A blaze currently burning on Kangaroo Island is threatening lives of the KI dunnart and Glossy Black Cockatoos
A fire burning on Kangaroo Island is threatening the lives of the last remaining dunnarts and glossy black cockatoos.
SA News
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A fire burning on Kangaroo Island is threatening the lives of critically endangered species that had much of their habitat destroyed in last year’s fires.
An advice message was current on Wednesday for the fire that started about 5pm on Tuesday near De Mole River, 40 km west of Parndana.
It is burning in a north westerly direction towards the coast in an area known as Covenys Gully.
Firefighters will backburn in an effort to contain the fire and minimise its spread, but are concerned about the fire’s potential ecological impacts for endangered species.
The fire is burning in one of the few remaining key habitats for critically endangered glossy black cockatoos and the KI dunnarts.
Three quarters of the cockatoo’s habitat was destroyed in the 2019 fire. There were only 300-500 KI dunnarts alive before previous fires.
Pat Hodgens, from Kangaroo Island Land for Management said the area the fire is burning in is part of the last remaining refuge for many endangered species.
He said if the fire spreads, it could push some of the animals closer to extinction.
“If the fire does get in here and take a large patch of the bush it will be absolutely devastating for a whole host of different species within here … its really an incredibly important last refuge for a lot of these species,” Mr Hodgens said.
The organisation is working on an ecological fire management plan to help save species heavily affected by last year’s fires.
The Country Fire Service is liaising with ecologists on how to best control the spread of the fire and protect the habitat. The fire poses little threat to property and life, but a warning message was reissued at 9am on Wednesday.
“At this stage, little information is known about the size of the fire,” a CFS spokesperson said.
“An observation helicopter has been dispatched from the mainland this morning, and will be tasked to map the fire and is also equipped with thermal imagine camera to aid ground crews in identifying areas of higher intensity, and hot spots near the fire’s edge.”
For updates, visit cfs.sa.gov.au
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