The Koala is a national icon of Australia. And in some parts of the country, these junior, known for their spongy ears, adorable sticky babies and eucalyptus leave diet, are endangered. In the last two decades, the size of its population in some areas up to Fell halfway.
It may seem strange, then, that the government is shooting them from the trees. Of helicopters. In a national park.
Earlier this month, government authorities shot and probably He killed several hundred helicopter koalas In Budj Bim National Park, a protected area in the southern state of Victoria, as reported by journalist Michael Dahlstrom.
Some Animal welfare defenders are alarmed. Meanwhile, the government says it is for the benefit of the Koalas. But ultimately, the death of these animals points to much larger problems, including climate change, which forces agencies that handle wildlife to make incredible difficult decisions.
Why is the Australian government killing the Koalas?
In March, a massive forest fire burned more than 5,400 acres in the park, hurting some of the Koalas and destroying a large number of eucalyptus leaves, their food. The Government says that the controversial program is intended to end the suffering of burns and hunger of the Koalas.
But some defenders of Koala say there is more in history.
Animals not only die of hunger due to fire but because logging and development have destroyed much of their habitat in Victoria. The defenders have also pointed out that there are Commercial eucalyptus blue gum plantations Around the Budj Bim National Park in which the Koalas have trusted. When these plantations are harvested, the koalas that live in them move Budj Bim, exerting pressure on the natural forests that remain in the park. A fire only worsens the situation: destroy food in a region with a dense population of Koalas.
“This incident is just another in the long line of poor management of the species and its habitat.” Rolf SchlaglothA Koala researcher at Cquniversity Australia, told me about email. “We cannot eliminate forest fires completely, but the most continuous and healthy forests can help reduce the risk and severity of the fires. Koala’s habitat must be extensive and connected and the handling of fingers of the plantations of the blue gums that serve themlala.”
Schlagloth and other Koala experts are also skeptical that shooting helicopter animals is the best approach. When animals are seriously injured, euthanasia is of the human response, they say, but it should be a last resort. And an aerial sacrifice “seems to be a very indisted method,” said Schlagloth.
Australia also has a long history or handling its wild animals, both native and not native – Killing them.
“The rescue should always be the first option if possible,” said Schlagloth.
According to the Victoria government, rescuing the Koalas, or evaluating their health, it was not feasible, according to the Victoria government. “All Other Methods Which Have Bone Consultant Are not appropried -Gaintrain and Inretaine and in -Getrain, Area, With Fire Impacted Trees, ”James Todd, Chief Biodiversity Officer at Victoria’s Department of Energy, the Environment, and Climate Action (Deca), he said in a statement to Vox.
Deca is consulting with an experienced veterinarian of wildlife and only koalas in extremely poor conditions are sacrificed, the agency told Vox. (The term “eutanizar” is a bit exaggerated because it implies that animals were killed with pain: something that shoots from a helicopter cannot guarantee). The “work” is Ons, said the spokesman, suggestion, more times.
What will be needed to help the Koalas
It is easy to blame the Government of Victoria for the thesis of Koala’s deaths, and perhaps the fault. However, once the fire broke out, there were really no good options to help park animals without addressing more fundamental problems.
The loss of habitat is great, and so is climate change, which is one of the dynamics. Most frequent and harmful forest fires in Australia. A study, published in 2023, found that approximately 40 percent or Koala’s habitat is highly susceptible to firesAnd that percentage will increase in the decades to come as the planet heats up.
At the end of 2019 and early 2020, catastrophic Devastated fires of eastern AustraliaKill or displace around 3 billion animals, including an estimated 60,000 koalas. Scientists say that climate change made the conditions for those fires More likely.
“National parks are the last bastion for our wildlife and the growing severity of forest fires and other extreme climatic events put the incredible native species of Australia such as the Koala at significant risk,” said Lisa Palma, a wildlife Victoria. “It is time for climate change and habitat loss to be seriously tasks and there is a collective effort of governments, private companies and the public to conserve our native species that exist anywhere else.”
“There is hope,” said Palma. “But it requires a collective effort.”
