North Stradbroke Island; An island ark for Queensland's koala population

Abstract

South East Queensland (SEQ) is experiencing the fastest human population growth in Australia, with attendant challenges for wildlife conservation due to expanding urbanisation. The documented dramatic decline of koalas Phascolarctos cinereus on mainland SEQ has provoked popular suggestions that North Stradbroke Island (NSI) should become an “island ark” for koalas. A multidisciplinary study was undertaken to determine the status of koalas on NSI. Aboriginal and European references to koalas on NSI were collected and analysed. To study koala distribution, direct and indirect visual surveys were conducted, whilst habitat use and home ranges were determined by fitting 33 koalas with VHF collars and radio-tracking them. Population characteristics, including health status, proximate causes of mortality and genetic profile, were gathered from radio-tracked koalas and from hospital databases of the Department of Environment and Resource Management.