Koala populations across parts of Australia are on track to become extinct before 2050 unless "urgent government intervention" occurs. Mathias Appel / Flickr
Koala populations across parts of Australia are on track to become extinct before 2050 unless "urgent government intervention" occurs, warns a year-long inquiry into Australia's "most loved animal." The report published by the Parliament of New South Wales (NSW) paints a "stark and depressing snapshot" of koalas in Australia's southeastern state.
<p>"Even before the devastating 2019-2020 bushfires, it was clear that the koala in NSW, already a threatened species, was in significant trouble," says the <a href="https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/lcdocs/inquiries/2536/Koala%20populations%20and%20habitat%20in%20New%20South%20Wales%20-%20Report%203.pdf" target="_blank">report</a>, adding that previous population estimates counting 36,000 individuals were "outdated and unreliable."</p><p>"Then came the fires. With at least 5,000 koalas lost in the fires, potentially many more, it was deeply distressing but extremely important for committee members to agree to the finding that koalas will become extinct in NSW before 2050 without urgent government intervention."</p>
<p>At least 5,000 animals were lost in the 2019 bushfires responsible for killing more than <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/australia-wildfire-deaths-2644394434.html" target="_self">1 billion animals</a>. Conservation groups <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/koalas-extinction-wildfires-australia-2645408622.html?rebelltitem=2#rebelltitem2" target="_self">warned</a> of the possible extinction in March after projections that the <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildfires">wildfires</a> resulted in the loss of <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/koala-rescue-fire-australia-2641408117.html" target="_self">80 percent of habitat</a>, forcing the charismatic marsupials into "<a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/koalas-functionally-extinct-fires-2641450078.html" target="_self">functional extinction</a>."</p><p>Endemic only to the eucalyptus forests in the southeastern and eastern parts of the continent, koalas rely on the trees for both habitat and food, according to <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/k/koala/#:~:text=Koalas%20live%20in%20the%20eucalyptus%20forests%20of%20southeastern%20and%20eastern%20Australia." target="_blank">National Geographic</a>. They are threatened by the destruction of habitat through the clearing and fragmentation of their unique habitat, which is further exacerbated by <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/climate-change">climate change</a> and ongoing <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/drought">drought</a> conditions that have plagued the region for years.</p>
<p>As part of their analysis, the independent committee received more than 5,700 responses and 300 submissions, in addition to nine public hearings and site visitations across several locations. Philip Spark, a wildlife ecologist, warned in the report that successive extreme events in the past had reduced one koala population by as much as half and pushed another to local extinction.</p><p>"With the trees dying and the streams drying there is a recipe for disaster. Koalas are really on the brink of not surviving," said Spark. "A crisis can happen with very little warning."</p>
<p>Citing a report published by the <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/" target="_blank">Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change</a>, Sparks added that by 2050, one in 100-year events are expected to occur every year with 50-degree Celsius heatwaves in the next 20 years. The committee further found that climate change has a severe impact on koalas and not only affects the quality of their food and habitat, but also compounds the "severity and threats of other impacts, such as <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/drought">drought</a> and bushfires."</p>
<p>The committee made 42 recommendations to ensure the future of the koala, including prioritizing the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/conservation">conservation</a> of koala habitat, establishing more thorough approaches to monitoring koala numbers, and allocating additional resources and funding to conservation projects by calling on the government to protect and restore koala habitat on both public and private land. The report also notes that officials should investigate "without delay" the establishment of the <a href="https://koalapark.org.au/" target="_blank">Great Koala National Park</a>, a proposed public conservation area dedicated to protecting the species. An interim report on Australia's national environmental laws is expected this week and is expected to consider the findings that Australia's iconic species is in need of assistance, reports <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/30/koalas-will-be-driven-to-extinction-by-2050-in-nsw-major-inquiry-finds" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>.</p>
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A koala affected by the recent bushfires is released back into native bushland following treatment at the Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park on Feb. 21, 2020 in Parndana, Australia. Lisa Maree Williams / Getty Images
By Fino Menezes
After unprecedented bushfires devastated communities and iconic flora and fauna across Australia, non-profit group Science for Wildlife releases 12 koalas back into their natural habitat in the Blue Mountains.
First Koalas Released Back Into the Wild After Bushfire Horror
<p>Before this current global health crisis, Australia endured an unprecedented bushfire season that devastated communities and iconic flora and fauna across the country. In the midst of the horror, 12 koalas were rescued from the Kanangra Boyd National Park in the southern Blue Mountains World Heritage area. On March 23rd and 25th, they were reintroduced back into the eucalyptus forests of their Kanangra home.</p>On March 23rd and 25th the Koalas Returned Home
<p>Science for Wildlife, a not-for-profit wildlife conservation organization based out of Sydney, Australia, recently announced that all of their koalas, saved from the recent bushfires, have been returned to their home in the Blue Mountains of Australia.</p><p>They rescued the marsupials, who are representatives of the most genetically diverse population of koalas in Australia, from the devastating mega-fire that moved through the area in December 2019. They were sheltered in safety and cared for by staff at Taronga Zoo, with a team effort between Taronga and Science for Wildlife in keeping them fed.</p><p>On March 23rd and 25th, they were reintroduced back into the eucalyptus forests by the team, with the support of San Diego Zoo Global.</p><p>"While they have coped well in care, we are delighted to finally send our koalas home. We have been busy assessing the burnt area that we rescued them from, to establish when the conditions have improved enough that the trees can support them again," said <a href="http://scienceforwildlife.org/people/dr-kellie-leigh/" target="_blank">Dr Kellie Leigh</a>, Executive Director of Science for Wildlife.</p><p>"The recent rains have helped and there is now plenty of new growth for them to eat, so the time is right. We will be radio-tracking them and keeping a close eye on them to make sure that they settle in ok."<br></p><p>Dr. Leigh continued, "During the massive fires, as 80% of the World Heritage Area burnt, we were at risk of losing the entire koala population at this site and so that's what drove us to try something so radical and pull these koalas out before the fire hit."</p>The Animals are Part of a Genetically Diverse Koala Population
<p>The Greater Blue Mountains area is a mountainous region located in New South Wales in Australia, which supports koalas that seem to break all the rules. The region was listed as a World Heritage Area by UNESCO in 2000 largely due to an outstanding diversity of eucalypt species (over 100 species), giving koalas more choice of habitats and food trees than anywhere else in Australia.<br></p><p>Science for Wildlife has been running the Blue Mountains Koala Project in this region for 5 years and through collaborative research they discovered that the Blue Mountains World Heritage Region is home to the most genetically diverse population of koalas in the world. The population in Kanangra-Boyd is also free of chlamydia, which is sadly a rare thing. Science for Wildlife, along with San Diego Zoo Global*, is committing resources to help ensure that the population is recovered.<br></p><p>*Bringing species back from the brink of extinction is the goal of San Diego Zoo Global. A leader in global conservation, San Diego Zoo Global has been a core partner for Science for Wildlife's Blue Mountains Koala Project since it started and have been raising funds to support the rescue and other emergency wildlife work that Dr. Kellie Leigh and her team have been undertaking during the bushfires.</p><p>Some of the core funding provided by San Diego Zoo Global over the years has been used for ecological studies and to find, capture and radio-track koalas at the different study sites – those tracking devices are what enabled the team to go in and find the koalas and move them out before the approaching fire. The same devices, along with more support from San Diego Zoo, will now allow them to monitor the animals and ensure they settle in ok.</p>What's Next for These Koalas?
<p>The reintroduction of these koalas back to their natural habitat is just the next stage in what conservationists know will be a long-term effort to recover koala populations in the area.</p><p>"There is still a lot of work to be done to assess what is left of koalas in this region and plan for population recovery. We are dedicated to continuing to support this critical work to conserve a significant koala population," <a href="http://scienceforwildlife.org/koalas-return-to-the-blue-mountains/" target="_blank">said</a> Paul Baribault, President and CEO of San Diego Zoo Global.</p><p>The radio-tracking devices fitted to the koalas will ensure that the Science for Wildlife team can monitor their welfare, and also learn more about how koalas use the landscape after fire. This should tell them where else they might find pockets of surviving koalas. Finally, the technology will help the Science for Wildlife team plan a future for koalas under climate change, where more frequent and intense fires are expected.</p><p>To learn more about the Blue Mountains Koala Project, visit their project page <a href="http://scienceforwildlife.org/iconic-koalas-blue-mountains-project/" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p>For projects updates and to learn more about Science for Wildlife community, visit their projects page <a href="http://scienceforwildlife.org/projects/" target="_blank">here</a>, or follow them on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pg/ScienceForWildlife/photos/" target="_blank">Facebook</a>. </p>Koalas are Being Released in Other Parts of New South Wales
<p>Koalas are also being released in other parts of New South Wales, the state where Sydney is located, <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/sydney-australia-bushfires-koalas-released-a9443261.html" target="_blank">reported</a> <em>The Independent</em> last week.</p><p>Staff and volunteers at Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, based four hours' drive north of Sydney, released their first koala on April 2.<br></p><p>The four-year-old named Anwen was rescued in October last year, and will be the first of 26 koalas to be released into the wild by the animal hospital over the coming days.</p><p>The remaining koalas will be split into three groups and will be released back to their original habitats in Crowdy Bay (South of Port Macquarie), and two areas in the Lake Innes Nature Reserve.</p><p>Sue Ashton, president of Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, said, "This is a heart-warming day for us – to be able to release so many of our koalas back to their original habitats, even to their original tree in some cases – makes us very happy.</p><p>"Anwen was our first ever female koala to be admitted during the bushfires and her recovery has been extraordinary. It marks a proud moment for Australia; to see our Koala population and habitat starting to recover from what was such a devastating time."<br></p><p>Port Macquarie Koala Hospital has also cared for koalas from Taree, the Blue Mountains and Hawkesbury. The hospital said these will be returned to their "home" areas to be released.</p>From Your Site Articles
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Koalas are clinging to life in bushfire-ravaged Australia, as seen here on Jan. 9, 2020. Ninian Reed / CC BY 2.0
Australian conservation groups are asking the government to declare koalas endangered after the devastating wildfires this summer killed thousands of them and destroyed 45 million acres of bush that they call home, according to a new report from the conservation group International Fund for Animal Welfare.
<p>The report used witness accounts and satellite imagery to assess the damage to the koala population. It conservatively estimates that nearly 5,000 koalas were killed, which accounts for 12 percent of the population in New South Wales, according to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/05/australia/koala-status-new-south-wales-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a>. Another report from the World Wide Fund for Nature found that nearly 10,000 koalas died in New South Wales, which would comprise one-third of the koala population, according to the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-18/ten-thousand-koalas-could-have-died-nsw-bushfires/11975378" target="_blank">Australian Broadcasting Company</a>.</p><p>Dr. Stephen Philips, principal research scientist and koala ecologist at the environmental consultancy Biolink, which compiled the <a href="https://d1jyxxz9imt9yb.cloudfront.net/resource/348/attachment/original/koala-conservation-status-in-new-south-wales_2_.pdf" target="_blank">International Fund for Animal Welfare</a> report, said: "We've taken a conservative approach. But we still think that we have lost two out of every three koalas in NSW. It's a spectacular loss in terms of conservation criteria and meets <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/endangered-species">endangered</a> listing almost immediately."</p>
<p>It also found that the intensity of the fires made it extremely difficult for koalas to escape to safety. The researchers estimated that in areas of intense burning, at least 70 percent of the koala population perished, according to the <a href="https://d1jyxxz9imt9yb.cloudfront.net/resource/348/attachment/original/koala-conservation-status-in-new-south-wales_2_.pdf" target="_blank">report's executive summary</a>.<br></p><p>"Koalas are particularly vulnerable to bushfires as they are slow moving and live in eucalyptus trees that burn quickly and intensely," wrote Josey Sharrad from the International Fund for Animal Welfare to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/05/australia/koala-status-new-south-wales-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a>. "When fires sweep through their homes, they often don't have time to escape, particularly in intense crown fires that rage through the treetops where they live," she added.</p><p>Those are troubling numbers since the koala population, prior to this summer's wildfires, had already experienced a nearly 20 percent population decline over the last three generations, which is about 18 years, according to the <a href="https://d1jyxxz9imt9yb.cloudfront.net/resource/348/attachment/original/koala-conservation-status-in-new-south-wales_2_.pdf" target="_blank">report</a>.</p><p>The study looked at the effects of the wildfires from Oct. 1 to Jan. 10. The group expects to have a more complete picture of the threat koalas are under after it looks at data running through Feb. 10. The preliminary analysis shows a wide range of losses, anywhere from 29 percent to 67 percent of the koala population, according to the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/04/bushfires-likely-to-have-killed-about-5000-koalas-in-nsw-report-finds" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>. Even if the losses are on the conservative side, it still means nearly one-third of the population was lost in just a few months, plus much of their habitat was completely destroyed threatening their future viability.</p><p>"We realized the numbers [lost] were getting quite dire, but we also appreciated there was a need for a careful quantitative assessment of what's happened," said Phillips to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/04/bushfires-likely-to-have-killed-about-5000-koalas-in-nsw-report-finds" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>.</p><p>Stuart Blanch, a conservation scientist with the World Wildlife Fund for Nature argued that the losses mean a projected 2050 extinction for koalas has moved up and accelerated dramatically, so the marsupials should receive protected status, according to the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-18/ten-thousand-koalas-could-have-died-nsw-bushfires/11975378" target="_blank">Australian Broadcasting Company</a>.</p><p>"What I've heard from people doing the surveys is that we might have lost 10,000 koalas from the fires and the droughts," said Blanch, as the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-18/ten-thousand-koalas-could-have-died-nsw-bushfires/11975378" target="_blank">Australian Broadcasting Company</a> reported. "It's brought forward a 2050 extinction projected timeline for most of the populations across the state by years."</p><p>The new <a href="https://d1jyxxz9imt9yb.cloudfront.net/resource/348/attachment/original/koala-conservation-status-in-new-south-wales_2_.pdf" target="_blank">report</a> from the <a href="https://d1jyxxz9imt9yb.cloudfront.net/resource/348/attachment/original/koala-conservation-status-in-new-south-wales_2_.pdf" target="_blank">International Fund for Animal Welfare</a> backs up Blanch's assessment. It found "an immediate, ongoing and significant threat of extinction." According to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/05/australia/koala-status-new-south-wales-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a>, the report states that koalas are eligible for a provisional listing as Endangered on an emergency basis under the New South Wales Biodiversity Conservation Act of 2016.</p><p>"Our koalas only stand a chance if we help," Sharrad said to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/05/australia/koala-status-new-south-wales-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a>. "They are literally fighting for their survival. This rapid destruction of koala habitat, combined with climate change, is inflicting substantial stress and pushing the species towards extinction."</p>
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Australian native Koala close up on Raymond Island in the Gippsland Lakes, Victoria. tracielouise / E+ / Getty Images
<p>Nearly one third of the koalas in the state of New South Wales may have died in the country's devastating <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildfires" target="_self">wildfire</a> season, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radio/adelaide/programs/am/govt-is-working-to-address-threats-to-native-species:-ley/11828480" target="_blank">according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp</a> (ABC). And now, reports have emerged that dozens of the animals were killed at a timber plantation in the state of Victoria.</p><p>"Australia should be ashamed," 63-year-old Helen Oakley, who discovered the koalas while hiking in the area Wednesday, said in a Facebook video <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-02/koala-deaths-in-victorias-south-west-to-be-investigated/11922088" target="_blank">reported by ABC</a>. "They've bulldozed 140 acres down and just killed all of our koalas."</p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="9b96c643a10e0f8abd39f3adf9d32892"><div class="fb-video" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/helen.oakley.140/videos/10157679911540708/" data-allowfullscreen="true"></div></div><p>Oakley discovered the dead and injured koalas at a blue gum plantation near Cape Bridgewater in southwestern Victoria. She said she had found 10 dead koalas and dozens more trapped in blue gum stands on the property. Some of the trees had been bulldozed with koalas still in them.</p><p>Victoria Animal Justice Party member of parliament Andy Meddick visited the scene Sunday and said he had found trees "bulldozed into piles," <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/03/koala-massacre-animals-reported-starving-or-dead-after-plantation-logging" target="_blank">according to The Guardian</a>.</p><p>"I saw at least 10 bodies in just one of those piles. A couple had literally been crushed to death when these trees have been uprooted," he said. "In one instance, a koala had her arm stuck between two branches and she had starved to death. Animals have been killed, injured and left to starve by whoever has done this."</p><p><a href="https://www.foei.org/" target="_blank">Friends of the Earth</a> described the scene as a "massacre," according to <a href="https://www.afp.com/en/news/15/dozens-koalas-dead-after-logging-australian-plantation-doc-1on45c1" target="_blank">AFP</a>.</p><p>Victoria's Conservation Regulation said it had looked at more than 80 koalas since arriving at the site Friday and that it had to euthanize around 30, The Guardian reported. Chief conservation regulator Kate Gavens said that at least 40 koalas had died, but that number was expected to rise as officials looked through another 10 kilometers (approximately 6.2 miles) of downed trees.</p><p>Animal welfare group <a href="https://www.animalsaustralia.org/" target="_blank">Animals Australia</a> also sent teams to help the government care for the survivors, as <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-51346637" target="_blank">BBC News reported</a>.</p><p>"Vets are seeking to save as many of these precious animals as possible," the group tweeted.</p>
<div id="3e230" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="JXO3I51580738711"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1223738897294753792" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">With the support of local authorities and wildlife carers, Vets are seeking to save as many of these precious anima… https://t.co/9lJWML8J1R</div> — Animals Australia (@Animals Australia)<a href="https://twitter.com/AnimalsAus/statuses/1223738897294753792">1580597063.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Victorian environment minister Lily D'Ambrosio said that the government would do "everything possible" to bring the people responsible for the deaths to justice, The Guardian reported.</p><p>"Every Victorian can rightly feel not only appalled, deeply saddened and heartbroken, but angry. I am absolutely angry," she said.</p><p>Those caught killing or disturbing <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife" target="_self">wildlife</a> can face fines of up to $8,000, as well as an additional penalty of more than $800 per individual harmed, according to the Wildlife Act.</p><p>Logging company South West Fibre said that it had been contracted to do some logging on the property in October 2019, but had left "habitat trees" for the koalas, which it said were "uninjured and in good health" when it handed the property back to the owners in November.</p><p>The site is run by Keith Troeth for his father, Russell. The younger Troeth told reporters he had cleared the remaining trees to return the land to pasture, but denied reports of a massacre.</p>
<p>"We made every effort to do it professionally, we made every effort to minimise any fatality," he told The Age, as The Guardian reported. "There may have been one or two koalas killed and I'll wear the responsibility, but it's not the big hoo-ha it's been made out to be."<br></p><p>The incident comes as tens of thousands of koalas were killed in wildfires this Australian spring and summer, BBC News reported. Humans are not innocent of those deaths, either: Australia's fires <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/australia-fires-michael-mann-2644442561.html?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1" target="_self">have been made more extreme</a> by the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/climate-change/" target="_self">climate crisis</a>.</p><p>"We're still going through these fires in East Gippsland — we've lost an enormous amount of animals," Meddick told ABC. "How could anyone possibly, in the light of that, conduct an operation like this?"</p>
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A kangaroo tries to move away from nearby bushfires at a residential property near the town of Nowra in the Australian state of New South Wales. SAEED KHAN / AFP via Getty Images
By Jake Johnson
Ecologists at the University of Sydney are estimating that nearly half a billion animals have been killed in Australia's unprecedented and catastrophic wildfires, which have sparked a continent-wide crisis and forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes in desperation.
<p>News Corp Australia <a href="https://www.news.com.au/technology/science/animals/half-a-billion-animals-perish-in-bushfires/news-story/b316adb4f3af7b1c8464cf186ab9f52c" target="_blank">reported</a> Wednesday that "there are real concerns entire species of plants and animals have been wiped out by bushfires following revelations almost 500 million animals have died since the crisis began."</p><p>"Ecologists from the University of Sydney now estimate 480 million mammals, birds, and reptiles have been lost since September," according to News Corp. "That figure is likely to soar following the devastating fires which have ripped through Victoria and the [New South Wales] South Coast over the past couple of days, leaving several people dead or unaccounted for, razing scores of homes and leaving thousands stranded."</p><p>The horrifying figures come as images and videos of animals suffering severe burns and dehydration continue to <a href="https://twitter.com/TomthunkitsMind/status/1212478187122417664" target="_blank">circulate on social media</a>.</p><p>Mark Graham, an ecologist with the National Conservation Council, told the Australian parliament that "the fires have burned so hot and so fast that there has been significant mortality of animals in the trees, but there is such a big area now that is still on fire and still burning that we will probably never find the bodies."</p><p><a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/koalas">Koalas</a> in particular have been devastated by the fires, Graham noted, because they "really have no capacity to move fast enough to get away."</p><p>As Reuters <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2019/12/31/world/asia/31reuters-australia-bushfires-wildlife.html" target="_blank">reported</a> Tuesday, "Australia's bushland is home to a range of indigenous fauna, including kangaroos, koalas, wallabies, possums, wombats, and echidnas. Officials fear that 30 percent of just one koala colony on the country's northeast coast, or between 4,500 and 8,400, have been lost in the recent fires."</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The new normal, except it isn’t.<br><br>It’s going to get much worse. <br><br>And the longer we delay climate action, the worse it will get<a href="https://t.co/Rk9FmBPaQs">https://t.co/Rk9FmBPaQs</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AustraliaBushfires?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AustraliaBushfires</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ClimateEmegency?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ClimateEmegency</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ClimateChangeIsReal?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ClimateChangeIsReal</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ausfires?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ausfires</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/australianBushfires?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#australianBushfires</a></p>— Greenpeace NZ (@GreenpeaceNZ) <a href="https://twitter.com/GreenpeaceNZ/status/1212509879639789569?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 1, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<p>Australia's coal-touting Prime Minister Scott Morrison has <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/12/23/pouring-coal-fires-aussie-pm-rejects-climate-solutions-country-burns" target="_blank">faced growing scrutiny</a> for refusing to take sufficient action to confront the wildfires and the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/climate-crisis">climate crisis</a> that is driving them. Since September, the fires have burned over 10 million acres of land, destroyed more than a thousand homes and killed at least 17 people — <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2020/jan/02/nsw-fires-live-news-victoria-bushfires-australia-near-south-coast-tourists-latest-updates-" target="_blank">including 9 since Christmas Day</a>.</p><p>On Thursday, the government of New South Wales (NSW) <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/01/australia/australia-fire-nsw-deaths-intl-hnk/index.html" target="_blank">declared a state of emergency</a> set to take effect Friday morning as the wildfires are expected to intensify over the weekend.</p><p>"We've got a lot of fire in the landscape that we will not contain," said Rob Rogers, deputy commissioner of the NSW Rural Fire Service. "We need to make sure that people are not in the path of these fires."</p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/01/02/entire-species-are-being-wiped-out-ecologists-say-half-billion-animals-may-have-been" target="_blank">Common Dreams</a>.</em></p>
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A thirsty koala suffering from the soaring temperatures in South Australia was helped out by a group of cyclists who stopped to offer it a drink from their water bottles.
<p>A video posted on Instagram by cyclist Anna Heusler shows the desperate marsupial climbing onto the frame of a bicycle to get a better sip.</p><p>The cyclists, <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/australia-bushfire-risk-soars-with-extreme-temperatures/a-51602824" target="_blank">who were riding towards Adelaide in 40°C (104°F) heat,</a> spotted the koala as they came around a bend on the road. "Naturally, we stopped because we were going to help relocate him off the road," Heusler told Australia's 7 News, as <a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12296980" target="_blank">reported in the New Zealand Herald</a><u style="">.</u></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A desperate koala suffering through the soaring temperatures in South Australia approached a group of cyclists to drink from a water bottle.<a href="https://t.co/jV9mM4xn9y">https://t.co/jV9mM4xn9y</a></p>— nzherald (@nzherald) <a href="https://twitter.com/nzherald/status/1210720352176730112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<p>"I stopped on my bike and he walked right up to me, quite quickly for a koala, and as I was giving him a drink from all our water bottles, he actually climbed up onto my bike.</p><p>"None of us have ever seen anything like it."</p>
<h3>Koalas Suffering in Heat Wave</h3><p>The pictures are heartwarming, but the incident also shows the dangers posed to the animals' existence by the current <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildfires">fire</a> situation in the country. At least 2,000 koalas died in <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/australia-christmas-rain-fails-to-contain-bushfires/a-51791597" target="_blank">devastating and widespread bushfires</a> across South Australia and the east coast of the continent, a parliamentary inquiry heard earlier in December.</p><p>The animals died either in bushfires or from starvation and dehydration afterwards, North East Forest Alliance president and ecologist Dailan Pugh told the inquiry.</p><p>Director of the Total Environment Centre Jeff Angel warned that the risk to koalas' survival was at emergency level due to the bushfires, which have caused loss of habitat for the marsupials. "<a href="https://www.dw.com/en/australia-fires-prime-minister-defends-climate-policy-after-greta-thunberg-criticism/a-51782175" target="_blank">We urge the government to do more, and quickly</a>," Angel told News Ltd on Saturday.</p><p>The assessment of the situation facing Australia's koalas comes as its government drew criticism for a badly timed tourism campaign costing Aus$15 million ($10.5 million, €9.4 million). The campaign depicts scenes of cuddly koalas and blue skies — in stark contrast to current media images of <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/australian-fires-threaten-sydney-water-supply/a-51810150" target="_blank">Australia's inferno-like conditions.</a></p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/australia-thirsty-koala-stops-cyclist-to-take-a-drink-amid-heatwave/a-51817756" target="_blank">DW</a>.</em></p>From Your Site Articles
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NOAA-NASA's Suomi NPP satellite flew over the New South Wales fires in Australia on Dec. 16 and found devastation from the ongoing fires. The New South Wales Rural Fire Service is reporting 96 fires are burning and to date the size of the area burned is 1.5 times the size of the state of Connecticut. NASA
The bushfires that have been tearing through New South Wales and Queensland, decimating koala habitats, taxing the water supply, and choking the air since August have claimed six lives. Now, new NASA data shows that the fires have emitted 250 million tons of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of half thee country's annual greenhouse gas emissions, according to The Guardian. In 2018, Australia's total greenhouse has emissions was 532 million tons of carbon dioxide.
<p>Dr. Niels Andela, a scientist at the NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and a collaborator in the Global Fire Emissions Database, gave the data to The Guardian Australia.</p>
<p>Usually, bushfires are considered carbon neutral, because when vegetation regrows it absorbs the carbon dioxide the fires have emitted. However, scientists are predicting that the scale of this year's fires coupled with drought-stricken forests will make it impossible for the vegetation to absorb the carbon, as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/dec/13/australias-bushfires-have-emitted-250m-tonnes-of-co2-almost-half-of-countrys-annual-emissions" target="_blank">The Guardian</a> reported.</p><p>"Drought-stressed trees recover less well – carbohydrates reserves are exhausted – and under climate change tree growth may be slow and fires more frequent, meaning less tree biomass and even loss of forest cover," said David Bowman, a fire ecologist at the University of Tasmania, to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/dec/13/australias-bushfires-have-emitted-250m-tonnes-of-co2-almost-half-of-countrys-annual-emissions" target="_blank">the Guardian</a>. "This is a nasty negative feedback cycle of a biosphere carbon sink becoming a source [of carbon]."</p><p>Pep Canadell, a senior research scientist at the CSIRO Climate Science Centre, told the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-12/nsw-qld-bushfires-could-increase-carbon-footprint-scientists-say/11789504" target="_blank">Australia Broadcasting Corporation</a> (ABC) Australia's forests had more in common with the Amazon than people would think.</p><p>"We're talking about very different sizes, of course. [There] are more carbon-dense forests in Amazonia than in Australia," said Canadell. "Having said that, a lot of [bush areas] burning now in NSW are actually exceptionally carbon-dense — they're very tall and quite dense forests. So from a per square meter or hectare level, we're certainly not shy away from what is happening in the Amazon."</p>
<p>The bushfires have already burned over 6.7 million acres of land and they could last through the Australian summer, until March or longer, as <a href="https://earther.gizmodo.com/now-australias-bushfires-are-fueling-climate-change-1840411693" target="_blank">Gizmodo</a> reported. </p><p>The fires follow the pattern of the Amazon fires and the California fires that create a carbon feedback loop, where human activity compromises Earth's ability to absorb carbon as we emit more of it, according to <a href="https://earther.gizmodo.com/now-australias-bushfires-are-fueling-climate-change-1840411693" target="_blank">Gizmodo</a>. These events are becoming more common as the Earth warms. It's especially evident in melting permafrost, which releases a tremendous amount of trapped carbon as it thaws, as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's <a href="https://www.arctic.noaa.gov/report-card" target="_blank">Arctic Report Card</a> found. </p><p>"This pulse of fire emissions should indeed be of concern. Any additional carbon emissions to the atmosphere, with no guarantee that it will be removed back by regrowing vegetation in a later stage, is of concern, particularly in an Australia under climate change," said Canadell, as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/dec/13/australias-bushfires-have-emitted-250m-tonnes-of-co2-almost-half-of-countrys-annual-emissions" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Guardian</a> reported. He added, "Thus, it is important to understand both risks – the emissions from fires but also the potential long-term loss of CO2 sink capacity of the terrestrial vegetation due to the incomplete recovery of burned landscapes due to permanent degradation. These emissions are very significant."</p><p>"The nightmare scenario is that because of climate change, the forest isn't able to recover itself," said Bowman to <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-12/nsw-qld-bushfires-could-increase-carbon-footprint-scientists-say/11789504" target="_blank">ABC</a>. "Once we actually know for certain what's happening, it's going to be too late. And this is a big thing to be wrong about."</p>
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A video shows a woman rescuing a koala from Australia's wildfires. VOA News / YouTube screenshot
Lewis, the koala who stole the world's heart when a video of his rescue from Australian wildfires went viral, has died.
<p>The koala rose to fame when Australian grandmother Toni Doherty was filmed risking her life to carry him out of the flames using the shirt off her back. Doherty named him Ellenborough Lewis after one of her seven grandchildren, according to <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/lewis-the-koala-dies-after-wildfire-rescue-australia_n_5ddd4f06e4b0913e6f749c9f?ri18n=true&guccounter=1" target="_blank">HuffPost</a>, and rushed him to the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital. But the hospital had to put him to sleep when his injuries proved too severe.</p><p>"We recently posted that 'burns injuries can get worse before they get better.' In Ellenborough Lewis's case, the burns did get worse, and unfortunately would not have gotten better. The Koala Hospital's number one goal is <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/animal-welfare" target="_self">animal welfare</a>, so it was on those grounds that this decision was made," the hospital wrote in a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/koalahospital/posts/10157870122199662" target="_blank">Facebook Post Tuesday</a>.</p>
<div id="174d5" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="OOZ5ZO1576661078"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1199235515855147008" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">He's the little koala who captured hearts all around the globe, but today, Lewis' brave fight came to an end, succu… https://t.co/blsuCBVs0B</div> — Nine News Sydney (@Nine News Sydney)<a href="https://twitter.com/9NewsSyd/statuses/1199235515855147008">1574755002.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Doherty and her husband, Peter, were present to say goodbye, <a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/lewis-the-koala-rescued-from-nsw-bushfires-has-died/8e3faef2-25a9-42d3-b94f-5514b5884c59" target="_blank">9News reported</a>.</p><p>"We were there this morning. We are naturally very sad about this, as we were hoping he'd pull through but we accept his injuries were severe and debilitating and would have been quite painful," Peter Doherty told Australia based 9News.</p><p>Lewis's story brought attention to a wider crisis faced by Australia's Koala population in the midst of an extreme bushfire season. More than a million hectares have burned just in the state of New South Wales, <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-50553859" target="_blank">BBC News reported</a>, and the Australian summer has not even begun. Australia's <a href="https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/" target="_blank">Climate Council</a> <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/sydney-australia-wildfires-2641302855.html?rebelltitem=4#rebelltitem4" target="_self">has warned for six years</a> that the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/climate-change/" target="_self">climate crisis</a> is increasing the country's fire risk, and this has devastating consequences for koalas.</p><p>In October, the same hospital that tended Lewis warned that <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/koala-habitat-fire-port-macquarie-2641163216.html?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1" target="_self">more than 350 koalas</a> might have died when fires reached a koala habitat in Port Macquarie. Deborah Tabart, chairwoman of the <a href="https://www.savethekoala.com/" target="_blank">Australian Koala Foundation</a>, <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/koalas-functionally-extinct-fires-2641450078.html" target="_self">said this month</a> that 80 percent of koala habitat has been destroyed by the fires.</p>
<p>The fires are especially perilous for koalas because they will climb trees and curl up into balls instead of running away. But they also scream for help when distressed, something that caught Doherty's attention.<br></p><p>"I've never heard a koala before. I didn't realise they could cry out. It was just so heart-rendering," Doherty told Today after rescuing Lewis, according to 9News.</p><p>Jill Filipovic <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2019/11/26/opinions/lewis-the-koala-fire-death-climate-filipovic/index.html" target="_blank">wrote for CNN</a> that Lewis's death was a symptom of a much larger problem, as the climate crisis and other human activities threaten Earth's biodiversity with mass extinction.</p><p>"Indeed, koalas are a particularly cute emblem of how a perfect storm of greed, nationalism, climate denialism, political cynicism has gathered to fundamentally alter life on earth as we know it," she wrote.</p>
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'Functionally Extinct' Koalas Have Now Lost 80% of Habitat Following Recent Fires, Experts Say
25 November 2019
Animals
A dehydrated and injured Koala receives treatment at the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie on Nov. 2 after its rescue from a bushfire. SAEED KHAN / AFP / Getty Images
The recent Australian brushfires and extended drought have decimated the koala population to the point where it may be "functionally extinct," according to an expert at the Australian Koala Foundation, as the Daily Mail in the UK reported.
<p>Functionally extinct means the population has become so limited that koalas no longer play a significant role in their ecosystem. Furthermore, the population is so depleted and colonies of koalas are isolated from each other, making the long-term viability of the beloved marsupial susceptible to disease and unlikely to survive much longer, as <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2019/11/23/koalas-functionally-extinct-after-australia-bushfires-destroy-80-of-their-habitat/#65da97017bad" target="_blank">Forbes</a> reported.</p><p>"If we combine all of the estimated deaths of koalas in the bushfires, there could be 1,000 koalas that have been killed in the last two months," said Deborah Tabart, chairwoman of the Australian Koala Foundation, to the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7713561/Expert-claims-koalas-functionally-extinct-bushfires-destroy-80-cent-habitat.html?ito=social-facebook_Australia&fbclid=IwAR1oMwg8QNClMi3Z5e8JrK-xcXoR64lTzZCJX2BhALhHyzjoiHQ1iWoZThE" target="_blank">Daily Mail</a>. She added that 80 percent of their habitat has been destroyed.</p><p>In May, the Australia Koala Foundation estimated there were only 80,000 healthy wild koalas, which rendered them functionally extinct, according to a <a href="https://www.savethekoala.com/sites/savethekoala.com/files/uploads/AKF_press_release_10_may_2019.pdf" target="_blank">press release</a>.</p><p>The stubborn marsupial has struggled with the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/climate-crisis" target="_blank">climate crisis</a>. When confronted with brushfires, rather than run away, koalas climb trees and curl into a ball as a danger-avoidance strategy. While they are normally quiet, they will yell for help when a situation seems dire.</p>
<p>"Koalas don't make noise much of the time," said professor Chris Dickman, an ecology expert at Sydney University, to the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-50511963" target="_blank">BBC</a>. "Males only make booming noises during mating season. Other than that they're quiet animals. So hearing their yelps is a pretty bad sign things are going catastrophically wrong for these animals."</p><p>Koalas are notoriously picky eaters and will often eat 2.5 pounds of eucalyptus leaves per day, which is how they get both their nutrition and hydration. Conservationists have raced to install water stations for dehydrated koalas that have not had access to eucalyptus leaves. However, the hotter and drier weather brought on by a changing climate has dried out the leaves of the eucalyptus trees that the koalas rely on, according to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2019/11/15/australia-fire-koala-bear/" target="_blank">The Washington Post</a>.</p><p>Suburban developments have taken over the forested beaches that koalas are native to and have left the species with fewer and fewer food sources and safe habitats. The brushfires further deplete their available food sources. Eucalyptus are remarkably resilient trees, which often grow back quickly after a fire. However, while waiting for the trees to return, many koalas will starve, according to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2019/11/23/koalas-functionally-extinct-after-australia-bushfires-destroy-80-of-their-habitat/#751453e17bad" target="_blank">Forbes</a>.</p>
<p>While experts agree that koalas are in trouble and have been well before this year's fire season, there is disagreement about whether or not the animal is functionally extinct.</p><p>"I do not believe koalas are functionally extinct - yet," said Rebecca Johnson, a koala geneticist at the Australian Museum, to <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/koalas-are-not-functionally-extinct-but-they-need-our-help/" target="_blank">CNET</a>. "That said, the fires are likely to have had a huge impact on what we know are some extremely valuable populations who are important for the long term survival of the species."</p><p>It is clear that koalas need help to survive. On a policy level, many people are asking the Australian government to pass the Koala Protection Act into law. The law would protect habitats and trees vital to koalas and protect koalas from hunting and poaching, according to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2019/11/23/koalas-functionally-extinct-after-australia-bushfires-destroy-80-of-their-habitat/#751453e17bad" target="_blank">Forbes</a>. Meanwhile, scientists have sequenced the genome of koalas and hope to identify genes that may stop infectious diseases and protect young koalas, according to <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/koalas-are-not-functionally-extinct-but-they-need-our-help/" target="_blank">CNET</a>.</p>
<p>"Koalas are the iconic reminder of what is happening more broadly to our biodiversity and our ecosystems, directly as a result of human impacts," said Johnson to <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/koalas-are-not-functionally-extinct-but-they-need-our-help/" target="_blank">CNET</a>. "They should be the catalyst to start and have these conversations to understand and protect all our biodiversity because they aren't the only species that needs protecting."</p>
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A video shows a woman rescuing a koala from Australia's wildfires. VOA News / YouTube screenshot
More than 350 koalas may have died in the wildfires raging near the Australian town of Port Macquarie in New South Wales, but one got a chance at survival after a woman risked her life to carry him to safety.
<p><br>In a video shared by Nine News Australia Tuesday, the koala was shown walking towards the flames when a woman wrapped him in the shirt off her back and doused him with water from a bottle handed to her by another good Samaritan.</p>
<div id="b3596" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="M45YHL1576661114"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1196682989872140288" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">This is the heartbreaking moment an injured koala emerged from fire grounds west of Port Macquarie.
Thankfully, t… https://t.co/f9Bd8v0L71</div> — Nine News Australia (@Nine News Australia)<a href="https://twitter.com/9NewsAUS/statuses/1196682989872140288">1574146432.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p>"He just went straight into the flames, and I just jumped out of the car and went straight to him," the rescuer, Toni Doherty, <a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/nsw-bushfires-koala-rescued-from-flames-may-not-survive-injuries/be828f6e-6216-4062-8fb7-421ca9acf236" target="_blank">told 9News</a>.</p><p>Doherty named the koala Lewis, after one of her grandchildren, and took him to the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital.</p><p>Doherty reunited with Lewis at the hospital Wednesday and congratulated him on his recovery so far. But the hospital said he is not out of the woods yet.</p><p>"He is probably 50-50 at this stage," a spokesperson from the hospital told 9news.com.au. "His feet are completely burnt and he has burns to his chest and stomach. He has been bandaged and given antibiotics but will take a lot of looking after, if he pulls through."</p>
<div id="2f6f0" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="DIKYIH1576661114"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1196938985454465024" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Lewis is around 14 years old ... he’s well enough to have a munch on some eucalyptus leaves this morning. Is still… https://t.co/aHYhBqL6hv</div> — Lizzie Pearl (@Lizzie Pearl)<a href="https://twitter.com/lizziepearl/statuses/1196938985454465024">1574207466.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p>Lewis is one of at least 31 koalas that have been brought to the hospital for treatment in an Australian bushfire season that has killed six people and destroyed hundreds of homes so far, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/koala-rescue-woman-risks-her-life-fire-in-australia-2019-11-19/" target="_blank">CBS news reported</a>.</p><p>The hospital even started a <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-thirsty-koalas-devastated-by-recent-fires" target="_blank">GoFundMe</a> to help it care for the fire-stricken koalas that soared past its $25,000 goal to earn more than $900,000 as of Wednesday.</p><p>"In what is a national tragedy, the bushfires in and around Port Macquarie in November, devastated a genetically diverse koala population. As many as 350 koalas have perished with approximately 75% of the fireground footprint being prime koala habitat," the hospital wrote in its appeal.</p><p>It originally intended to use the funds to set up automatic drinking stations in the burned areas to help koalas and other <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife" target="_self">wildlife</a>. Because of the success of the fundraiser, the hospital will now install more drinking stations and share them with other organizations in fire-affected areas in New South Wales. It will also buy vehicles that can both fight fires and bring water to replenish the stations as needed. Further, it will establish a wild koala breeding program.</p><p>There are around 50,000 to 100,000 koalas in Australia, depending on the estimate, according to <a href="https://www.euronews.com/2019/11/19/woman-endangers-herself-to-rescue-scorched-koala-from-australian-bushfire" target="_blank">Euronews</a>. The <a href="https://www.savethekoala.com/" target="_blank">Australian Koala Foundation</a> said in May that there were only 80,000 left, making them "<a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/koalas-functionally-extinct-australia-2637183484.html" target="_self">functionally extinct.</a>" They live mostly in eucalyptus forests in Eastern Australia and on the coasts, Euronews explained. Australia's East Coast is also <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/sydney-australia-wildfires-2641302855.html" target="_self">where the bushfires have ignited this Australian spring</a>. The fire season has started early in Queensland and New South Wales this year because of <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/drought" target="_self">drought</a> and high temperatures.</p><p>CBS News weather contributor Jeff Berardelli linked the fires to the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/climate-change" target="_self">climate crisis</a>, as rising temperatures dry out vegetation, providing more fuel for fires.</p><p>"The trend is often towards greater moisture deficits in the atmosphere. Combined drier ground and relatively drier air leads to fires that grow faster and burn longer," he explained.</p>
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A koala at the Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie on April 28, 2016. PETER PARKS / AFP / Getty Images
It is feared that an out-of-control brushfire has taken the life of more than 350 koalas in a koala habitat in Port Macquarie, a coastal town in New South Wales just over 200 miles north from Sydney, according to CNN.
<p>The fire was triggered by a lightening strike on Monday and has raged all week. It has destroyed nearly 5,000 acres and the smoke from the fire has contributed to hazardous air quality in Sydney, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-10-30/koala-habitat-bushfire-port-macquarie-m1-truck-crash/11651658" target="_blank">according to Australian Broadcasting Corporation</a>.</p>
<p>The intensity of the fire made it impossible for staff at the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital to enter the marsupial's protected habitat.</p><p>"I think this is just a national tragedy that we potentially have lost an enormous population of animals in the last 24 hours," said Cheyne Flanagan, a supervisor at the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, as the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-10-30/koala-habitat-bushfire-port-macquarie-m1-truck-crash/11651658" target="_blank">Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported</a>.</p><p>Sue Ashton, the koala hospital's president, predicted a massive lost for the local koalas.</p><p>"If we look at a 50 per cent survival rate, that's around about 350 koalas and that's absolutely devastating," she said, as <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/australia-wildfires-port-macquarie-koalas-hospital-sydney-bushfire-a9177341.html" target="_blank">The Independent</a> reported. "We're hoping it's not as bad as that, but because of the intensity of the fire and the way koala's behave during fire, we're not holding out too much hope."</p><p>During a fire, koalas will often climb high into trees and curl into a little ball. It is a terrible strategy for survival since they will live only if the fire quickly moves on below them.</p><p>"So often the flames will just go over the top and singe the outside, but with really intense fires it can burn them alive," said Ashton, as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/oct/30/hundreds-of-koalas-feared-burned-alive-in-out-of-control-bushfire-near-port-macquarie" target="_blank">the Guardian reported</a>.</p>
<p>This fire has not moved on and it has already decimated a large part of the koalas home.</p><p>"So far over two thirds of the current footprint of the fire is prime koala habitat (or was)," said Koala Hospital Port Macquarie in a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/koalahospital/posts/10157786770174662" target="_blank">statement on Facebook</a>. "Crunching the numbers based on koala survey work of the whole LGA (local government area) - it is looking like conservatively based on a 60% mortality that 350 plus koalas have died in the last three days in this fire."</p><p>While koalas are not listed as endangered, the marsupial's numbers have plummeted in recent years due to urbanization, habitat destruction, brushfires, road accidents and dog attacks, according to the Australian Koala Foundation, as <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/30/australia/koala-fires-australia-intl-scli/index.html" target="_blank">CNN reported</a>. There are as few as 43,000 koalas left in the wild.</p><p>The koala colony that is at the center of the Port Maquarie brushfire is notable for its health and genetic diversity. All too often in Australia, the coastal forests that koalas prefer are cleared for suburban expansion, which leads to isolated colonies that become inbred and diseased, as the <a href="https://apnews.com/6cd1724ab22644139a011ce043e9247e" target="_blank">AP reported</a>.</p><p>"The beauty of this particular population is that it's so genetically diverse that it's of national significance," said Ashton, as the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/oct/30/hundreds-of-koalas-feared-burned-alive-in-out-of-control-bushfire-near-port-macquarie" target="_blank">Guardian reported</a>. "A lot of the koalas are being mixed and crossbred now ... so to lose a large part of that population is very devastating."</p>
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Wild Koala on the side of the Great Ocean road in Victoria, Australia. John Crux Photography / Moment / Getty Images
Koala species down under are now considered "functionally extinct" as the Australian Koala Foundation (AKF) says there are no more than 80,000 individuals left on the continent. Once a population falls below a critical point, it can no longer produce the next generation, ultimately leading to the species' extinction.
<p>"The AKF thinks there are no more than 80,000 Koalas in Australia. This is approximately 1% of the 8 million Koalas that were shot for fur and sent to London between 1890 and 1927," <a href="https://www.savethekoala.com/sites/savethekoala.com/files/uploads/AKF_press_release_10_may_2019.pdf" target="_blank">said</a> AKF chairman Deborah Tabart, adding that the population could be as low as 43,000.</p>
<p>The organization has been monitoring koala populations in 128 of Australia's electorates for nearly a decade. Since then, 41 have seen the marsupials go extinct. However, the AKF estimate is much lower than other population predictions, albeit outdated ones. For example, the International Union of Conservation of Nature Red List of Endangered Species lists koalas as "vulnerable" with decreasing numbers, estimating in 2014 that there are between 100,000 and 500,000 mature individuals left in the wild.</p><p>So what does functionally extinct mean? <a href="http://theconversation.com/a-report-claims-koalas-are-functionally-extinct-but-what-does-that-mean-116665" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> reports it means that koala populations have declined so far that the species no longer plays a significant role in its ecosystem.</p><p>Native only to the eastern side of the continent, an adult koala can eat as much as 1 kilogram of Eucalyptus leaves each night, according to <a href="https://www.savethekoala.com/about-koalas/interesting-facts" target="_blank">AKF</a>. Eucalyptus is normally poisonous to most species, but koalas have evolved a special bacteria that allow them to break down toxic compounds. Because they only absorb around 25 percent of fiber eaten, important nutrients and other organic material to the forest floor. Functional extinction also means that koalas are can no longer successfully reproduce in the wild to replace the population. Even if they are still breeding, pairs may be inbreeding which can further threaten future viability.</p><p>Perhaps more at-heart is the emblematic role koalas have on Australian culture.</p><p>"The koala is one of Australia's most recognizable symbols, but its survival hangs in the balance," said the <a href="https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/koala" target="_blank">San Diego Zoo</a>. "Formerly thought to be common and widespread, koalas are now vulnerable to extinction across much of its northern range."</p><p>In the past, koalas were killed for their coats — between 1919 and 1924 eight million koalas were killed. Today, koalas are threatened by domestic dogs and <a href="https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/04/animals-disease-health-koalas-australia/" target="_blank">disease</a>, along with increasing encroachment due to human development, logging and wood harvesting, and droughts and extreme weather associated with climate change.</p><p>Though koalas are currently protected by law, almost 80 percent of remaining habitat occurs on privately owned land with very little protection offered under the legislation. This is why the AKF is calling for the need for a <a href="https://www.savethekoala.com/our-work/koala-protection-act" target="_blank">Koala Protection Act</a> (KPA).</p><p>"I know the Australian public are concerned for the safety of Koalas and are tired of seeing dead Koalas on our roads. It is time for the Government to respect the Koala and protect its habitat," said Tabart.</p><p>According to the AKF, the Australian government was required to establish a National Recovery Plan in 2012 but has neglected to do so in the last six years. Framework for KPA is based on the Bald Eagle Act in the U.S., which incorporates both Federal Endangered Species Act and environmental protection policies in place. In part, AKF notes that the American act has been so successful because of political motive to ensure the nation's icon did not go extinct.</p>
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Koala in a gum tree in Eyre Peninsula, Australia. John White Photos / Moment / Getty Images
As Australia's record-breaking heatwave scorches on into the New Year, one woman's act of kindness to a thirsty animal has gone viral.
Chantelle Lowrie was visiting a camp ground near the Murray River in the Australian state of Victoria Saturday when she saw a koala.
<p>"It was 44 degrees Celsius (111.2 F)— very, very hot day," Lowrie told <a href="https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/koala-drinks-from-water-bottle-in-australia-heatwave-11077814" target="_blank">AFP Tuesday</a>. "I stopped because he looked as though he could use a drink of water."</p><p>In a video Lowrie posted to Facebook, the koala climbs partway up a tree, pauses to sip from a water bottle extended by Lowrie, then continues to climb.</p><div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="bfd5c549b45bf7bfa05d4477ee329918"><div class="fb-video" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/chantelle.lowrie.21/videos/vb.100005242893813/1015811165270304/?type=2&video_source=user_video_tab" data-allowfullscreen="true"></div></div><p>The video comes as much of Australia suffers through a deadly <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/heat-wave" target="_self">heat wave</a> that has seen temperatures rise around 16 degrees Celsius (approximately 60.8 degrees Fahrenheit) above average for this time of year. The heat has led to seven deaths by drowning as people rush to the beach to cool off, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-weather/heatwave-bakes-australia-for-seventh-straight-day-as-northern-cyclone-brews-idUSKCN1OT049" target="_blank">Reuters reported Saturday</a>. Five of the deaths took place between Christmas Eve and Saturday in Victoria. In two other incidents, a South Korean man died Christmas Day while snorkeling in a lake in New South Whales, and another man died in the surf on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.<br></p><p>Temperatures in Australia's south lowered somewhat over New Years', but they are expected to climb again later in the week, with thermometers expected to read 41 C (105.8 F) in Adelaide on Thursday and 42 Celsius (107.6 F) in Melbourne on Friday, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/jan/02/warning-for-extreme-heatwave-for-southern-australia-after-new-year-reprieve" target="_blank">The Guardian reported Wednesday</a>.</p><p>"We've seen a couple of cooler days for southern Australia, still above average for this time of year but cooler than we've seen," Australia's Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) meteorologist Sarah Fitton said. "But we've still just had that heat sitting through central Australia which hasn't gone away. We're going to see north-westerly winds again and that's going to drive that heat that's been sitting in central Australia back across the southern states."</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-twitter_embed">
</p><div id="58f25" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ZF4BDZ1576662522"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1080303782985007105" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Severe #heatwave conditions are currently affecting large parts of central & eastern Australia, with a burst of hea… https://t.co/C4J4AT6bLw</div> — Bureau of Meteorology, Australia (@Bureau of Meteorology, Australia)<a href="https://twitter.com/BOM_au/statuses/1080303782985007105">1546399467.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p></p><p>The higher temperatures will put Victoria and South Australia on watch for bushfires.<br></p><p>Heat waves are common in Australia during its summer, but <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/climate-change" target="_self">climate change</a> is making them more extreme, AFP reported. The BOM expects that 2018 will be one of the country's five hottest years on record overall, and the third hottest in terms of maximum temperatures, according to The Guardian. </p>
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