Koalas

Koalas

Topic: Environment

Context: Australia has now officially listed Koalas as ‘Endangered’ species after widespread bushfires, drought and land clearing for agriculture and Urban settlements which destroyed much of their habitat.

Concept:

• As per WWF report, Koala population inhabited parts of Australia 25 million years ago but, today only one species remains- the Phascolarctos cinereus.
• Koalas are found in the southeast and eastern sides of Australia – in coastal Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria.
• They survive on a strict diet of up to a kilogram of eucalyptus leaves per day.
• Due to low nutrition value of these leaves, Koalas tend to sleep for extended periods (often up to 18 hours a day) to conserve energy.

Why Australian government declared Koalas Endangered?

• Koalas has been on the row of extinction for over two decades. According to The Guardian report, Koalas declined between 33% and 61% since 2001 in NSW and decreased by at least half in Queensland.
• In 2012, Koalas were classified as “Vulnerable”.
• 2019 catastrophic bushfires (now known as “Black Summer”) impacted 60,000 Koalasby destroying their Eucalyptus rich habitat.
• Another major threat is the spread of Chlamydia, a sexually transmitted disease that causes blindness and cysts in Koalas reproductive tract.

How Change in status makes difference?

• Endangered status will ensure greater protection of Koalas and their forest home under Australia’s environmental law. In other words, the status will not only protect the iconic animal but many other species living alongside them.
• Established in 1964, the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species has evolved to become the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global extinction risk status of animal, fungus and plant species.
• The IUCN Red List is a critical indicator of the health of the world’s biodiversity. Far more than a list of species and their status, it is a powerful tool to inform and catalyse action for biodiversity conservation and policy change, critical to protecting the natural resources we need to survive. It provides information about range, population size, habitat and ecology, use and/or trade, threats, and conservation actions that will help inform necessary conservation decisions.
• The IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria are intended to be an easily and widely understood system for classifying species at high risk of global extinction. It divides species into nine categories: Not Evaluated, Data Deficient, Least Concern, Near Threatened, Vulnerable, Endangered, Critically Endangered, and Extinct in the Wild and Extinct.