The koala project
What if I told you the Australian dream can come at a price? Our relentless pursuit for new, bigger, faster things is coming at a cost to our precious wildlife and their habitats.
Close your eyes and picture this. Once a vibrant home for our iconic koala, is now a 4 lane freeway so we can get from A - C without having to slow down or pass through B. Where the air once rang the melodies of singing birds, the gentle rustle of koala’s and many other precious species but now when you open your eyes, all you can hear are cars, and the sight of houses (some are even vacant for the majority of the year) amidst more and more estates and lifestyle retreats being built.
We all love Australia, our stunning beaches, bustling cities, and pristine National parks, we love our wildlife here in Australia. International tourist are captivated by our unique wildlife, especially our Koala’s. But what are we doing to protect them?
Koala’s are facing a critical crisis. The decline in the koala population started in the 1900’s as they were hunted for the fur trade, and now deforestation for urban development, along with the spread of the deadly koala Chlamydia disease, traffic strikes and dog attacks, are all contributing to the rapid decline in the koala population. Koala’s are now considered endangered here in Queensland and many parts of Australia. Their future, depends on us, they urgently need our help to protect them and their homes.
I had the privilege of speaking with and heading out with the dedicated team from University of the Sunshine Coast - Detection Dogs for Conservation who are doing their bit to help protect the Koala and many other precious wildlife here in Queensland.
Meet Fleur Carter -
Images - Fleur Carter (Detection Dogs for Conservation) Birkdale, Fleur uses an ipad to record location information (Birkdale), Bluegum the main food source for Koala’s, Dandy the Koala in Mt Cotton State Government Land, Shawn Whitehouse (Volunteer) and Fleur Carter in Point Halloran Conservation Area - Victoria Point, Fleur Carter looking for Koala scat in dense bushland in Birkland
Fleur Carter from Detection Dogs for Conservations heads out weekly (most of the time by herself) armed with an antenna and GPS tracking device to locate the koalas fitted with GPS collars. Tracing the koalas through dense bushland areas. The antenna covers a distance of 1km and it runs in a straight line so when the sound alarms that the koala is nearby, it could be within a 1km radius, Fleur pie charts the location and starts looking up, searching for the illusive hard to spot koala. Once located, Fleur takes a photo of the koala, measures the circumference of the tree and records the information in order for another person in the team to come down, set a trap later that afternoon to capture the koala and do a full health check. The traps used are just temporary fence type structures at the base of the tree and a clear box, so when the Koala comes down the tree they can’t move away from the tree and eventually go in to a safe box, this then allows the team to pick up the box, take them back to the clinic and do health checks on the Koala’s. The next day, the Koala is released back in to the wild. On some occasion the Koala needs to be relocated to a safer location if they have been captured in residential area or too close to main roads. Fleur also searches the ground for fresh koala scat, carefully collecting and making sure to not contaminate it and sends off to the Lab for testing.
Meet Imogen Dumville -
Imogen Dumville is a PHD student at the University of Sunshine Coast, working in the Detection Dogs for Conservation team. Having grown up watching the David Attenborough documentaries, Imogen knew she wanted to work with animals and help their conservation. On a recent day in the lab this day, Imogen was tasked with cleaning the koala scat to remove any contamination and prepare for analysis. This meticulous process can take a few hours and involves transferring the scat from one tube to another, using a solution to clean the scat, this needs to be gently rotated about 20 times, then goes in to another mechanical device set a consistent temperature for an hour before the tests can be conducted. The data gathered can reveal crucial information about the Koala’s health, DNA, sex, age, diet and nutritional information, they can test the koala scat for the deadly koala Chlamydia disease and they can even test the family connection of the koala, all aiding in their conservation.
Images in order - The UniSC Science Lab, Koala skat, cleaning the scat requires rotation 20 times, Cleaning solution, Imogen Dumville at work, Koala scat being move in to the tube to analyse the solution , Imogen Dumville at work in the UniSc Lab.
Meet Cedar Staggard -
Images - Cedar Staggard and Bear the Detection Dogs for Conservation team in the field, Environmental Portrait of Cedar Staggard and Bear, Bear the Detection Dog, Stuart Gudgeon (Detection Dogs for Conservation)
Cedar Staggard from Detection Dogs for Conservation along with Stuart Gudgeon and two of the rescue dogs Bear and Summer are out surveying land in close proximity to housing development to monitor koalas. Amoungst many other projects, their work focuses on assessing koala’s in urban settings to see the health of the koala and understanding the impact of habitat loss. They generally monitor the population of the koala and their genetic relations. They test this data along side, data from previous surveys to see how the koala is tracking. Today Bear and Summer are out finding koala scat for collection and testing by the lab.
Detection dogs can take many months to train and their training is ongoing. Bear finds his reward in his favourite toy, when Cedar says “find, find”, Bear runs with his nose to the ground tracing the fresh scent of both the koala scat and koala fur. When located, sits down and waits for Cedar or Stuart to come see what he’s found, when the ball is thrown, Bear knows he has done his job, good boy. Summer is only new in the field, Cedar is still working closely training her, trying to find what her reward is. It appears for Summer the ball isn’t it, but gentle cuddles and reassurance from Cedar is what Summer likes best. Summer finds the scat, lays down and waits for a reassuring cuddle from Cedar. You can really see the connection these two have.
Images - Bear, Cedar Staggard and Stuart Gudgeon after Bear found the koala scat it is collected in tubes and recorded ready to send to the lab for testing, Cedar smells the koala scat to see if it is fresh or too old to collect, Cedar and Bear after Bear found koala scat, Bear waiting for his reward after finding scat, Cedar looking for Koala’s after finding fresh koala scat, Cedar, Stuart and Bear in the dense bushlands of Alexandra Hills, Cedar giving Bear his reward after finding fresh koala scat, Cedar and Bear searching for koala scat in thick bushlands Bear with Stuart after finding scat, Pippi the koala in Birkdale.
How you can help:
There are many ways the public can get involved in this crucial project. You can volunteer and head out for a day surveying areas and helping Fleur find the elusive koala. If a Koala is on your property, you can reach out to a Koala rescue team to ensure it finds a safer home, away from scary dogs and cars. When driving through well known koala habitat, slow down and watch for our precious wildlife like they were your children, and finally, download the Queensland Wildlife app (similar apps in your state) and report any sightings of wildlife. Together we can protect these creatures before it’s too late and we’ll wish we’d done more.
Decota the Koala high up in the tree in Point Halloran Conservation Area - Victoria Point