Byron Bay Bluesfest noise has destroyed local koala population, says ecologist

Music festival strongly denies research which shows noise disturbs the koalas and forces them to move, ultimately resulting in their deaths

Music from Byron Bay Bluesfest is stressing and possibly killing koalas, according to a scientist who has studied the population - a claim that is vigorously denied by the festival and its consulting ecologists.

Dr Stephen Phillips from Biolink ecological consultants told Guardian Australia that of 20 surveyed koalas initially found close to the site of the northern NSW festival in 2010, none were alive today. He said the noise from the festival, which stressed the animals and forced them to move, was the main cause of the deaths.