Media release - 15 October
2012 - Koala habitat will be better protected
after an investment from the Gillard Government
into new research.
Minister for the Environment,
Tony Burke, said that the Government would
provide funding under the National Environmental
Research Program for research into use of
a new aerial imaging technique for assessing
habitat quality for koalas across eastern
Australia.
“The koala is an iconic
Australian animal, they hold a special place
in the community,” Mr Burke said.
“We know that they are
under pressure in Queensland, New South
Wales and the Australian Capital Territory
from habitat loss and urban expansion, as
well as vehicle strikes, dog attacks, and
disease.
“This investment will
look into using technology to help map habitat
quality across areas ranging in size from
a just a few to thousands of hectares.
”Koalas are fussy eaters:
they choose certain leaves to ensure they
get enough nutrients and to avoid toxic
chemicals.
“A few, key chemicals
are found in these leaves and thought to
explain why koalas select particular trees
and prefer certain landscapes.
“When I put the koala
on the threatened species list, I said we
needed to turn the corner on koala numbers.
This research will help to provide a better
road map on how to do that.”
High-resolution hyperspectral
remote sensing technology, employed by mining
companies for mapping minerals in soils,
offers enormous potential for assessing
wildlife habitat across whole landscapes.
Airborne hyperspectral
sensors use reflected light to determine
the chemical composition of a material.
The wavelength of light reflected or absorbed
by a sample corresponds to particular chemical
bonds, so the spectrum of reflected light
is a measure of the overall chemistry.
Measurements are taken
across a wide range of wavelengths and can
provide precise measures of leaf chemistry
in eucalypts.
The research has the
potential to provide fast information about
koala habitat quality, so that priorities
can be determined for doing surveys and
managing their habitat.
It is funded under the
National Environmental Research Program
and addresses priorities in the National
Koala Conservation and Management Strategy,
which include further developing techniques
to improve the understanding of koala habitat.
The study will also
provide baseline data on leaf chemistry
in tree species across eastern Australia
for use in future studies on the impacts
of climate-change.
As elevated carbon dioxide
is known to increase production of some
chemicals disliked by plant-eating animals,
the ability to monitor leaf chemistry and
quality over time will be particularly important
for the management and survival of species
like the koala.
The research is being
funded under the National Environmental
Research Program Emerging Priorities which
funds world-class research to inform environmental
decision-making.
The Government has committed
more than $5 million to the NERP program
to ensure we have the best available science
to tackle a range of environmental challenges
including water use in the Murray-Darling
Basin, flying foxes, the impact of population
growth in our capital cities and threats
to the Great Barrier Reef.
