What is chlamydia?

Chlamydia is an organism that lives in the body tissues of most healthy koalas. In normal populations it may act as an inbuilt mechanism to limit the population so trees are not overbrowsed so that only the strongest and fittest koalas survive. Chlamydia can sometimes make koalas sick but usually only when they are stressed due to habitat loss, fire, cars, dogs, hunger and so on.

What are the symptoms?

Chlamydia causes blindness and infertility in koalas and can be fatal. Visible symptoms include conjunctivitis and ‘dirty tail’ caused by urinary tract infections and incontinence. About 50% of females become infertile as a result.

Cumulative effects of stress-related disturbance

Koalas in the Black Rocks sports field vicinity have a considerable number of stressors (see Impacts). There have been 2 known incidences of the stress-related disease chlamydia in the koala habitat adjacent to the south-east corner of the sports field between January 2014 and January 2015, one euthanased (below left) and the other uncaptured and untreated (below right).  Another diseased koala, captured nearby in Kellehers Road, was euthanased.

Another 8 of the 74 koala sightings adjacent to the Black Rocks sports field and access road appeared to have chlamydia-like symptoms.

James Warren & Associates Ecological Assessment 2011 (JWA 2011) noted that all koalas observed during the survey appeared to be fit and healthy.  However, since the JWA 2011 assessment, the resident koalas have been subjected to ongoing disturbance from increased human-related activities.   The above known incidences of disease provide evidence that there is a link between this disease and the cumulative effects of ongoing disturbance and threats since the JWA 2011 ecological assessment.

Possible causes of disease

There are 1.5km of edge effects (perimeter of the sports field and access road) where koalas are exposed to stress-related disturbance caused by human-related impacts.  Other possible causes are the Pottsville Wetlands’ Christmas day 2014 bush fire and the habitat fragmentation created by the location of the sports field and access road within the koala corridor.

In his email dated 26/1/2015 leading Ecologist and Koala expert Dr Steve Phillips states:

“It may already be that the levels of disturbance at Black Rocks are already contributing to elevated levels of disease in the small population that is now left following the recent fire event.”

Black Rocks Independent Koala Plan of Management 2004, 3.4 page 11 states:  

‘Disease may be a major threat to the Pottsville koala population.  Animals most at risk are those which occupy disturbed or isolated habitats which are subject to human related disturbance.... koalas occurring in more fragmented habitats are likely to be highly stressed.’

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How many more koalas must suffer and die before Tweed Shire Council understands the gravity of the situation and does something constructive about it? Clearly the signage isn’t working to stop stressful, impactive behaviours of people. It’s because of the isolated location of the sports field that these events are happening. Clearly it’s the wrong place for a sports field.