One of Australia's most iconic animals is under significant threat. In December 2021, the conservation status of the Koala was changed from vulnerable to endangered, reflecting the species' increasing extinction risk. Australian Wildlife Conservancy's (AWC) new sanctuary is located in an area of regional Koala significance and there are exciting opportunities to survey, protect and enhance populations of the Endangered species and many other forest-dwelling animals and plants.
Interacting threats propelling the Koala population towards extinction include habitat loss and fragmentation, inappropriate fire regimes, climate change impacts, disease, and feral dogs and cats. Many of the populations in NSW and QLD are now in decline. The 2019-2020 catastrophic bushfires are estimated to have burned 9% of habitat (in NSW, ACT and QLD) where the Koala is known or likely to occur, ranging from <1% in drier inland areas to 30% in temperate coastal forests (DAWE 2022).
Your support today can help AWC develop a sanctuary-specific science and conservation land management program, including weed, fire, feral herbivore and predator management, to help protect the hundreds of animal and plant species that call the sanctuary home. Supporting scientists to carry out inventory surveys will also provide the opportunity to confirm the presence of one of Australia's most iconic species.
The sanctuary provides vital habitat for many forest-dwelling species that do not currently occur within AWC's network of sanctuaries and partnership areas, and there are opportunities to protect and enhance the populations of many species, including the Endangered Koala, Yellow-bellied Glider and Glossy Black-Cockatoo. The dense understorey vegetation will likely hide a suite of small native mammals that call this place home.
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