An endangered Koala and its timid, young joey were found cuddling in the treetops on Australian Wildlife Conservancy's (AWC) new Waulinbakh Wildlife Sanctuary, part of the traditional land of the Worimi people, on the Mid-Coast of NSW. The wholesome discovery was made by means of a thermal drone which was funded by MidCoast Council with a grant from the NSW Koala Strategy, and deployed to ascertain the presence of the tree-dwelling species across the 4,000-hectare conservation area.
Emotions stirred amongst ecologists with AWC and MidCoast Council when the drone detected the unbothered mum and bub in the early hours of the morning. The familial pair were among 10 Koalas detected by the drone as it flew over two preselected areas making up 240 hectares of the sanctuary.
Andy Howe, AWC Senior Field Ecologist, described the drone survey as successful, saying it reiterates the importance of preserving the sanctuary for wildlife conservation.
"Encountering 10 Koalas is a great result," said Andy. "It indicates that the Koala population at Waulinbakh Wildlife Sanctuary is robust, giving us a great platform to work from and emphasising the site's significance as a critical refuge for the endangered species in the region."
Waulinbakh Wildlife Sanctuary was acquired in 2022, as part of a conservation agreement with philanthropists and long-time AWC supporters Andrew and Jane Clifford to manage a private estate.
AWC Upon purchase, AWC scientists estimated that the sanctuary likely supports more than 300 different vertebrate species. The Koala was believed to be among the species however little was known about the population. Since the acquisition, opportunistic Koala sightings have been recorded by AWC ecologists, but they had yet to get close enough to deduce the extent of Koala presence across the sanctuary.
"We had an idea of where to search for Koalas based on early results from a bioacoustics survey we conducted at the sanctuary last year," explained Andy. "At the time, we had high Koala calling rates in two areas within the central and north-east corner of the sanctuary.
"From the drone footage we were able ascertain that all Koalas looked healthy. They had full and uniform coats of grey and bright white fur, no clouding or discharge in the eyes from conjunctivitis and no staining on the rump from chlamydia - a great sign!"
AWC "Council is thrilled with the results of the recent koala surveys at Waulinbakh Wildlife Sanctuary," said Gerard Tuckerman, Manager of Natural Systems at MidCoast Council.
"Australian Wildlife Conservancy does vital work to conserve Australia's natural heritage, including working at the frontline to transition land with a long-term logging history into a koala safe space.
"Having an Australian Wildlife Conservancy sanctuary here on the MidCoast contributes significantly to local conservation. We look forward to working with the organisation to learn more about the plant and animal diversity on their land and to help protect the environment."
The conservation status of the Koala was uplisted by the NSW government in 2022. The species has been prioritised in the region by the development of a MidCoast Koala Conservation Strategy, which guides the conservation and management of koalas over the next five years.
According to the NSW Koala Strategy, Waulinbakh Wildlife Sanctuary is located within one of 50 'Areas of Regional Koala Significance' (ARKS), with potential for long-term viability. This data helps fill knowledge gaps and improves the placement of the ARKS.
