupials - in an exhibit space modelled on the South Australian outback, with patches of eucalyptus trees - they are not allowed to touch or hug them.

The cuddly koalas, named Dougie, Merinda and Yani, will share their space with other Australian species including laughing kookaburras and red-necked wallabies.

Yani, meaning "peace" in Kaurna, a language used by a group of indigenous people in the Adelaide Plains of South Australia, was picked for one of the female koalas through an online campaign. The name was revealed yesterday.

Howard Chuk Hau-chung, senior curator of terrestrial life science at the park, said visitors are not allowed to hug the tree-clinging creatures because they are sensitive to disruptions such as noise and touch, which would affect their appetite.

He said the exhibit area would only allow 100 visitors at a time and there would be staff reminding visitors to be quiet and not run around the area or use flash photography.