{"id":5839,"date":"2020-02-03T23:09:08","date_gmt":"2020-02-03T23:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/?p=5839"},"modified":"2020-08-06T11:01:45","modified_gmt":"2020-08-06T11:01:45","slug":"burn-scars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.naturepl.com\/blog\/2020\/02\/03\/burn-scars\/","title":{"rendered":"Burn Scars: The Long Road to Recovery for Australia’s Wildlife"},"content":{"rendered":"\"A<\/a>\n

Weeks after bushfires destroyed their home in Mallacoota, Australia, an eastern grey kangaroo and her joey stop to look directly at photographer Jo-Anne McArthur. \u201cMiles of eucalyptus plantations, once teeming with wildlife and birdsong, had fallen quiet,\u201d says Jo-Anne, who also saw dehydrated and hungry koalas clinging to the burnt trees. \u201cThe silence was deafening; the earth crunchy and sand-like. The smell of smoke and decomposing bodies hung in the air\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

And yet, here was a pair of survivors. Jo-Anne lifted her camera, framing the kangaroos between the fire-scarred trees and ash-blackened earth. Moments later, the burdened mother hopped away, continuing her search for food.<\/p>\n

This has become the reality for many animals struggling to survive in the aftermath of Australia\u2019s hottest and driest summer in recorded history. One estimate suggests that, in the state of New South Wales alone, more than 800 million animals have been affected<\/a>. If the states of Victoria and South Australia are included, that figure rises to over one billion.<\/p>\n