S2E3 One Animal at a Time: Koalas - taking care of an icon at risk

On Sydney's suburban fringes, Koalas are having a resurgence - and this is great news. But it is happening right where the slow crawl of urban development is encroaching on their habitat. Meanwhile on the Liverpool Plains, a farmer collaborates with a researcher to break a few truisms about Koalas - and help the species to survive extreme weather events in the process. We look at the cutting edge Koala research that could make a difference to conservation futures, knowing that Koala numbers in NSW have been declining rapidly,  with disease and habitat loss being the contributors.

We also touch on the Koala Strategy, which is an initiative of the NSW government that aims to stabilise and then increase koala numbers. This is to be done through a range of actions such as creating reserves, decreasing koala roadkill events, increasing wildlife carer and veterinary training and funding research.

We hear from:

• Valentina Mella, Postdoctoral Research Associate at the School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Sydney
• Robert Frend, NSW Liverpool Plains farmer and citizen researcher
• Morgan Philpott, Hawkesbury WIRES koala rehabilitator

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