The Great Thing About Islands

Yes, there are lots of great things about islands ... the sand, the stillness, the fact that if you forget your computer at home you're a ferry-ride away (so there). There's even a phenomenon known as Island Time, whereby the clock sloooooows down appreciably, and punctuality ceases to matter quite so much.

St Bees Island

But what do islands have to do with conservation?

Last week, Robbie, Bill and Sean attended a conference in Canberra focused on the sustainable use and conservation of Australian islands. Islands are important because they harbour many species - like quolls - that aren't doing so well on the mainland ... but also because they often have significant mining interests. And it's easy to destroy them environmentally.

Our crew gave two talks at the conference - one highlighting our work on quolls with the Indigenous rangers on Groote Eylandt, and the other discussing how studying the demographics and behaviour of koalas on St Bees Island enhances conservation of the species.

Key points from the talks?
1. Koala populations differ biologically - so one single conservation plan won't be adequate to protect the species as a whole.

2. Island populations provide a unique opportunity to ask questions about species that are endangered on the mainland.

3. Working with Indigenous rangers and land councils will facilitate conservation of Australian fauna.

And the rest of the conference? It was a great chance for the guys to network! And explore the pubs and restaurants of our nation's capital ...

Koala Research Conference, Rockhampton QLD, 1-3 Feb 2012

The following is a summary of the Koala Research Conference, as taken from their website. It provides a brief overview of the background, agenda, and outcomes of the conference - which took place between the 1-3 February, in Rockhampton, QLD.

{Bill and Sean recently co-organised} an expert workshop on the conservation of Central Queensland’s koalas. Specialist koala researchers, captive population managers, conservation managers and planners {met} to plan a future for koalas across the species’ range in tropical Australia. The workshop {was} open to all with an interest in practical approaches to conserving this great Australian icon, {particularly} land managers and property owners.

The theme of the workshop, “Conserving Central Queensland’s koalas”, encompasses a review of research and monitoring, strategic planning in regional landscapes and the significance of local and international captive populations for global koala conservation.

{Participants sought to} achieve a more holistic and strategic approach to koala conservation founded on the application of ecological knowledge and principals.

The aim of this workshop {was} to bring together those with practical knowledge of koala ecology, captive animal managers and conservation practitioners to develop conservation principles informed by direct experience of koalas, their habitat and the environment within which they persist.

The workshop follows on the recent review by the Australian Senate into the status of the koala and the forthcoming re-assessment of the classification of the koala in Queensland. It will provide both researchers and managers with a structure for monitoring and managing conservation processes in a rapidly changing region.

{They discussed}:

• regional research and monitoring of koalas and their habitat
• information gaps and future needs for informed conservation management
• {the role of} captive management in global koala conservation (local, national & international refuges for koala genotypes)
• drought responses in koala populations at a local and landscape level
• the role of disease (including koala retrovirus & chlamydia) in koala ecology and importance for conservation planning
• the significance of fire, drought, severe weather events and climate change predictions in conservation planning.
• the influence of resource extraction and regional land management practice on regional koala persistence.
• regional planning for long term conservation (accommodating population growth, resource extraction, highways & infrastructure corridors)
• habitat management & restoration and population recovery with climate uncertainty.

And the workshop outcomes were:

• A framework (informed by research & natural history) to support practical conservation and management actions; 
• Publication of the proceedings and conclusions of the workshop;
• Dissemination of position statements in relation to regional koala conservation, management and monitoring.

Biodiversity Research with Anindilyakwa Rangers

Our team has headed back up to Groote Eylandt (and I'm still here ... sigh ... ), so I thought I might take this opportunity to talk more about our collaboration with the Anindilyakwa people of the island. We have much to learn from each other - but more than that, collaboration between scientists and Indigenous peoples can be a rewarding and effective means of conserving the environment.

Aboriginal Australians have a powerful cultural connection to their environment. It sustains them, physically and spiritually. Conservation of biodiversity is innate, and information about the environment - the organisms that inhabit it, the seasonality of events - have been passed down via narratives and stories for thousands of years.

Quoll Conservation on Groote Eylandt

Recently, our conservation researchers have begun a collaboration with the Anindilyakwa Land Council of Groote Eylandt - a large island in the Gulf of Carpentaria, off the northern coast of Northern Territory.

Bill wrote a great article about the collaboration on the San Diego Zoo blog - which you can

Problems Down Under - Chlamydia in Koalas

There's a lot of concern about the health of koala populations in Australia - and the disease the koalas are carrying is one that's considered taboo in human society.

It's chlamydia.