Rescuing, rehabilitating, and advocating for Victoria’s koalas

Koalas in Victoria could be the key to the survival of the species—but they’re facing a chronic welfare and ecological crisis. 

Problem 

In southwest Victoria, the trees koalas once called home are disappearing—destroyed by land clearing and replaced by farmland, development, and roads. What remains is reduced to isolated patches—barely enough to sustain life, with koalas often found starving and emaciated. 

Many other koalas live in the swathes of private blue gum plantations that have expanded in the region. No one expected koalas to make these plantations home, but with their native habitat decimated, they didn’t have a choice. These trees offer a temporary but dangerous refuge, as when it’s time for them to be harvested, koalas risk being injured, killed, orphaned, or displaced as their homes come crashing down. This is further exacerbated by climate change, which is causing never-ending fire seasons, putting koalas and their homes at risk. 

Local volunteer wildlife rehabilitators like Tracey and Peter Wilson at Mosswood Wildlife are left to deal with the fallout of this housing crisis. They rescue hundreds of koalas each year—many of them starving, dehydrated, and injured either from dog attacks or vehicle strikes. Most of the animals they rescue are orphaned joeys. Heartbreakingly, many don’t make it. Those that do survive can spend months receiving intensive treatment and care. Mosswood’s aim is to release as many koalas back to the wild as possible. But there is very little wild left.  

Solution 

For more than 10 years, IFAW has partnered with Mosswood Wildlife in southwest Victoria to rescue, rehabilitate, and release injured, sick, orphaned, and displaced koalas and advocate for stronger protections for koalas and their habitat.  

Mosswood Wildlife is run entirely by dedicated volunteers. Every year, they rescue hundreds of animals, most of which are koalas, particularly orphaned joeys.  

It is one of the busiest wildlife facilities in the region, providing critical care for koalas and other wildlife, including seabirds and penguins. To improve welfare outcomes and give animals in their care a greater chance of survival, IFAW helped to equip Mosswood’s on-site triage clinic. This allows the team to provide specialised veterinary care with the help of a dedicated volunteer veterinarian who treats hundreds of animals each year.   

The clinic was crucial during the aftermath of the Cape Bridgewater disaster, where more than 200 koalas were killed or injured after a former blue gum plantation was bulldozed. IFAW deployed to support Mosswood Wildlife, which was inundated with injured koalas needing specialist and immediate care.  

Together, we continue to advocate for better regulations to better protect koalas in blue gum plantations and call for long-term solutions to the crisis facing koalas in the region. We have lobbied the government to provide greater protections for koala habitat and to stop land clearing in known koala zones.  

We also advocate for greater support and resources for the volunteer wildlife sector and have provided advice to the government on best rehabilitation and welfare practices for koalas, to ensure they can thrive into the future. 

Impact 

Through our long-standing partnership, we have helped to improve the welfare outcomes of injured koalas and other animals and given hundreds a second chance at life back in the wild. 

With koalas in New South Wales and Queensland on the endangered list, Victoria’s koalas could hold the key to the species’ survival. Every individual we can rescue, rehabilitate, and release into the wild matters for the conservation of this iconic species. 

Together, we have also lobbied for better protections for koalas in blue gum plantations. In 2014, IFAW and Mosswood Wildlife helped to draft a code of conduct for koala management in forestry plantations, and one year later, the industry adopted a set of non-mandatory guidelines. After we put further pressure on the government, Australia introduced regulations in 2017. These included mandating that koala spotters identify koalas on-site prior to harvests.  

While this is a welcome step forward, it is not a foolproof solution, as koalas are notoriously hard to spot, even by trained professionals. We continue to advocate for long-term solutions for koalas and their habitat across Victoria.