Help Eurobodalla's koalas - Plant a koala tree.

National Tree Day is on Sunday 1 August and Dr Keith Joliffe says this is a great opportunity to help koalas by planting a koala tree.

The organiser behind the Eurobodalla Koala Recovery Project Dr Joliffe has spent a decade researching these special Australian animals.

“Many people mistakenly believe koalas have been extinct for decades in this area. However up until the 2019/ 20 fires we tended to get a sighting once every year or two.

Koalas were definitely sighted in Bodalla State Forest in 2020 and were also seen in the East Lynne area right after the 2019 Currowan bushfire.” Dr Joliffe said.

“If koalas are to thrive in our area they need the appropriate habitat – koala trees”

For householders with space Dr Joliffe suggests

“On lower spots with better soils and moisture, try Forest Red Gum, Woollybutt, Coast Grey Box or Maiden’s Gum.

"On slopes with well drained, less fertile soils, try Red Ironbark, Yellow Stringybark or White Stringybark.”

“For bush block and acreage owners the priority is connectivity.

Create a natural corridor, especially along a creek line if you have one and plant the koala trees listed above to link your existing vegetation to your neighbours.”

“In our surveys we were looking not only for koalas but also to see if their feed trees, their habitat still exists to support them.”

“It's time to move to a Eurobodalla koala revival/rewilding emphasis. Koalas equal big tourist dollars, and ecotourism is a growth industry. But we've reached the point where we need urgent proactivity. Business-as-usual is no longer an option if we care about having koalas in Eurobodalla.”

“Managed rewilding of the urban fringe and alluvial agricultural areas should probably be the emphasis, but remote public forests remain the safety valve and are crucial for connectivity. “

The volunteer Eurobodalla Koala Project link here will move into a new phase involving more advocacy and rehabilitation activity while still maintaining its ongoing research program.

Between 2012 and today Keith and his team of around 30 volunteer citizen scientists have conducted 55 surveys on private land in Eurobodalla, and with the help of local environmental group Coastwatchers, received a Federal grant to conduct 10 surveys of the Deua National Park, and the Moruya and Dampier State Forests.