It is threatened by climate change and diseases, and is found in the hilly, fertile Atherton Tableland near Cairns in north east Queensland.

The Lumholtz's tree-kangaroos colonizes a variety of habitats, as long as they are flush with food and have stable and adaptable structural features.

Veterinarian Andrew Peters, from Charles Sturt University, said he had found evidence of optic nerve and brain damage, suggesting that a new viral infection was involved.

[citation needed] Karen Coombes, who has cared for injured tree kangaroos on her property west of Cairns for two decades, said she thought successive dry periods in the area were contributing to the eye problems.

Working with a comparative veterinary ocular pathologist from a university in the United States, Shima has looked at nearly 100 eyes from Lumholtz's tree-kangaroo carcasses (primarily road-killed animals) and has found no evidence of widespread blindness or pathology.