The headline-making koala that wandered into a bar on Queensland's Magnetic Island may find life a little hard to bear after Cyclone Yasi.
The male koala and 199 of his mates are a little short on food supplies after Yasi stripped the gum trees bare on the island, just off
Townsville.
Wildlife ranger Tony Gordon from Bungalow Bay Koala Sanctuary told AAP there could be a koala famine on the island for up to a month until the leaves sprout again.
Mr Gordon rescued the male koala from the rafters of the island's Marlin Bar in November.
After the cyclone, Mr Gordon was on patrol when he identified him - from his spots - up a tree.
"He was in the cyclone, sat up a tree ... and clung on for grim death, the next day he was in the same tree trying to find leaves," he said.
"He's in pretty good health, just a bit hungry.
"Leaves are scarce, the koalas are going to find it tough for at least two weeks to a month until the leaves grow back.
"In that period of time we might see koalas wandering in people's yards looking for leaves."
Magnetic Island has 200 koalas; the largest island population of koalas in Queensland.
"Koalas can't handle not having a lot of food for long periods, unlike other animals they don't store body fat," he said.
"If they don't have food for even three or four days there could be (health) problems."
He said he expected an increase of callouts to help distressed animals but as yet there hadn't been any.
The koala sanctuary has plantations of gum trees that were largely unaffected by the cyclone gusts, he said.
Meanwhile, four of the sanctuary's koalas that bunkered down during the cyclone in pet cages have been released back into their enclosures and are recovering well from the ordeal.
- AAP
