Many Many Billions Of Animals Feared To Have Died In Bushfires
8 January 2020 – Liam Mannix | Sydney Morning Herald
Scientists fear many billions of animals may have been killed by the bushfires that have swept across Australia’s south-east.
At least one species is feared extinct as scientists continue to raise their estimates for the animal death toll. Hundreds of billions of insects are also feared dead.
The fires have raged through more than 6 million hectares in Victoria and NSW so far, including rainforest normally considered too wet to burn. Ecologists fear that rainforest may never grow back.
The true death toll will not be known for a long time, with scientists yet to re-enter burnt areas.
For now, all they can do is overlay maps of the area burnt with maps of known species distributions – and fret.