Wildlife Australia Magazine Wildlife Australia Autumn 2022 Back Issue

KOALAS have replaced canaries in the coal mine. They are warning Australia that all is not well in terms of the environment they – and we – are in. Koalas have been declared Endangered by the Australian Government.

This edition of Wildlife Australia puts that status into perspective, with reports on threatened species – and the struggles to protect them and their habitats – including the bilby, flying fox, Tasmanian devil, rock-wallaby, Kangaroo Island dunnart and Rockingham’s little penguins.

The problem with koalas is they already live where humans want to live. The Australian Koala Foundation has 30 years of informational mapping to show exactly what has happened – and also maps future solutions. But time is running out.

Thankfully, the Australian public at large seems more aware of habitat protection issues and is making their views known to the powers that be. The results of the 2021 National Parks Australia Council survey tell that story. It found 89 percent of Australians agree national parks are the way to protect nature in Australia; 91 percent agree these areas are desirable to protect nature from resource extraction including logging, mining and fishing.

It is time we all voted for the most immediately impactful solution to climate change that has been identified and can be made right away. Stop clearing major forests – especially the Amazon – and stop ‘developing’ wetlands. Protect biodiverse areas. Pressurise preservation.

There are many examples of Australians spending a lifetime doing exactly this. We salute one of the great conservationists, Suzie Smith, who passed away in December 2021 in north Queensland, and we also salute the men who founded the successful Save the Bilby Fund: Peter McRae and Frank Manthey.

Stories in this edition demonstrate that saving natural ecosystems and biodiversity is – directly – saving humanity.