feature The AKF decided to remove free access to AKF Koala Habitat Mapping on KoalaMap in February 2016. The AKF became aware that industry and ecological consultants had been taking unauthorised extracts from KoalaMap habitat mapping, and in some instances using the dat to assist in obtaining approval for projects resulting in the destruction of koala habitat. The Koala Habitat Atlas is now available on a commercial basis from Omnilink, the appointed data distribution partner of the AKF. An annual subscription model applies for councils and state governments, and the data can be provided as a web mapping service or as traditional GIS data sets in common formats, and Omnilink provides ongoing maintenance to the AKF’s KoalaMap. Having been running for some seven years, KoalaMap is still available to view and register koala sightings, with registration that required approval from AKF. Dave Mitchell, a landscape ecologist with the AKF who had a major part in producing the KHA, said that mapping those sightings are crucial to AKF’s work. The sightings help AKF understand distribution of the animals, can give an indication of their health, and provide insight into the localised threats they may face. While thousands of sightings have
Going beyond the map: other threats and interventions Beyond the Atlas and its counterpart KoalaMap, the AKF has created a koala-friendly development located on the northern NSW coast, called Koala Beach, in association with The Ray Group – a Gold Coast-based real estate developer. Residents at Koala Beach make compromises to their lifestyle to coexist with wild koalas. Home to some 500 residents, Koala Beach is Australia’s only koala-friendly urban development. Located just north of Pottsville, no cats and dogs are allowed within the estate; there are speed bumps near known koala home ranges; all fences within the estate must be raised to ensure koalas - and other wildlife - can enjoy free access within the estate; and no koala home range or food trees be removed for development purposes. AKF is primarily focused on supporting the survival Australia’s unique tree-dwelling marsupial through preserving its habitat, but koalas face a range of other threats too. They are prone to diseases, including infection from Chlamydia bacteria, conjunctivitis, pneumonia, urinary tract infections and reproductive tract infections, and are susceptible to leukaemia and a range of skin cancers.
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Several other organisations maintain protection areas or admit and treat sick or injured animals, aiming to rehabilitate them and assist with the range of threats they face. The Koala Hospital at Port Macquarie on NSW’s north coast is an initiative of the Koala Preservation Society of Australia – treats sick and injured koalas, also carrying out research into koala diseases in association with universities and the Australian Museum. Over 200 koalas are admitted into the hospital each year. Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary is the oldest koala sanctuary in Australia, founded in 1927, and is home to 130 koalas, located about 12 kilometres from Brisbane. Koalas free of chlamydia in southwestern Sydney will be given their own protected national park if Labor wins the state election next year, New South Wales opposition leader Luke Foley has pledged. Foley has promised 4,000 hectares of land along the Georges River for this purpose, along with a promise to build overpasses, fences and other infrastructure to protect koalas from being hit by cars.
been reported by its members, Mitchell said that they are only transformed into actionable data with a system to receive and interpret them. “Having fauna sightings in notebooks and in computer files are of no use unless you can get them into databases, where they can become tools for predicting what’s happening to our native wildlife and help the survival of all our species,” he said. Success in the preservation of the koalas has been patchy. While organisations like the AKF have made significant efforts to preserve koalas in the wild, without some more rigorous protection and commitment from governments to curb land clearing in koala habitat zones, we’re on track for the extinction of an iconic Australian animal. Paul Grad has worked as a physicist and electrical engineer in more than one country, and was a writer and editor with the Institution of Engineers Australia's publishing house. ■