Helicopters Are Dropping Tons of Carrots and Sweet Potatoes to Feed Starving Wildlife in Australia

Author: Sara Burrows

Charities have teamed up with the Australian government to drop over 10,000 pounds of food from the sky to feed koalas, kangaroos and wallabies whose habitats have been ravished by the bushfires

The biggest fires in Australia’s history have wiped out entire species. In order to preserve remaining threatened species, whose food sources have burned, the National Parks and Wildlife Service the charity Animals Australia are using aircraft to drop veggies into the bush.

” Operation Rock Wallaby” is a mission to protect New South Wales’ at-risk marsupial population from starvation, especially brush-tailed rock wallabies.

So far the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services has scattered nearly 5000 pounds of carrots and sweet potatoes across several national parks and other wilderness areas in the state.

Many animals have managed to flee the fires, but are left without a source of food.

‘The wallabies typically survive the fire itself, but are then left stranded with limited natural food as the fire takes out the vegetation around their rocky habitat,” New South Wales Environment Minister Matt Kean told the Daily Mail.

“The wallabies were already under stress from the ongoing drought, making survival challenging for the wallabies without assistance.”

Meanwhile, a private charity called Animals Australia has distributed 3 tons of food in Victoria via small planes rented with donation money.

“With roads likely shut for weeks, the risk of starvation for surviving wildlife in the area is very real,” Animals Australia spokeswoman Lyn White said.

“We continue to be absolutely humbled by the outpouring of love and generosity and support from all across the world.”

The World Wildlife Fund has estimated this year’s bushfires have killed about 1.25 billion animals so far.

‘This heart-breaking loss includes thousands of precious koalas on the mid-north coast of NSW, along with other iconic species such as kangaroos, wallabies, gliders, potoroos, cockatoos and honeyeaters,’ WWF-Australia CEO Dermot O’Gorman said in a statement.

First Published: https://returntonow.net/2020/01/13/helicopters-are-dropping-tons-of-carrots-and-sweet-potatoes-to-feed-starving-wildlife-in-australia/