https://youtu.be/3AWp7ULODJ4
Bushfires – especially in Perth – making headlines again for being both “devastating as well as foreseeable “ – are, painfully, part of the ‘normal Australia’ . Yet, it begs the question- are they becoming more voracious, or more reported?
From Geoscience Australia: “Bushfires and grassfires are common throughout Australia. Bushfires are an intrinsic part of Australia’s environment. Natural ecosystems have evolved (with fire, and the landscape, along with its biological diversity, has been shaped by both historic and recent fires. Many of Australia’s native plants are fire prone and very combustible, while numerous species depend on fire to regenerate. Indigenous Australians have long used fire as a land management tool and it continues to be used to clear land for agricultural purposes and to protect properties from intense, uncontrolled fires.
Historically, bushfires have caused loss of life and significant damage to property. While naturally occurring bushfires cannot be averted, their consequences can be minimised by implementing mitigation strategies and reducing the potential impact to areas which are most vulnerable. “
The impacts of bushfires
The Australian threatened species hub argues “ The 2019-20 wildfires of eastern and southern Australia were beyond normal. Catalysed by extensive drought and unusually high temperatures, these fires were exceptionally extensive, long-lasting and severe. More than 12 million hectares were burnt over the period August 2019 to March 2020, across forests, heathlands and farmlands from south-eastern Queensland to eastern Victoria, on Kangaroo Island and in south-western Australia.
As a consequence of these wildfires many threatened species are now far more imperilled, and many species we formerly considered secure can no longer be presumed safe. The 2019–20 wildfires caused a loss of extraordinary magnitude to Australian biodiversity. “
Plants that need fire
Fire, plants and vegetation
Fire is an ecologically friendly and cost effective tool to regenerate and rehabilitate vegetation on disturbed sites. It helps new seedlings by temporarily reducing competition from established vegetation and creating ash beds suitable for germination. Fire is used:
- to stimulate the release of seed from capsules held in the crowns of forest trees after timber harvesting
- to prepare the seed bed by providing ash that is full of beneficial nutrients such as potash
- in the arid zone, to assist rehabilitation after mineral exploration or grazing
- to favour the development of either grasslands or woodlands by applying fire in particular seasons and frequencies
- to manage weeds, some of which, such as rubber vine (Cryptostegia madagascariensis), giant sensitive plant (Mimosa pigra) and prickly acacia (Acacia nilotica), were once treated with herbicides, biocontrol agents or mechanical treatments
- to manage vegetation structure and composition so there is always suitable habitat available in the landscape, like healthy thickets of melaleucas and poison peas (Gastrolobium) in the south-west forests. ( source- https://www.dpaw.wa.gov.au/management/fire/fire-and-the-environment/53-fire-plants-and-vegetation )
Wildlife devastation
WWF Australia reported as follows ….
Nearly three billion animals – mammals, reptiles, birds, and frogs – were killed or displaced by Australia’s devastating 2019-20 bushfires.
It’s almost three times an earlier estimate released in January.
The breakdown is 143 million mammals, 2.46 billion reptiles, 180 million birds, and 51 million frogs.
Those figures are revealed in an interim report entitled Australia’s 2019-2020 Bushfires: The Wildlife Toll, commissioned by the World Wide Fund for Nature and believed to be world first research. ( https://www.wwf.org.au/news/news/2020/3-billion-animals-impacted-by-australia-bushfire-crisis#gs.skxq9x )
