DUE to extensive damage caused by bushfires in South Australia and Victoria in recent weeks, the Murray Sunset National Park has become the last remaining home in the world for the native Mallee emu wren.
Just 1000 of the small birds are believed to remain in the park after their habitats in South Australia were razed by bushfires.
“This event is probably the worst I’ve seen for Mallee birds…”
Monash University ecologist Rohan Clarke said he had seen aerial footage of the South Australian Mallee that confirmed the bird could not have survived.
“This event is probably the worst I’ve seen for Mallee birds, and it took out populations in both South Australia and Victoria,” Mr Clarke said.
“We were sent aerial photos, and it’s clear those reserves have been reduced to ash. The emu wrens don’t persist in areas that are just bare sand and black trunks.”
Like the Malleefowl and the black-eared minor, the Mallee emu wren relies on thick ground cover to survive.
Mr Clarke described the species as “very cool little birds” with tails twice the size of their body.
It is about the size of a mouse and manages only flights of five to 10 metres high.
“The speed of a wildfire exceeds any speed they could ever run,” Mr Clarke said.
Ecologists and conservationists are concerned about the bird now it has only one habitat, and one prone to bushfire.
“I guess the major concern is that we had all our eggs spread over multiple baskets, and now they are very much in one basket,” he said.
He and others working in the field will soon take steps to preserve the remaining birds by starting a captive program.
“In the very short term, in weeks and months there’s not a lot we can do, but there is talk about getting some into captivity as soon as possible,” he said.
“Normally that’s a practice you undertake when things are a bit desperate. However we can’t keep many of them.”
For the full story, pick up a copy of Wednesday’s Guardian (February 12).
