Australian wildlife also suffering through floods

As Australians continue to battle the flooding in northern NSW, conservation organisation Aussie Ark is reminding the community of the wildlife also suffering with the floods posing a huge threat to their survival.

The quickly rising waters have likely flooded burrows and drowned animals such as wombats and echidnas, while critical food sources will be washed away. The destruction of habitat will be huge, and the impacts will be long lasting, with species displaced and placed at greater risk of predation by feral animals, car strike and disease.

Following the devastating bushfires of 2019 and 2020, which were followed by extreme floods on the Mid North coast, this flood event is another blow to our already struggling wildlife.

Aussie Ark Manager of Conservation, Hayley Shute notes “It is just another blow handed to our wildlife. Large amounts of water can be just as damaging to wildlife as intense flames.

“We suspect that thousands of animals will perish or be displaced during this disaster and helping them rebuild will take time.”

Aussie Ark advises that “If you find an animal injured, in distress, disoriented, heavily waterlogged, or in an unexpected location, you should seek advice from a trained wildlife rescuer or vet. If it is safe to do so, contain it in a clean, covered box in a dark, quiet place while waiting for a rescuer or taking it to a wildlife carer or vet.”

The conservation organisation, have additional fears for 26,000 trees just planted on their Mongo Valley Wildlife Sanctuary in the Richmond Valley Region. The rapidly rising flood waters have likely inundated the property, which is approximately 20 minutes from the town of Casino, meaning the saplings trees planted in November could be damaged by the large volume of water.

Road closures have meant that Aussie Ark’s team have been unable to access the site to determine what state the property is in and the status of the 26,000 trees, including thousands of Koala food trees, recently planted.

Shute says of the property “we are unable to access the site due to flood waters causing road closures and we won’t know the full extent of the water until we can, so we are anxiously waiting to assess what damage we may have incurred”

As a not for profit organisation, Aussie Ark raises the necessary funds to continue its ambitious vision. Aussie Ark is a registered environmental organisation and charitable institution under the Australian Charity and Not-for-Profit Commission. Aussie Ark has deductible gift recipient status (DGR status) and is registered for GST purposes. More information at www.aussieark.org.au

Images of koala and Lisomre flooding courtesy Aussie Ark