What are the impacts on animals of Australian bushfires?

 Though it is estimated that nearly half-a-billion animals have been affected in one State alone, it is difficult to get the exact number until fires subside enough to allow surveys of the burned areas. Fires have been part of the Australian landscape for thousands of years. Many species and ecosystems have evolved to cope and later populate nearby unaffected land. But as climate change fuels longer five seasons and more frequent, intense fires, it could become increasingly difficult for animals to adapt newer escape strategies and for ecosystem to bounce back.

In the line of fire

Smaller mammals and reptiles can escape the blazes by burrowing underground or hiding in rocks.

But some are not good at coping heat or stress. Wombat, the small, stubby-legged marsupial, can’t run very fast or far. Kolas are particularly vulnerable to bushfires as their slow movement and tree-dwelling lifestyle make it difficult for them to escape. Koalas and kangaroos are primarily killed directly by the fires. In this season, nearly a third of all koalas in New South Wales have died and about a third of their habitat has been destroyed according to a government estimate.

Ecosystems are built on balance – once one element is thrown off, everything is affected. Even if animals don’t die from the flames or smoke, they would eventually do from the fire’s aftermath. After their habitat is destructed, there will be no shelter or food left to survive on. These animals’ recovery depends not only on their population size, but also on the condition of their habitat.

 

Picture Credit : Google