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read moreA $257,000 donation from Minderoo Foundation will assist researchers at the Australian National University (ANU) to examine how koalas recover after fire and how fire impacts their habitat, including if their dietary needs can be met.
The funding forms part of Minderoo Foundation Fire Fund’s $50 million Wildfire and Disaster Resilience Program, which aims to build an evidence base for interventions for the survival of Australia’s treasured wildlife in post-bushfire landscapes.
The ANU research project will examine how fire impacts eucalypt leaf chemistry and nutrition for koalas. The researchers will also determine whether koalas can feed on epicormic growth – buds that lie dormant under the bark of a tree and emerge after fire.
ANU researcher, Dr Kara Youngentob, said the project would help determine when koalas in care could be returned to their habitats and added “this work will help us achieve the best welfare outcomes for koalas as they are returned to burnt landscapes.
“We will examine how fire affects the nutritional quality of koala habitats and eucalypt trees after a fire. Our research is critical for the development of strategies that minimise bushfire impacts on wildlife.
“This information is urgently needed to help wildlife carers determine when animals can be safely returned to previously burnt landscapes.
“I want to thank Minderoo Foundation for their generous support for this important work.
“With koalas facing the very real threats of localised extinctions and widespread habitat loss, as well as reeling from the unprecedented fires we’ve suffered this season in Australia, this is an investment in the long-term survival of one of this nation’s and the world’s most iconic animals.
“This is a major boost for koala conservation and management.”
The research builds on care given to koalas directly affected by fires at ANU earlier this year, with the initial work also made possible by a generous $100,000 donation from Two Thumbs Wildlife Trust – which was burnt down in this year’s catastrophic fires.
ANU co-researcher Dr Karen Ford advised “we’ve already discovered koalas can digest new, epicormic growth from some of the trees that they usually eat.
“This breakthrough has allowed us to return the first two koalas in our care back into the wild at Two Thumbs Wildlife Trust in late June. A lot of our initial conservation work and ongoing research was made possible by a $100,000 donation from Two Thumbs Wildlife Trust and its trustee, James Fitzgerald.
“What’s also really touching is that this donation from the Two Thumbs Wildlife Trust has been made in the memory of Ian McBeth, Paul Hudson and Rick DeMorgan Jr – who were killed on a firebombing operation when their C-130 Large Air Tanker hit the ground after dropping fire retardant on Two Thumbs Wildlife Trust’s koala sanctuary at Peak View, New South Wales in January.
“We are really excited that Minderoo Foundation are now also joining these efforts and hold great hope for the future.”
Minderoo Foundation Fire Fund Chief Executive, Adrian Turner notes “of all the images we saw from the bushfire season, injured and suffering koalas came to represent the terrible toll on Australian wildlife through loss of life, injury and habitat. Some estimate that as many as one billion animals lost their life in the fires.
“Dr Ford and her team are working hard to make sure the surviving animals have the best chance at success when they are released. That information is helping koalas right now, but also builds our knowledge for long term resilience of our unique Australian wildlife and will improve the response to any future disasters.”
In addition to examining koalas’ diets, the ANU researchers will track the fate of koalas from fire-affected areas and those that were not taken into care in nearby burnt and unburnt areas. In addition, they will investigate a potential rapid method to provide useful koala heath information from their droppings.
The research is also supported by the NSW Government Department of Planning, Industry and Environment under the NSW Koala Strategy and the Australian Government Wildlife and Habitat Bushfire Recovery Program.
Image: A koala is reintroduced to bush near Two Thumbs Wildlife Sanctuary. Credit James Walsh/ANU courtesy of https://www.anu.edu.au/
3rd August 2020 - Australian Reptile Park announces successful koala breeding season
11th July 2020 - Evacuated koalas return to upgraded enclosure
1st July 2020 - Inquiry finds koalas on track to extinction in NSW before 2050 without intervention
8th May 2020 - Byron Shire Council looks to local farmers to create new koala habitats
22nd April 2020 - Blue Mountains Koala rescue program to benefit from WIRES and Landcare funding
17th February 2020 - Clever detection dogs track down both threatened koalas and rare plants
9th January 2020 - Aussie Ark secures wild protected sanctuary for koalas
8th December 2019 - Queensland Government announces new plans to protect koalas
16th November 2019 - Taronga Conservation calls for urgent funding to address emerging koala crisis
26th February 2019 - NSW Government to boost Koala population and improve national park access
11th December 2018 - Improved mapping leads to better outcomes for koala habitat
7th September 2018 - Land clearance to cause Koala extinction in NSW by 2050
18th July 2018 - Gold Coast City Council looks to boost local koala habitat
14th July 2018 - World-class koala research facility operational at Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
7th May 2018 - NSW Government announces koala reserves in attempt to reverse declining populations
30th April 2012 - Koalas to be listed as threatened amid rapid decline
28th September 2011 - Koala inquiry calls for vulnerable status
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