Dogs spring into action to sniff out koalas

English springer spaniels are putting their best paws forward to help identify and map koala populations across Lake Macquarie.

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 A citywide survey of potential koala habitats kicked off on Tuesday 29 July, with Poa the springer spaniel scouring bushland west of Teralba.

Lake Macquarie City Council Manager Environmental Systems Brendan Callander said well-trained dogs could sniff out koala droppings from up to 100m away.

“Using dogs will help us quickly and efficiently search for the presence of koalas and get a better idea of their habitat use and distribution in Lake Macquarie,” he said.

“We’ve identified potential habitats using the method devised by the NSW Government’s NSW Koala Strategy team, so now it’s a matter of getting boots and paws on the ground to check those locations to see if koalas are using the mapped habitat.”

Council is working with Mid North Coast-based Canines For Wildlife, whose dogs have successfully located koala populations from Casino to Port Stephens.

“It takes about a year to train them from a puppy and, once trained, another 1-6 months to train onto new odour targets,” Director Jack Nesbitt said.

Poa will work an area of about one hectare at a time, moving from one location to the next over several weeks.

Mr Callander said NSW Government grants provided as part of its NSW Koala Strategy have funded the survey.

“Identifying habitat actually used by koalas in Lake Macquarie will help manage the animals and the areas they are using,” he said.

“It will also assist with any future planning for development and conservation in the local government area.”

More information about the NSW Koala Strategy is available at environment.nsw.gov.au.