Wildfires can change Australia forever

Forest fires are part of the natural rhythm for the environment in Australia. But scientists have never witnessed what is happening.

Australia is facing many difficulties because of the worst forest fire in history. At least 12 million hectares of land have been burned and more than 100 fires are still active and this season is thought to have not reached its peak. Fires will reshape Australia's ecosystem even where plants and animals adapt to annual fires. Camille Stevens-Rumann, an ecologist at Colorado State University and who studies the recovery of ecosystems after major disasters, said: "If species can adapt to a climatic conditions and currently being forced to regenerate under very different climatic conditions, recovery is much more difficult. "

The impact of these fires also provides a clear warning of the types of natural disasters that could seriously affect the environment, along with climate change, which prolongs the forest fire season in Australia, according to the report. Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick, a climate scientist at the Center for Climate Change Research at the University of New South Wales in Sydney.

At least 12 million hectares of land have been burned in Australia.(Image source: nbcnews).

"It was shocking, really terrible and I hate to say" I warned about this, "climate scientists have been warning about this for a very long time, especially in Australia. " , said Sarah Perkins. "We know that if there is a drought and hot weather, Australia will probably be a" bonfire. "We know it will happen."

She also said that the largest wildfires of the year often broke out in January or February, rather than in the spring.

Currently, the resilience of animals from forest fires in Australia is a major concern. Scientists are estimating that more than half a billion animals died in wildfires.

Stuart Blanch, a forest conservation policy manager at Australia's World Wildlife Fund, said animals often recover in the following years and decades, but he added that Australia has not yet facing fires of this size and intensity. Therefore, many experts are concerned that some species may be wiped out.

More than half a billion animals died in wildfires.(Image source: nbcnews).

Climate change is making the natural environment more chaotic. As the planet warms and sea levels rise, some of the natural habitats are permanently changed, far beyond the ability of plants and animals to adjust.

Mr. Blanch said he still hopes for the ecosystem's resilience. Some plants, such as eucalyptus trees, native to Australia, regrow quickly after wildfires. In the weeks after the flare broke out, eucalyptus could grow almost magical green leaves from blackened trunks, Ms. Stevens-Rumann said.

"Forest fires are an active part of the Earth's ecosystem," Ms. Stevens-Rummann said. "We all adapt to certain changes. I can have a cold for some time every year, but if I get sick for 8 consecutive months, it will really affect me." much to me, similar to an ecosystem. "

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