Changing Australia: Romane Cristescu on rescuing koalas with detection dogs

Dr. Romane Cristescu, co-director and co-founder of Detection Dogs for Conservation, joins Radio National Breakfast to discuss the vital role detection dogs play in rescuing and monitoring koalas in Australia. Following the devastating Black Summer bushfires of 2019–2020, which impacted over 60,000 koalas, Cristescu and his team deployed detection dogs to locate survivors in the scorched landscapes of Queensland and New South Wales. Inspired by his PhD research on koalas in Minjerriba, Cristescu realized that dogs—using their superior sense of smell—could detect koala scat far more efficiently than humans. The dogs are trained to locate both old and fresh scat, enabling scientists to map koala habitats and assess population health without capturing the animals. This data is critical for informing conservation decisions, especially in areas like Southeast Queensland, where recent surveys revealed up to 90% of koalas were severely ill. The story of Bear, a detection dog who helped find 17 koalas at a devastated sanctuary, became a symbol of hope during a national crisis, with celebrities like Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio amplifying the message. Cristescu emphasizes that while dogs are instrumental in data collection, their real impact lies in enabling timely, science-based conservation action in the face of climate-driven wildfires and declining koala populations.