A recent study revealed that while koalas spend only about 1% of their lives on the ground, they're more likely to die during that time.
What's happening?
According to the Society for Experimental Biology, which posted its findings on Phys.org, populations of this unique species are declining rapidly, likely due to habitat loss.
Researchers in Australia fitted wild koalas with special collars containing GPS trackers and speed-measuring devices.
The collars monitored each animal's location every five minutes, except during ground travel, which was monitored in five-second bursts. Speed was checked to determine what type of movement a koala was engaged in, such as walking, climbing, and sitting.
"Koalas are mostly tree-dwelling, but due to extensive land clearing, they're increasingly forced to travel on the ground, which puts them at serious risk of injury and death," said research team member Gabriella Sparkes, a Ph.D. student from the University of Queensland, per the article on Phys.org. "I wanted to better understand what koalas do during these ground movements."
The study confirmed what researchers already knew: Koalas spend most of their time in trees, sleeping up to 20 hours per day.
"What surprised us was how infrequently and briefly they use the ground — just 2-3 times per night, averaging around 10 minutes in total, or less than 1% of their day," said Sparkes.
Why are koalas dying and why does it matter?
Previous research has shown 66% of koala deaths happen in the limited amount of time they're on the ground. Another study found that the majority of those ground deaths were due to dog attacks or vehicle collisions. The same study determined that habitat loss due to human development was an underlying cause.
Currently, Australia is facing a housing crisis and attempting to address a shortage of homes. However, the high demand has resulted in poor planning, leading to urban sprawl in metropolitan areas. This increases the chances of humans interacting with species that should be left alone, like koalas.
The state of koala populations in Australia reflects the impacts of deforestation and human encroachment on delicate ecosystems. While koalas themselves offer limited benefits to humans directly, their survival is key to protecting other species that do have direct benefits.
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All the time 💯 What's being done about koala habitat loss?
The koala is recognized by the Australian government as endangered, but the Australian Koala Foundation is campaigning for stronger laws to protect the species' habitat.
The government says it is addressing urban sprawl. Lawmakers have created a National Urban Policy, aiming to create more liveable, equitable, productive, sustainable, and resilient urban areas.
Experts recommend that average people should not touch koalas. Instead, if a koala is spotted in a human-developed environment, wildlife services should be called to transport the animal to a safe area.
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