Wildfire has turned Southeast Australia into a devastating nightmare, wiping out millions of animals. Of these, around 8,000 koalas have died since the fire started.
Les écologistes estiment qu’environ 8 000 koalas sont morts depuis le début de l’incendie. Les koalas sont l’un des animaux les plus emblématiques du pays, contribuant de 1,1 à 2,5 milliards de dollars par an au tourisme, selon les données du gouvernement.
Le koala est le plus affecté en raison de sa lenteur de mouvement. En fait, la seule défense du koala est de grimper sur les grands arbres d’eucalyptus. Cependant, les feuilles des plantes contiennent une grande quantité d’huiles essentielles, ce qui les rend encore plus inflammables lorsqu’elles sont absorbées.
Doctors at Koala Macquarie Hospital in New South Wales said they were overwhelmed by the number of Koala bears that died in the wildfire. The GoFundMe campaign was born to get people to help save koalas by rehydrating and treating their burns in hospital.
Up to 30% of koala bears have died because 30% of their habitat has been severely destroyed. Veterinary hospitals are working hard to treat and cure koalas. Health services continually struggle to keep track of the number of species in need
The surviving Koala will have a hard time finding food and shelter in the middle of the places where the fire is going. The fires are expected to worsen, threatening to wipe out many animals in Australia, where the extinction rate is the highest in the world.