Eric and Penny are two orphaned Koalas being raised by local wildlife carers.
- Under the Nature Conservation (Wildlife) Regulation 2006 the Koala is considered as a vulnerable species in the areas covered by the South-east Queensland Regional Plan.
- Five of the eight eucalypt species present in the Hampton corridor are important Koala food-trees. They are the Sydney Blue Gum, Grey Gum, White Stringybark, Tallow Wood and Queensland Blue Gum. Another two species also present are considered as secondary food trees for this marsupial. They are the Blackbutt and Pink Bloodwood. There have been numerous reports of Koalas utilising the trees in question. The consultants undertaking the Review of Environmental Factors for this project, recorded 2 adult koalas, one with a baby, during their flora/fauna survey of Cathedral Drive. It is an important Koala habitat.
Article from The Sydney Morning Herald
April 11, 2007
Koalas may be extinct in seven years
Koalas could be extinct within seven years, experts are warning. Extreme drought, ferocious bushfires and urban development could make koalas extinct within seven years, environmentalists are warning.
“In South-East Queensland we had them listed as a vulnerable species which could go to extinction within 10 years. That could now be seven years. The koala’s future is obviously bleak.” said Deborah Tabart, chief executive officer of the Australia Koala Foundation.
South-East Queensland has the strongest koala populations in the vast country, meaning extinction in this area spells disaster for the future of the species, said Tabart.
The biggest threat is the loss of habitat due to road building and development on Australia’s east coast – traditional koala country. The joke, said Tabart, is that koalas enjoy good real estate and are often pushed out of their habitat by farming or development.
“I’ve driven pretty much the whole country and I just see environmental vandalism and destruction everywhere I go,” she said. “It’s a very sorry tale. There are [koala] management problems all over the country.”
Massive bushfires which raged in the country’s south for weeks during the summer, burning a million hectares of land, would also have killed thousands of koalas.
Meanwhile there is the worst drought in a century, genetic mutations from decades of inbreeding in some populations, and the widespread incidence of chlamydia, a type of venereal disease which affects fertility, to further cut koala numbers.
Moreover, the animals are often fatally attacked by pet dogs. “In South-East Queensland the koalas are just in people’s backyards and the dogs just munch on them,” Tabart said….
