2021
DOI: 10.3390/ani11113237
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An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020

Abstract: In the 2019–2020 Australian bushfires, Kangaroo Island, South Australia, experienced catastrophic bushfires that burnt approximately half the island, with an estimated 80% of the koala population lost. During and after the event, rescued koalas were triaged at a designated facility and a range of initial data were recorded including rescue location and date, sex, estimation of age, body condition and hydration, and assessment of burn severity (n = 304 records available). Koalas were presented to the triage fac… Show more

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Cited by 13 publications
(29 citation statements)
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“…Conservation practitioners and government agencies must base decisions about postfire funding and management on their assessment of species vulnerability to fire based on limited species‐specific evidence (Legge et al., 2022). Following severe wildfires, intervention may be required to assist wildlife populations, for example, a huge amount of effort was invested following the 2019 and 2020 fires in Australia to locate, triage, and treat injured koalas ( Phascolarctos cinereus ) (Dunstan et al., 2021; Parrott et al., 2021). Resources are limited, so understanding which species are likely to be most affected by fire can help managers prioritize where resources are allocated to have the greatest return on investment.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Conservation practitioners and government agencies must base decisions about postfire funding and management on their assessment of species vulnerability to fire based on limited species‐specific evidence (Legge et al., 2022). Following severe wildfires, intervention may be required to assist wildlife populations, for example, a huge amount of effort was invested following the 2019 and 2020 fires in Australia to locate, triage, and treat injured koalas ( Phascolarctos cinereus ) (Dunstan et al., 2021; Parrott et al., 2021). Resources are limited, so understanding which species are likely to be most affected by fire can help managers prioritize where resources are allocated to have the greatest return on investment.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…2022 a ; Kerlin et al . 2023), except for one study on Kangaroo Island in South Australia during the 2019–2020 bushfires (Dunstan et al . 2021).…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Natural disasters can have a range of impacts on wildlife populations, the most immediate being mortality during the event itself. For example, an estimated 40,000 Hutton's shearwaters ( Puffinus huttoni ) were killed during the landslides caused by the Kaikōura earthquakes (Cuthbert, 2019), and approximately 80% of Kangaroo Island's koala ( Phascolarctos cinereus ) population is thought to have perished in the 2019–2020 Australian bushfires (Dunstan et al, 2021). However, disaster‐induced changes to habitats can also have long‐term impacts on wildlife populations (Jolly et al, 2022).…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%