Koala and Joey

[MAPLEMAN]

In my 53 years on this planet,i had NEVER witnessed a Koala in the wild, and have done a lot of bush walking in that time.
Only last month when i was driving down the Jimna range,i spotted a furry critter running down the middle of the road...yep,a Koala :o:)
Then only 3 days ago,i was on top of the range at where the Jimna 'State forest' starts and be buggered,saw a mother Koala with her Joey (firmly clinging to mum's back) crossing the road :oo:
Instinctively i knew that i had to guide these bundles of cuteness to safety,so i pulled over to the side of the road and guided them to the relative safety of the scrub.
They both clambered up a fairly narrow stemmed Euc of some sort (Ironbark i think) and didn't seemed too worried about my presence at all.
They truly are a delightful animal,and to see one(or two) in their wild environment is a magical experience.
To those folk that live around Jimna or travel this road as visitors,PLEASE be aware of their presence and understand that they have terrible road sense.
If you are lucky enough to spot one,contact the 'Koala foundation' in Brisbane and they will plot their location which will in turn provide important data in the effort to save these iconic critters...MM:)

[AlexS]

Had a similar experience years ago in East Gippsland. Saw what I first thought was a dog walking along the side of the road. When I reached it I saw it was a koala, so stopped for a closer look. It climbed up a small euc and I was able to see it at eye level.

[Bob38S]

We are privileged, we get 1 or 2 for a few days every 3 or 4 weeks in our front yard. They appear to travel around the area rather than just stay. Last year, during the build up to a evening storm one had a scratch at the screen door as if he wanted to come in for a visit.

Will have a dig round in in my pix and will post it later.

They are also a great talking point when we have visitors, the funniest moment was with Danish visitors when the koalas start to grunt, sound a bit like a pig.

[MAPLEMAN]

[QUOTE=Bob38S;1985653

Will have a dig round in in my pix and will post it later.

They are also a great talking point when we have visitors, the funniest moment was with Danish visitors when the koalas start to grunt, sound a bit like a pig.[/QUOTE]Cheers Bob for your reply :;
Some pics would be great
Have been told by locals that they do in fact make a grunt,similar to a pig :)
If you don't mind me asking,where are you located and do you adjoin State forest?
And yes,they are a great talking point.
I will be asking the local council to consider lowering the speed limit through a section of the Jimna State Forest and perhaps also, if possible, erecting Koala crossing signs.
Not forgetting the wallabies,echidna's and other critters that call the area home.
They need to be respected too
Again,thank you for sharing your thoughts Bob...MM:2tsup:

[rustynail]

Years ago, in our area, almost every family had one as a pet, provided they didnt have a dog. How things changed when a few big fires went through in quick succession. For many years no Koalas were seen at all. Then the occasional sighting and now quite regular sightings. We have one old chap that likes to sit high in a grey gum tree at the edge of our garden and cries like a baby during the night.

[MAPLEMAN]

Thanks for that Rustynail
Marvelous that they have returned in numbers after a succession of fires...great news!
Cheers for sharing mate...MM:)

[Bob38S]

Taken with a phone, they don't usually hang around while you get a camera.

We live on an acre just outside Maryborough.

[MAPLEMAN]

Is that a Tawny Frogmouth in the bottom pics?
And my goodness,what a cheeky Koala!
Healthy looking critter too :)
Thanks Bob...MM:2tsup:

[Bob38S]

Tawny Frogmouths - yes.

We get the odd roo visiting, we have green frogs as we tend to remove toads and lots of kookaburras, magpies and butcherbirds. Not near any forestry.

[artme]

I was really surprised that you had never seen a koala in the wild until just recently MM, particularly given your long association with the bush!!

I guess I have been lucky in that regard. The most memorable koala encounter for me was at Toormina, near Coffs harbour.
Friends lived next to a park that backed onto a bushland reserve. We were having a bbq champagne breakfast in honour of
a visiting Japanese teacher. About a dozen adults and twice as many kids were there when a pair of koalas trundled across
the park heading for a tree. Everyone, especially our Japanese friend and the kids was thrilled. Naturally the kids wanted to
pat the koalas. We managed to halt the headlong rush and to everyone's astonishment both animals stopped climbing at
patting height and just sat there. Every single person managed to pat at least one koala. This done both animals looked
around as if to say ëveryone had a turn?"and then scampered up the tree!.

My aunty had an experience while living in Port Macquarie. There was a knock at the door and she opened up to be greeted by a
large male koala. He wandered inside, looked around the house and then ambled into the bedroom where he proceeded to open
a couple of drawers and pull out the contents. After a few thoughtful minutes Blinky wandered back to the front door and waited
for it to be opened to let him out!

[MAPLEMAN]

Crikey Artme :o
They must be relatively fearless creatures to wander into a house and make themselves at home :)
That's a lovely tale...thanks!
I actually gave up hope ever seeing one in the wild :(
Will probably spot them regularly now :rolleyes:...MM:2tsup:

[Bob38S]

A few more to enjoy.

As for fearless, make no mistake 1 on 1 they can be ferocious. When dogs gang up, that, unfortunately is a different story.

[malb]

I spent my youth in a small beach community near Wilsons Prom, only resident family till I was 16, but holiday makers and tourists at those times of year. There was big old manna in the caravan park that was a big tree when my ma used to visit as a kid. Every year about 5 or 6 cats that came with holiday makers would be absent when it was time for their family to pack and leave, so they created a moderate population of wild domestics. At one stage there was quite a stink around the big manna and having a prowl I found 6 cats with their skulls stove in, and heard the grunt of a koala. Looking up the manna, there was a koala with baby hastily climbing back into mums pouch. The little joey was probably 2in across and 6in long. The cats had been climbing the tree to try an get at the joey, and had succumbed to a decent blow from mama.

I got to know mama fairly well and spent a fair amount of time sitting in branches of the tree taking photos of the pair once mama felt that she was safe with me around. She would come back every year to show off the new offspring, generally bringing the almost full grown joey from the previous year. One year she came with twins to present for their portraits.

Unfortunately, I lost all my photo albums when my parents retired to QLD 40 years ago, so I can't include my pics in the collection. Similarly, I also lost the photos of our dog frolicking with half grown wombats while the mother wombat watched on unconcerned. We also kangaroos and wallabies grazing the grass in our front yard when I was at primary school.

[Chris Parks]

koalas can swim.....


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsUE9aYQ8Hk

[MAPLEMAN]

That video was sensational
Thanks so much for that Chris...MM:)

[Uncle Al]

koalas can swim.....
Thanks Chris, never knew koalas had any affinity with water. A real thrill for the canoeoists.
As they say, only in Australia!

Alan...

[Handyjack]

Person I work with lives at the end of the train line at South Morang. Often in the mornings when he is walking the couple of blocks to the train station he sees some kangaroo's. Part of the area is bush, the rest is residential.

[Mobyturns]

The first Koala I saw in the wild was on Magnetic Island, but the most interesting Koala find was on a property a couple of hours north of Hughenden in the mid 1980's. In the middle of the day, and a very hot one at that, we found a Koala on the ground walking across what was basically wheel tracks on the basalt country and moving between trees. I have a 35mm photo of it in an old photo album. Had to fool the light metering and autofocus on my old camera as the Koala was about 1.2m above ground in the shade on an Ironbark with mid day sunlight as the background.

[MAPLEMAN]

Great to hear handyjack :)
Highlights the importance of trees being retained, particularly in urban areas like yours
Trees are often under valued in our modern society
They are so important in providing habitat and shelter for a wide variety of species, as well as a connect to the natural world
Thanks for your post...MM:2tsup:

[MAPLEMAN]

The first Koala I saw in the wild was on Magnetic Island, but the most interesting Koala find was on a property a couple of hours north of Hughenden in the mid 1980's. Never knew that they were on Magnetic Island :no: or Hughenden for that matter :o
They seem to love Ironbarks though :)
Do they enjoy feeding on them i wonder :?
I believe that they enjoy certain types (flooded gum i think is one species they favor) but not sure what their favorite chew's are!...MM :)

[AlexS]

.....not sure what their favorite chew's are!...MM Surely they can chews whatever they like.:D

[rustynail]

Never knew that they were on Magnetic Island :no: or Hughenden for that matter :o
They seem to love Ironbarks though :)
Do they enjoy feeding on them i wonder :?
I believe that they enjoy certain types (flooded gum i think is one species they favor) but not sure what their favorite chew's are!...MM :)
Prefered food very much depends on area. Koalas in our area head straight for grey gum and forest red. That is not to say they wont eat iron bark and stringy. They seem to have a first and second preference. In the hot months they are often seen in non food trees, asleep in the abundant shade these heavier canopied trees offer.
Down here, flooded gum is not a food tree, but is liked as a sleeping tree in summer, due to its usually cool location. Iron bark is eaten.

[Mobyturns]

They were introduced to Maggie Is. I was really surprised to see a koala in the outback and on basalt, in the mid day heat - can't be to smart. The area north of Hughenden has a wind farm proposal so I hope they can't climb the pylons.

Counting koalas on Magnetic Island - ABC North Qld - Australian Broadcasting Corporation (http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2012/07/20/3550070.htm)

[MAPLEMAN]

Counting koalas on Magnetic Island - ABC North Qld - Australian Broadcasting Corporation (http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2012/07/20/3550070.htm)Wondering how many numbers of koalas can the Island sustain :?
Seems like they don't, at times, appreciate relocation to other areas
Read recently that a large number didn't survive being relocated to another area of forest...just can't remember where in fact that occurred :no:
They were moved because there was no longer enough food to sustain the large population!
Maybe someone knows the where this had happened...MM:)

[Mobyturns]

I'm not sure when they were introduced to Magnetic Is, but it seems to agree with them.

[lovetoride]

Magnetic Island National Park - Nature, culture and history (Department of National Parks, Sport and Racing) (http://www.nprsr.qld.gov.au/parks/magnetic-island/culture.html)

"Koalas (http://www.ehp.qld.gov.au/wildlife/koalas/index.html) were introduced to the island in the 1930s to protect them from perceived threats on the mainland."