'Black summer' bushfires: Koalas on the verge of extinction in Australia
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The deadly bushfires
The 2019-20 bushfires was one of the deadliest bushfires in Australia. It killed 33 people and razed over 24 million hectares (59 million acres) in the country.
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Black summer for many
The bushfires were particularly deadly for many animals. As per WWF studies, nearly 3 billion native animals would have been in the path of the bushfires.
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Deadliest for Koalas
Now World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has claimed that the bushfires may have killed or harmed atleast 60,000 koalas, a species already in trouble due to land clearing for agriculture, urban development, mining and forestry.
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Declining population
A 2016 report by a panel of koala experts had put the koala population in Australia at 329,000 but there have been bushfires annually since then, reducing the number further. A NSW parliamentary inquiry in June concluded after a year-long inquiry that koalas in the state could become extinct by 2050 unless the government immediately intervened to protect them and their habitat.
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A safe haven plan
The WWF aims to double the number of koalas in eastern Australia by 2050. The plan includes a trial of drones to disperse seeds of eucalyptus trees which provide both food and shelter for koalas, and the establishment of a fund to encourage landowners to create koala safe havens.