* Ipswich Koala Survey

We were contracted by Ipswich City Council to undertake an assessment of habitat use by koalas across Council's Parks and Reserves, including the Mount Grandchester, Flinders-Goolman and  White Rock-Spring Mountain Conservation Estates. The project involved a review of historical koala records to examine changes in koala distribution over time, as well as the application of SAT-based methodologies to quantify aspects of koala occupancy and metapopulation configuration in key areas.

Spatial analysis of koala records indicated stability in the Extent of Occurence of koalas, though the associated parameter, the Area of Occupancy, showed evidence of a decrease in the proportional area within the Extent of Occurence which is actually occupied by koalas, post-2001. The extent of this decrease does not trigger concerns of a precipitous population decline and is broadly comparable with other nearby Local Governmenta Areas.

Field survey of 63 sites using SAT or Rapid-SAT methodologies revealed an occupancy rate of ~64% of the available habitat, with moderate to high activity contours indicating resident koala populations in all three areas sampled with this approach. Baseline data collected by this study provides a background against which a longer-term koala population monitoring program can be implemented across the Ipswich Local Government Area.