By Maddie & Elisa

Adorable, MIGHT COME TO AN END!

     

 

 

 

 

Where  koalas  are  located  

Koala’s Habitat

Koalas  need  a  large  area  to  live  in,  move  about                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          and  especially  eat;  most  koalas  live  in  dry  eucalyptus  (gum  tree)  forests  where  they  can  find  their  preferred  leaves.  Most  of  their  time  is  spent  eating,  sitting  or  sleeping  in  eucalyptus  trees  or  other  types  of  trees  growing  in  these  forests.  Generally,  Koala  habitat  quality  is  influenced  by  factors  such  as  soil  nutrient,  topography,  rainfall  and  past  disturbances.  

Koala  habitat  can  be  identified  by:  

-­‐The  presence  of  Koala  food  trees;  

-­‐Historical  or  recent  Koala  records  

-­‐  The  presence  under  trees  of  Koala  faecal  pellets  (scats);  

-­‐  The  presence  of  Koala  scratches  on  trees.  

 

Kolas are found in a range of habitats, from coastal islands and  eucalypt  forests  to  low  woodlands  inland.  Koalas  today  are                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          found  down  the  east  coast  of  mainland  Australia  -­‐  in  the  states                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            of  Queensland,  New  South  Wales,  Victoria  and  South  Australia.

W here are koalas Found?

 

WHY???

Koalas used to be hunted for their soft fur, and their numbers dwindled from several million to a few hundred thousand. But today, the biggest problem for koalas is that their habitat is being destroyed to make way for houses. Koalas are protected by law but their

homes and food are NOT.

There are many natural and human threats to the koalas and also there habitats, many including:

-Settlement

-Domestic dog attacks

-Clearing of eucalypts leaves

-Bushfires

-Global warming

-Road traffic

Theses impacts have affected the koalas and habitats in many ways above but most importantly the koalas have a hard time surviving and there has also been a decline on gumtrees.

Protecting Koala’s

 Today,  most  koalas  live  in  reserves.    Those  that  live  in  the  wild  are  at  greater  risk  of  dying.    Koalas  can  be  moved  from  places  where  there  is  a  overcrowded  living  environment  to  places  where  the  koala  population  is  small.    On  islands,  such  as  Phillip,  French,  and  Kangaroo  Islands,  the  koalas  are  protected  by  law.    Some  of  these  koalas  are  also  helpful  in  helping  areas  will  a  small  population.  

Fun Facts

-­‐Koalas  are  not  bears.  They  are  MARSUPIALS,  which  means  that  they  carry  their  young  in  a  pouch.        

-­‐ Koalas  are  NOCTURNAL  animals.  This  means  that  they  sleep  in  the  daytime,  and  move  around  and  feed  at  night.