As wildfires from coast to coast scorch large swaths of forest, sometimes changing it irreversibly, experts have zeroed in on an often overlooked casualty of the blazes: wildlife.
Spring fires, such as the ones now burning across the country, are unusual and will possibly affect several species, said Karen Hodges, a biology professor at the University of British Columbia's Okanagan campus."If the tree with a nest burns, those eggs or chicks obviously will not survive. The adults may be able to escape the fire, but the chances that they would reproduce again somewhere else is unlikely for this year.
Hodges fears things will only get worse, with months of hotter temperatures ahead. "I do expect a lot of animals to be displaced or killed," she said. "I do expect some populations in some regions to be gone, or small, for decades to come as a result of this year's burns." Wildfire smoke could also lead to changes in behaviour, including how active animals are, whether they look for mates and how much they sing, he said. Orangutans and gibbons affected by wildfire smoke in more tropical areas were found to make less noise than those that weren't exposed, he said.
It found that some ecosystems see a "species richness" after a fire, with birds and mammals seeing an increase in diversity.