ORDER MARSUPIALIA: MARSUPIALS 71 



Apart from the shooting which so greatly reduced their numbers, I firmly 

 believe that the next most important factor was the bush fires which, during 

 the last twenty or thirty years have ravaged practically the whole of this 

 State. . . . The Koala falls an easy victim. . . . 



Between twenty and thirty years ago, some fishermen living at Corinella 

 took a few Native Bears across to French Island, where . . . they thrived and 

 multiplied. From this island they were introduced to Phillip Island where 

 they are now one of the principal attractions to tourists. 



Despite the drawback of practically annual fires in the scrub, 

 the Koalas "were holding their own on French Island until rabbits 

 were introduced." Cats were then liberated to cope with the latter, 

 but attacked the bird life, and consequently insect pests multiplied 

 amazingly. 



"The residents, noticing the trees dying, blamed the Koalas," 

 quite without justification. 



"It became necessary then, in order to preserve the Koala, to 

 select some other place for it, and the Fisheries and Game Depart- 

 ment chose Quail Island, a Government reserve and sanctuary . . . 

 in ... Western Port Bay. To this retreat some two or three 

 hundred Koalas have now been transferred. ... It is hoped that 

 on the three islands in Western Port the Koalas will have a safe 

 home." (Lewis, 1934, p. 75.) 



Kershaw (1934, pp. 76-77) writes as follows concerning the sanc- 

 tuary on Wilson's Promontory in southern Victoria: 



Totally unsettled, densely timbered, and, until recent years, rarely visited 

 except by cattle musterers, this area has always been an ideal sanctuary. 

 Thirty years ago the Koala was fairly numerous in spite of the periodical 

 raids of skin-hunters. . . . 



Following the permanent reservation of the Promontory in 1908 as a National 

 Park and Sanctuary for the preservation of the native fauna and flora, these 

 interesting animals were no longer molested .... As a result Koalas gradually 

 increased in numbers .... 



Their immunity from interference of any kind . . . resulted in their mul- 

 tiplying to such an extent as seriously to threaten the existence of their 

 natural food plant [Manna Gum, Eucalyptus viminalis]. . . . Quite a number 

 of the trees had died. . . . 



Action was at once taken to reduce their numbers. Where it was possible, 

 many were transferred to other parts of the Park, but in remote localities, 

 such as Oberon Bay, transport was out of the question so that it became 

 necessary, in order to save the remaining trees, to have a number destroyed. 

 [Yet] in certain localities, this particular Eucalypt was practically exterminated. 



Their food-plant gone, many of the animals died, others worked back into 

 the more heavily timbered ranges of the interior where they found suitable 

 food among the Blue Gums. With a view to their acclimatization in some of 

 the other States several Koalas were forwarded to New South Wales, South 

 Australia, and Western Australia. 



Native Bears are still fairly numerous in the timbered country on the 

 northern and eastern coasts of the Promontory and among the big timber 

 in the vicinity of Sealer's Cove. 



