Question: Which of the following country recently declared koalas as endangered species?
a) Italy
b) Australia
c) USA
d) China
Answer: (b)
Related Facts:
- On February 10, 2022, Australia designated the koala as an endangered species as the Population of Koalas is declining dramatically across the country.
- A Koala or Koala bear is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia.
- The decision has taken amid the pressure on the marsupials’ eucalyptus tree habitats in eastern states of Australia.
- The decline in population of this animal happened because of habitat loss, impact of prolonged drought, black summer bushfires, Urbanisation and cumulative impacts of disease.
- It should also be noted that thousands of koalas are thought to have been killed in fires that swept Australia’s eastern and southern states in 2019 and 2020.
- It has been hoped that , this designation as engangered species for Kaolas would provide more protection to the species.
- In April 2020; proposal to list Koalas in Endangered category was given by WWF-Australia, Humane Society International and International Fund for Animal Welfare.
- This proposal was made after research found decline in population by 62 percent in New South Wales and 50 percent in Queensland since 2001.
By – Rajesh Tripathi
Links:-
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/feb/11/koala-listed-as-endangered-after-australian-governments-fail-to-halt-its-decline
https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/australia-koala-endangered-scn-scli-intl/index.html