Are koalas close to becoming endangered?

Answer 1

The koala has certainly been close to being endangered in the past, and unfortunately, human activities are bringing it closer to official endangerment once more. However, its official Federal status is "Secure".

The conservation status of koalas varies from region to region in Australia. For example, due to farming, land clearing and habitat loss, native koalas were eradicated from Western Australia and South Australia in the last century, but moves have been made to reestablish new colonies in both states. Currently, koalas are thriving on Kangaroo Island in SA, and in other isolated colonies.

Koalas are still listed as "common" in most parts of Queensland, but in the southeast region of Queensland, there are calls to change their status to "vulnerable", where the numbers reduced by over 60% in the last decade. The NSW Government listed the koala as "rare and vulnerable" in 1992, and following protective measures, this has been changed to "vulnerable". Admittedly, the koala has all but disappeared on the NSW central coast. In Victoria, the koala is not on the threatened species list at all, and in some protected and remote regions, there is actually an overpopulation problem.

Despite urging by conservation groups since around 1992, Australia's federal government has refused to list the koala as vulnerable. Even international conservation groups cannot agree. Meanwhile, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the koala as "potentially vulnerable", while the US Endangered Species Act lists the koala as "threatened".