The koala population north of Brisbane is being surveyed to help drive future conservation efforts.
The exercise is a joint initiative of the City of Moreton Bay and the University of the Sunshine Coast.
Drones mounted with thermal cameras will detect koalas before field personnel and detection dogs conduct ground-based surveys to support health analysis.
The surveys will run until June 11, 2026, with results expected later this year. Surveys will be undertaken between 10pm and 5am.
Moreton Bay Mayor Peter Flannery said the council was committed to maintaining 75 percent of the city as rural and natural landscapes.
“We have previously been recognised for our nation-leading Green Infrastructure Network Delivery Program, and initiatives like this will help to inform future projects that protect our native fauna,” he said.
As part of the project, drones mounted with thermal cameras will be flown in a “lawn mower” pattern across specific reserve areas to detect koalas, followed by ground-based koala “scat” surveys.
The surveys are being conducted in Murrumba Downs, Kallangur, Strathpine, Petrie, Lawnton, Whiteside and Joyner.
The results will inform future koala conservation projects such as vegetation and koala habitat assessments, weed control and infill planting areas, koala disease management, and the installation of koala hatches, underpasses and exclusion fencing.
