A land clearing operation in Australia last year resulted in the deaths of 70 koalas, an episode that one lawmaker described as a "massacre."
In February of last year, the authorities discovered dozens of dead, injured or starving koalas on private property in Cape Bridgewater in southwest Victoria, after a forest and earth- moving business cleared their habitat.
The operation wreaked havoc on more than 200 koalas, causing unreasonable pain or suffering to dozens.
Koalas are still in the trees, according to animal activists.
Animals Australia, which sent veterinarians to the scene, said that some were killed instantly, their bodies found trapped under heavy branches or strewn amongst piles of felled trees. Some of them had traumatic injuries and broken bones. Some were orphans, and others were found together in the trees that were left on the property.
There were 21 dead koalas found on the site and 49 of them had to be euthanized. More koalas were treated for injuries and released back into the wild.
The Victoria state government promised to punish those responsible for the deaths that were reported on social media.
The property owner and business were charged with more than 250 offenses of animal abuse. A contracting company was charged with a crime. The authorities did not say who the businesses were.
The case will be heard in February. The maximum penalty for one charge of animal abuse leading to death is up to $150,000 for a business and up to two years in prison for an individual.
The Animal Justice Party member said he was relieved that hundreds of charges were laid for the koala massacre. He said that it was one of the worst things he had experienced.
Koalas are protected in Australia, and are listed as vulnerable in the states of New South Wales,Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory. The catastrophic fires that burned millions of acres in the country greatly affected their numbers. Many were rescued from the wild.
Koalas have evolved to adapt to wildfires, but they are facing new threats from climate change and human development, which are impairing their ability to survive fires. Koalas have declined in some regions by up to 80%, though it is difficult to know how many remain in Australia.
They can be susceptible to STDs, which can lead to infertility and death. Surveys of koala populations in Australia have shown that at least half of the koalas have the disease.
Koalas may be the key to developing a vaccine for humans because of their susceptibility.
Koalas are not easy to spot in the wild and so the Australian government began an effort to count the native population. The naked eye can't see the marsupials when they are high up in trees. The government used heat-seeking drones, acoustic surveys and detector dogs.
