That state was the scene of the ‘Black Summer’ fire that killed 34 people, burned more than 5,000 buildings and 186,000 square kilometers of land, and affected 3,000 million animals, including 60,000 koalas that perished in the flames or after fleeing from they.
“The terrible fires of 2019-20 contributed, of course, to this result, but they are certainly not the only reason we see a decline in koala populations,” AKF Director Deborah Tabart explained in a statement. by mentioning other factors such as droughts, heat waves or lack of access to water.
Deforestation, in favor of ranching, urban development and mining, also contributes to the decline of the koala population, especially in the states of New South Wales and neighboring Queensland, according to this report.
The koala, which in the aboriginal language means “without drinking”, is a very delicate animal and especially sensitive to any change in the environment. It spends about 20 hours a day dozing or resting, and uses the remaining four hours to feed on leaves. a few dozen species of eucalyptus.
Koalas’ ‘AIDS’, a retrovirus that accelerates their disappearance
Much of the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) population of eastern Australia is decimated by the retrovirus (KoRV), called the aids of this species and that predisposes their specimens to contract chlamydia and other pathologies.
“KoRV and associated diseases pose another threat koalas face, alongside climate change and the loss of their habitats,” said molecular chemistry and bioscience expert Keith Chappell in a statement from the University of Queensland.