The Rescue Collective

Our wish for you this Monday morning….

🐨 KOALA FOOD TREE FACTS

Let’s talk about koala food trees and why replanting can’t, and will never replace the cutting of trees decades and centuries old.

In the wild, koalas overwhelmingly prefer to feed on larger, more mature trees. While saplings and younger trees are occasionally browsed, a tree typically needs to be at least 4 meters tall and have a trunk diameter at breast height (DBH) of 20 to 30 cm to be considered a significant fodder or habitat tree.

Several key factors determine when a tree becomes suitable for koalas:

🌱Size and Structure: Larger, older trees have denser, more expansive canopies. This provides not only a higher volume of edible leaves but also better structural support and shade, which is vital for adult male koalas that can weigh up to 14 kg.

🌱Nutritional Threshold: Smaller, younger trees are often under higher environmental stress, causing them to produce higher levels of deterrent chemicals (e.g., terpenes and phenols). As trees mature and grow past 20-30 cm in DBH, their leaves generally become more palatable and more nutritional.

🌱Age Post-Planting: Whether planted in the wild or in a plantation, a sapling usually requires 3 to 5 years of growth before it is established enough to handle foraging by koalas.

So, in summary, promising to plant fodder and future food for the koalas is all well and good, but what do they eat and live in for the next 5 years until these trees are ready? And how much else will be cleared in these corridors and habitats in that time? Will these koalas even exist by the time the trees are ready?

We shudder the thought….

Did you know The Rescue Collective plants and maintains their very own fodder farms for wildlife? If you want to donate some land or space to feed the koalas and other wildlife of SE Qld , pop us a message in our inbox!

📷 All photos: Property of The Rescue Collective

Ormiston College ormistonkoalanews Amanda Stoker MP Jarrod Bleijie MP Koala Rescue Brisbane South Inc. ABC Brisbane Animal Justice Party redlandbaysidenews Queensland GreensQueensland Environment ormistoncollegeqld