Saving endangered species from the bushfires

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From time to time, more news comes out about the ferocious bushfires in the eastern parts of Australia. Fears were held for a population of rare bristlebirds in the far east corner of Victoria. These tiny birds are only found at three sites. When the Victorian population was threatened by bushfire, a small team of people flew in by military Chinook to try to capture at least 15 of the 160 birds believed to live in the area. Instead of having five days to catch the birds, they had a day and a half as the fires were too close for them to stay longer. Three of the birds have since died but the remaining dozen are doing well. The fires in the area are still active and the birds won’t be returned until it’s been ascertained that their habitat has not been destroyed. Bristlebirds are named for the three stiff ‘bristles’ which curve downwards either side of the gape or mouth. The wings are short and rounded and the birds mostly scamper through the vegetation on strong legs. The long-footed potoroo and eastern brown parrot were also considered for removal from fire-endangered areas. Spotted tree frogs will be removed in the spring in an attempt to ensure their survival. Photo courtesy: JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/) / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)