 A koala munches on eucalyptus leaves.
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July 30, 2003 — Rangers plan to put thousands of koalas in an Australian national park on contraceptives to keep them from devastating the area's foliage, officials said Wednesday.
Small plastic tubes implanted under the skin of the tree-dwelling marsupials will release hormones similar to those used in contraceptive pills, said Sally Troy, a researcher with the Victoria State Parks Authority.
The step was decided in a bid to prevent the animals from endangering the trees in Victoria state's Mount Eccles National Park, Troy said on national radio.
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"There's up to 10,000 koalas in the park and another couple of thousand koalas around the park, so they are continuing to increase and we know that more than 70 percent of the trees at Mount Eccles have got less than half of their canopy already," she said.
It will be the first large-scale trial of the contraceptives on koalas and Troy said the small animals could suffer side effects.
But she said other methods of controlling Mount Eccles' koala population had failed and the area is suffering from the marsupials' appetite for eucalyptus leaves.
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Name: Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus)
Primary Classification: Marsupialia (Marsupials) Location: Eastern Australia. Habitat: Eucalyptus forest. Diet: Eucalyptus leaves, almost exclusively. Size: Up to 2.5 ft in length and 33 lbs in weight. Description: Gray or light brown in color; white chest; round head; fluffy ears; small, yellow or orange eyes; large nose; soft, thick, wool-like fur; large paws with strong claws; two opposable toes on the forepaws Cool Facts: It occasionally eats soil and gravel to aid in digestion. It can store unchewed food in its cheek pouches. It cools off by licking its arms and stretching. Conservation Status: Lower Risk (Near Threatened) Major Threat: Habitat loss due to deforestation. What Can I Do?: Visit the Australian Koala Foundation for information on how you can help. |
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