New approaches needed to protect koalas
A University of Sydney research team, led by Dr Mathew Crowther of the School of Biological Sciences, has found that koalas are choosing different trees to shelter in, to those in which they feed, in an attempt to survive extreme weather conditions.
Dr Crowther said: “Koalas need a combination of both the right kind of shelter trees and food trees to survive.”
“Ensuring a habitat has a good supply of feed trees and protecting koalas from predators is not enough to ensure their survival.”
“Our research confirmed koalas shelter during the day in different types of trees to the eucalypts they feed on at night.”
Forty koalas were tracked using global positioning system (GPS) over a period of three years on farmland in north-western New South Wales.
The research team discovered that koalas will seek out bigger trees with more dense foliage when daytime temperatures are very hot in order to try and escape the heat.
Dr Crowther also said: “Our research was the first in which shelter trees for koalas were considered equally with feed trees when examining the viability of a koala habitat.”
“The lack of understanding of the importance of shelter trees for koalas is particularly concerning given the increasing frequency of extreme weather events.”
Dr Crowther and his team say that the implications of their research highlight a need to expand land management practices of retaining and planting food trees for koalas to include shelter trees as well.
Koalas chose a wide range of tree species for shelter so the planting of these, especially in more protected gullies, may help to offset the impact of high temperatures.
The team’s research also emphasised the need for further investigation into the koala’s diet and how other tree-dwelling species are affected by sustained changes to climate.
The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) is inviting applications from veterinary students to attend a one-week extramural studies (EMS) placement in July 2026.
