Jan 1st Through Apr 4th, California Fires Burned Nearly Triple YOY Acreage; 150 Elk Starve To Death
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A recent report from the Chronicle shows that last years' persistent dryness, which has bled into 2021, already provided ample opportunity for significant fire activity. For example, January of this year saw 297 wildfires in California — almost tripling the five-year average for that month. During that same month in 2020, there were 97 wildfires that burned 22 acres. 1,171 acres were burned this January, statewide. Moreover: From January 1 through April 4, California firefighters have collectively battled 995 fires that burned a total of 3,007 acres. Per the newspaper, this is a massive increase from the 697 fires that charred 1,266 acres in the same time period last year.
Currently, the entire state is experiencing some level of drought conditions; the Bay Area is now classified as being under "moderate" drought conditions, while Wine Country and the vast majority of Southern California are experiencing "severe" or "extreme" drought levels. Suffice to say it's not looking good.
The aforementioned desiccation has transformed the grasslands and shrubbery groves many of the state's wildlife depend on into food deserts. Among the casualties caused by this lack of available sustenance? California’s threatened tule elk populations — which, as of publishing, number less than 6,000 examples split up between an estimated 22 herds sprinkled throughout the state. According to KRON4, the National Park Service recorded 152 tule elk that have died from these drought conditions, simultaneously highlighting the fragile conservation status of the subspecies while also showing how the effects of climate change on biodiversity are detrimental (and somewhat unpredictable).
“This is a very rare animal," says animal activist Fleur Dawes. "These are rare, native, endemic to California. Tule elk. They are a symbol of this area. Yet right behind this fence, 152 animals were allowed to die during a drought." Again: These animals didn't die from heat exhaustion — they perished from starvation. (Most of California’s tule elk herds exist inside fenced acreage, so a plan has been proposed to remove some of those fence lines to expand the animals' access to additional grazing pastures.)
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https://sfist.com/2021/04/11/climate-change-is-setting-us-up-for-a-terrible-wildfire-season-its-also-killing-off-rare-california-elk/
