AusLeisure

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

Related Articles

3rd January 2022 - Aussie Ark celebrates 10 Years of Wildlife Conservation

21st December 2021 - Aussie Ark welcomes general public during Summer School Holidays

3rd November 2021 - Aussie Ark and Australian Reptile Park open new endangered wildlife conservation facility

27th May 2021 - Aussie Ark secures partnership with Volkswagen to protect endangered Australian species

29th January 2021 - Aussie Ark spots first Koala Joey in Barrington Wildlife Sanctuary

20th January 2021 - Aussie Ark receives $850,000 grant to assist bushfire affected wildlife

23rd December 2020 - Crowdfunding success sees Aussie Ark acquire wildlife refuge

15th December 2020 - Aussie Ark shares wildlife conservation experiences during Summer School Holidays

27th November 2020 - Aussie Ark celebrates the opening of its Barrington Wildlife Sanctuary

24th November 2020 - Aussie Ark returns Platypus to the Wild after Bushfire Rescue

20th October 2020 - Aussie Ark launch campaign to raise funds for purchasing Curricabark Wildlife Refuge

19th September 2020 - Aussie Ark opens to the general public for second consecutive year

16th September 2020 - Aussie Ark welcomes birth of endangered Eastern Quolls

9th September 2020 - Aussie Ark partners with WIRES to increase conservation effort

7th September 2020 - Zoos SA and Aussie Ark mark National Threatened Species Day

14th August 2020 - Aussie Ark announces winning project of its Conservation from the Couch campaign

15th July 2020 - Aussie Ark celebrates birth of two Brush-Tailed Rock-Wallabies at Barrington Sanctuary

23rd May 2020 - Aussie Ark commits to turtle conservation on World Turtle Day

---

Support our industry news service
We hope that you value the news that we publish so while you're here can we ask for your support?

As an independent publisher, we need reader support for our industry news gathering so ask that - if you don't already do so - you back us by subscribing to the printed Australasian Leisure Management magazine and/or our online news.