One Billion Animals Dead. Now Australia Drops Carrots From the Sky.
SYDNEY — The New South Wales government began airdropping thousands of pounds of vegetables into fire-ravaged bushland on January 13, 2020. Carrots and sweet potatoes, packed by the ton, fell from aircraft into areas where natural food sources have been incinerated. The targets: endangered brush-tailed rock wallabies.
This is not a stunt. It is a last resort.
The bushfires that started in September 2019 have killed an estimated one billion animals nationwide. Eight hundred million of those deaths occurred in New South Wales alone. That figure — one billion — is an estimate. It is likely conservative. The fires are still burning.
The brush-tailed rock wallaby was already listed as endangered before the flames came. Now its habitat is gone. Officials said the food drops would continue until the animals can access natural food and water again. That could be months. It could be longer.
New South Wales Environment Minister Matt Kean confirmed the operation. “The provision of supplementary food is one of the key strategies we are deploying to promote the survival and recovery of endangered species,” Kean said. The vegetables were chosen for their nutritional value and their ability to survive the drop from an aircraft. A carrot hitting the ground at speed is still a carrot. A wallaby can eat it.
The Australian government set aside $50 million in emergency funding for wildlife recovery. That money is meant to support rescue operations, habitat restoration, and long-term recovery for affected species. It will be distributed to state agencies and conservation groups working on the ground. Some critics said the funding was a good start but insufficient given the scale of the disaster.
Consider the scale. One billion animals. The fires have burned through millions of acres. Entire ecosystems have been erased. The $50 million fund will buy carrots and sweet potatoes. It will pay for aircraft fuel. It will help restore some habitat. But it cannot bring back what is gone.
The brush-tailed rock wallaby is one species among many. Koalas have been hit hard. So have possums, gliders, and birds. The fires have not discriminated. The airdrop is a targeted intervention for one endangered marsupial. Other species will have to rely on what is left.
What is left is not much. The fires have destroyed food sources, water sources, and shelter. Animals that survived the flames face starvation. The airdrop is an attempt to buy time. Time for the bush to regrow. Time for rain to come. Time for rescue teams to reach isolated pockets of survivors.
This is a stakes piece. The stakes are extinction. The brush-tailed rock wallaby was endangered before the fires. Now it is closer to the edge. The airdrop might save some. It might not save enough. The $50 million fund might help. It might not be enough.
The fires are still burning. The animals are still dying. The government is dropping carrots from the sky. That is where we are.
