- Published:
- Saturday 7 November 2015
Victorians are being urged to take a bushwalk today and look for one of our favourite marsupials as part of the first ever Great Victorian Koala Count.
Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Water Lisa Neville said the Great Victorian Koala Count is a great opportunity for Victorians to learn more about our koalas and contribute to their management.
Victoria has a thriving koala population unlike Queensland and New South Wales where koala populations are listed as vulnerable under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
The conditions in Victoria including low rates of disease, absence of predators and a high fertility rate, mean our koala populations have grown rapidly in various habitats.
You can register to take part in the Great Victorian Koala Count at www.delwp.vic.gov.au/koala-count
By registering and taking part in the count you can contribute to a state-wide effort to record where you did as well as where you don’t see koalas.
The citizen science data captured from the Great Victorian Koala Count will be used to inform conservation, protection and management actions for our koalas and their habitats.
Once you have registered you can also download the Great Victorian Koala Count smartphone app to report information on the day.
Many Victorian koalas live on private land, please don’t enter private property unless you have permission from the owner.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Water Lisa Neville
“Today is a good opportunity to experience one of our beautiful national parks and help manage our Koala population in Victoria.”
“I urge Victorians to register to take part in the Great Victorian Koala and let us know where you find them and where you don’t.”
“This data will help us to better understand the koala population, and in particular, their distribution across Victoria.”