In better news from a citizen science program studying koalas in the Murrah, new photos have shown several of the animals still making use of the installed water stations.
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Robert Bertram has been surveying and looking to protect koalas in the district for many years. In June he believed the local population was "functionally extinct" following the fires and ongoing drought.
However, with recent photos showing several distinct koalas, including one smaller one he believed the same as a joey photographed on its mother's back in the same location in November 2019, it appears the Murrah Flora Reserve remains a viable habitat.
In August last year Mr Bertram launched a GoFundMe campaign to assist in funding water stations to be installed at various locations in the Mumbulla section of the Murrah Flora Reserve.
The water stations were installed at 10 different locations along with motion capture cameras to monitor the wildlife.
In June's progress update, Mr Bertram said in the eastern section only one koala had been located across seven of the stations.
Two months later and Mr Bertram said scat found at the location now indicated "three, perhaps four" different koalas, juvenile and adult.
He said although one of the trees under which he has found scat was too small to be considered under the government's survey, "it is apparent the koala did eat the post-drought epicormic growth".
"In addition to drought and fire, a major risk to koalas in this area, south of the Murrah River, is the potential introduction of chlamydia from koalas in Murrah State Forest to north. Any change in that regard is more readily detected with analysis of fresh scats," Mr Bertram said.