You can clearly see that in fact koala claws do leave little holes in tree bark :)
Takeshi actually came walking past me when I was gardening and I followed him around for a while.
Thank you for the many thoughtful comments on my photos.
@kchuk oh yes, when you watch the video you can see that and you can see in this photo that one claw is puncturing the bark - then look at the bark beside him and you can make out many little punctures and scratches. They need to actually dig into the tree to support their weight as they leap up the trunk :) such amazing animals these strange but cute critters :)
one way ecologists survey for koalas is by checking trees for the telltale punctures :)
one way ecologists survey for koalas is by checking trees for the telltale punctures :)
Wow those are sharp claws!