Australia’s 2019-2020 ‘Black Summer’ saw unprecedented bushfires destroy over 12 million hectares across southern and eastern Australia. Thousands of injured livestock and wildlife needed to be euthanized, with veterinarians, farmers and wildlife professionals having to make tough decisions in affected regions. A recently released impact report has confirmed that this was one of the worst wildlife disasters in modern history, with almost 3 billion animals – mammals, birds, reptiles and frogs – impacted. Australia’s Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment reports that 486 plants and 119 animal species are at high risk from the impacts of the fires and require urgent management intervention.
