Koala Gardens Patrons’ Top 10 Reasons to Save Koalas – Reason 1
Protecting koala habitat will protect us all: protecting koala habitat means protecting forests which will slow or reverse climate change.
Ecosystems
Koalas are arboreal animals and an important part of their forest ecosystem.
The only way we can save koalas from extinction in the wild is to preserve and increase their native habitat. This comprises trees that capture carbon and contribute to the stabilization of the climate.
Climate change is happening around the globe.
There are three main causes: burning fossil fuels, cutting down forests and farming livestock. It is possible to see a clear link between koala extinction and these three causes.
In Australia, the country’s own coal resources are generating the majority of the electricity used domestically.
Forest is being cleared every single year for more coal mines. In addition, since European colonization in the late 18th Century, koala habitat is still being cleared for farming livestock or the crops needed to grow to feed those livestock.
All three main causes of climate change threaten koalas directly and the impacts of climate change keep compounding. Thus, we find that Climate change threatens the survival of most species on the planet today not just koalas and humans are not immune to this threat.
Indicator species
The koala is an important species to watch closely as indicator species.
This means they can be used to measure the health or lack of health of the rich ecosystem depend on.
Ecosystems are all about balance and biodiversity, including both flora and fauna.
Therefore, preserving and increasing biodiverse eucalypt forests is one of the important keys to saving koalas. This strategy also to combats climate change. A forest with high biodiversity has an increased chance of surviving through extreme climate events. It also has an increased ability to capture carbon.
Diversity
Diversity of species of tree is critical. koalas do not only need their eucalyptus food trees. For example in a diverse koala habitat, one type of tree might break more often. In turn another might burn easily, one might not cope so much with dry conditions or with their root structure being too wet.
This diversity allows them to nurture and protect each other. It also assists in slow release of carbon.
The community formed will help in extreme weather events. If one species of tree in the forest doesn’t cope very well it won’t be the destruction of the entire forest.
Carbon Storage
The forest protects and nurtures all the wood and leaf that falls to the ground, allowing that carbon to be slowly used to create more forest.
Conversely, if it had been a monoculture plantation and had all fallen down that carbon would be quickly released back into the air.
It is through the capture and storing of carbon that forests help stabilize the climate.
This means we can say that the more forests we have, the more stable the climate will become.
Through the provision of shade, such a simple thing, the trees in a mature koala habitat help reduce the temperature.
Even on the hottest day, inside a mature forest is not only cooler, but there is more water available in the air.
The leaves of the trees draw in the heat and use evaporative cooling to reduce the temperature. Hence, the denser the forest the cooler the forest.
The problems of this world are complex.
Yet at the same time there is one simple equation: more trees = a more stable climate.
Maybe the koala mantra “no tree, no me” should really be applied to us all!
Join the Colony and get involved
You can become part of the Koala Gardens Colony by adopting one of the resident wild koalas. You can also become a Patron, and one level has an adoption option.
Come and discuss Koala Gardens and all things koala on Discord where we hold lots of interesting and often in-depth discussions there. Lots of fun!
You will become part of the family and help provide much needed koala habitat.
You can also follow Katrina and the Koalas on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Koala Gardens publishes a small number of delightful illustrated children’s books in the The Adventures of Mist series. Check out the beautifully engaging and educational design. Our mission is to help children to “Fall in love with Nature”.
You can even find some great Koala Gardens gifts over at Redbubble where there is huge range of designs on an even bigger range of items.
Alternatively, you can find quick access links to everything Koala Gardens via Link Tree.
