{"id":317639,"date":"2025-11-30T01:49:14","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T01:49:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/317639\/"},"modified":"2025-11-30T01:49:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T01:49:14","slug":"cameras-installed-at-tidbinbilla-after-visitors-caught-poking-and-throwing-objects-at-koalas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/317639\/","title":{"rendered":"Cameras installed at Tidbinbilla after visitors caught poking and throwing objects at koalas"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Koala\"<\/p>\n

A koala in the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve enclosure. Photo: ACT Parks and Conservation.<\/p>\n

Surveillance cameras will now watch over koalas at Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve after staff and volunteers reported \u201cincreasingly disrespectful\u201d behaviour from some visitors.<\/p>\n

ACT Parks and Conservation confirmed the problem publicly this week, saying people had been seen \u201cthrowing food and coins into the enclosure (and even at the animals themselves) and poking the sleeping koalas with sticks to get them to move\u201d.<\/p>\n

In a Facebook post, the agency said it had now installed cameras at the popular koala-viewing area to deter attacks.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease help us protect these gentle animals by showing them the respect they deserve,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

\u201cKoalas need to sleep 18-20 hours every day, so disturbing them can cause stress and be detrimental to their health and wellbeing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Koalas.\"<\/p>\n

Inside the enclosure. Photo: Michelle Kroll.<\/p>\n

Simon Stratford, Director of Namadgi, Tidbinbilla and the Murrumbidgee River Corridor, said cases had been becoming more common in recent months.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur staff have come across rubbish, food, coins being thrown into the koala enclosure \u2026 and a volunteer has caught people attempting to poke the koalas with sticks,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt hasn\u2019t escalated suddenly, but there\u2019s just a point in time where we need to call out this sort of behaviour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tidbinbilla\u2019s koalas aren\u2019t part of a formal breeding program, but they are a big drawcard for the reserve.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got a couple at the immediate display that people would be familiar with, and then in the broader enclosure, there\u2019re quite a few more roaming around the trees that are a lot harder to spot,\u201d he said. The youngest is Annie, a two-year-old.<\/p>\n

Mr Stratford stressed none of the koalas had been injured.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you can imagine, we know all these koalas by name, they get regular vet checks, we keep a very close eye on them, and none of them have been injured as a result of this behaviour.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"woman<\/p>\n

A temporary Tidbinbilla Visitors Centre has opened while the original undergoes upgrades. Photo: ACT Parks and Conservation Service\/Facebook.<\/p>\n

He added that even though it\u2019s a \u201cminority doing these sorts of activities\u201d, it\u2019s enough to distress those responsible for the koalas\u2019 care.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s pretty upsetting for our staff and volunteers who are there day in, day out, looking after these animals.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the behaviour may stem from visitors expecting more action from the famously sleepy marsupials.<\/p>\n

\u201cKoalas in particular \u2026 tend to sleep between 18 and 20 hours a day just because of the gum leaves that they eat,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can imagine people turning up there, koalas are asleep, and people trying to get them to wake up and move around the enclosure.\u201d<\/p>\n

The cameras were installed about a week ago, designed to first deter and then also provide a means of enforcement.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust to let people know that they are being watched if there\u2019s any of that sort of behaviour,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"koala\"<\/p>\n

Staff are always watching now. Photo: ACT Parks and Conservation.<\/p>\n

If staff or footage capture further incidents, the government will take \u201cappropriate action to follow up with authorities\u201d. Visitors are also asked to report any antisocial behaviour immediately to the Visitor Centre or a ranger.<\/p>\n

Mr Stratford\u2019s message for visitors is simple: \u201cWe just want people to respect the animals,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cObserve them from a distance and just respect them for the beautiful creatures that they are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve is open every day (except Christmas Day) from 9 am to 5 pm. Entry fees apply.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A koala in the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve enclosure. Photo: ACT Parks and Conservation. Surveillance cameras will now watch…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":317640,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[64,63,128,338],"class_list":{"0":"post-317639","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wildlife","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-science","11":"tag-wildlife"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/317639","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=317639"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/317639\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/317640"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=317639"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=317639"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=317639"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}