Nearly half a billion animals succumb to the wildfires in southeast Australia

Invezz is an investing website and that will always be our focus, however due to the ongoing tragedy in Australia we thought that we should include something which links to the Gofundme platform and raises awareness of the issue.

In the past couple of months, Australia’s New South Wales state has had its forests under raging wildfires. According to a recent estimate, as many as half a billion animals have been killed by the wildfire with the toll likely to increase exponentially if immediate measures are not taken to contain the wildfire.

As per the University of Sydney ecologists, 480 animals including birds, mammals, and reptiles have been lost to the bushfires since September 2019. Calling it a rough estimate, ecologists added that the actual number can be expected to be significantly higher.

Wildfires Killed 18 People And Ruined Over Nine Million Acres Of Land

Experts cite climate change, drought, and record high temperatures to have contributed to one of the worst fire seasons in southeast Australia that has killed 18 people, ruined 1,000 homes, and destroyed land spread over nine million acres so far.

Killing millions of Koalas, Wombats, Wallabies, and Kangaroos, the wildfire has sharply increased the risk of erasing the entire species of Koala in Australia. Koala is already among the top animals at the risk of worldwide extinction. Analysts further added that as much as 8,000 Koalas or 30% of the total Koala population in Australia has been killed in the wildfire. While many were burnt alive as the slow-moving animal finds it hard to run away from the fire, others lost lives due to a lack of food, shelter, and unbearably high temperature.

Social networks are currently mourning the heart-wrenching pictures of burnt animal corpses. The government data highlights Koalas to contribute $1.1 billion to $2.5 billion in annual tourism revenue. Following the apocalypse, people from across the globe have been sending donations to Australia’s Port Macquarie Koala Hospital via the Gofundme platform. Having received over $2 million in donations in the past few months, the hospital is failing to treat Koalas that got injured but were rescued from the wildfire.

Professor Dieter Hochuli Sees Wildfires As A Threat To The Ecosystem

Professor Dieter Hochuli of the University of Sydney recently warned the authorities that wildfires may have been a traditional component of Australia’s ecosystem, however, the rise in frequency, as well as the intensity of the wildfires, jeopardizes the future of millions of animals and plants. He also highlighted that it is not only the well-known species that are confronted with a greater risk of extinction owing to the wildfires. It also ruins insects’ populations which serve crucial roles like nutrient cycling and pollination in our ecosystem.