The worst wildlife disasters in modern history happened in Australia because of the recent spate of bushfires. Scientists commissioned by the World Wide Fund for Nature WWF put the blame squarely on climate change. In the words of Chris Dickman who oversaw the project – “We really need to start thinking about how we can rein in this demonic genie that’s out of the bottle.” His reference was to climate change. He is a professor in ecology at the University of Sydney. The study highlights the reduction in the country’s biodiversity. It also wants the realization to set in about the need to address the climate crisis and put an embargo on the clearing of land for agriculture and development.

The Guardian says the loss of animals in the bushfires was nearly 3 billion. This would have a huge impact on the ecological balance of the region. The loss included mammals, birds, and smaller species like frogs and reptiles. It was not just fire and heat but factors like starvation, dehydration, and predation by feral animals. A team of 10 scientists from different universities in Australia was involved in the study commissioned by the WWF.

They say the toll is considerably more than initial estimates.

The WWF report goes into details of the bushfires

Dermot O’Gorman, WWF-Australia’s chief executive, has labeled the devastation as an event that has killed or displaced countless animals. He feels this could claim to be one of the worst wildlife disasters in modern times.

Chris Dickman said the researchers were stunned at the magnitude of the loss. He says - “Three thousand million native vertebrates is just huge. It’s a number so big that you can’t comprehend it. It’s almost half the human population of the planet.” The bushfires led to the loss of innumerable koalas and destroyed the ecology with the wildlife losing their natural habitats.

Moreover, fires damage the infrastructure and disturb power supply - people have to, then, depend on Renewable Energy.

The Guardian says Lead researcher Lily van Eeden explained that the study was an attempt to assess the impact of bushfires on animals. The area of the burned zone was around 28.31m acres – this is comparable to an area nearly the size of England. Obviously, recovery of the greenery would be a time-consuming project and bringing back the wildlife, a herculean task.

Scientists link bushfires with global heating

Australian scientists have been cautioning that an increase in the content of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere would translate into the risk of bushfires. An analysis in March revealed that the hot and dry conditions aggravated the situation and global warming could be damaging. The WWF-backed analysis is one of several studies undertaken to map the devastating impact of the bushfires. These could be loss of habitat for some species along with devastation of the ecology. In addition, native species that do not appear in the list of those threatened could now be at risk. In the opinion of experts, the existing laws need to be reviewed in order to address current or future environmental challenges.

Recent bushfires in Australia the worst fire season on record

According to CNN, the 2019 and 2020 seasons witnessed nearly three billion animals either killed or displaced in Australia. These are the findings of a study commissioned by the WWF. The number of fires was more than 15,000 and it was the worst fire season on record. Researchers are yet to finalize the report but the figure of three billion might remain. Fires of this nature happen elsewhere and the research could help other nations understand the impact of bushfires. They could evolve suitable mechanisms to control the effects of climate change and prevent these disasters. Incidentally, in March, the International Fund for Animal Welfare indicated a possible loss of more than 5,000 koalas. These animals could face the threat of extinction.
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