Wildfires in the Amazon: How animals suffer the ravages of huge forest fires in South America

The image of the Brazilian firefighter sergeant offering water to an armadillo illustrates one of the consequences of
fires in the Amazon
: devastation for wildlife.

The man is
Pedro Ribas Alves, who works in the field of forest fire specialization in Mato Grosso, one of the Brazilian states affected by fires that generated an emergency situation in South America.

Last Saturday, he met the armadillo while he was conducting a vehicle tour as part of his work collecting information on firefighting, Ribas Alves told BBC Brazil.

"We were slowly crossing the affected area and decided to stop, I had already seen someone give water to an armadillo with a thermal carafe on YouTube."
I took the armadillo, which offered no resistance, and I gave it water", Remembers Ribas Alves.

"When he perceived the water, he wanted to drink and suck through the mouthpiece, but he had no strength, so I asked a colleague for a drink and I told him I gave water, "he adds.

His partner was the one who recorded the moment that was shared hundreds of times on social networks.

"When he saw me help the armadillo, he quickly started taking pictures," said the fire sergeant.

For an electrical failure

Ribas Alves' job is to inspect the areas damaged by fire and search for the source of the fire in order to transmit the data to the police station of the environment.

"I am also studying the presence of animals in the area in order to show
degradation of the environment and how it affects the wildlife of the region, "he says.

On Saturday, when he found the armadillo, he worked at Nova Mutum (269 km from Cuiabá), a place ravaged by a fire that affected 772 hectares.

"The fire was caused by power grid problems, a company went to perform maintenance tasks, turned on the system, but a short fire broke out," he says. .

The fires are still active, it is too early to badess the extent of the effects on wildlife in the Amazon,
one of the world's most biodiverse regions.

It is known to be the habitat of
2.5 million species of insects, 2,500 species of fish, more than 1,500 birds, 550 reptiles and 500 mammals, according to the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization.

But new animal species are continually being discovered, in addition to the Amazon biome containing about 30,000 species of plants.

"It makes you want to cry"

Every year, many forest fires in Brazil damage the rich fauna and flora of the South American country.

"It is very sad to see the forest completely destroyed," biologist Izar Aximoff told BBC Brazil.

"This colorful landscape, with flowers, animal cries, birdsong, moving animals and the smell of the forest, becomes silent, charred animals, a smell of flesh burnt, desolation, everything is black and one is filled with all that remains of coal, "describes what he saw in the past.

Aximoff studied the restoration of forests in Rio de Janeiro after their fire.

"I've seen a burnt boa constrictor, a lazy, charred man, a burnt bromeliad, that makes you want to cry, and this loss is priceless," says Aximoff, a biologist specializing in the Atlantic Forest regions.

After the destruction, reforestation poses new challenges.

"Endangered species never come back, and with every fire, diversity is lost," he says.

"And many areas of the Atlantic forest, for example, can not regenerate, it requires reinforcement, we have the best reforestation heads in the world, but there is too much demand," he says.

Lack of resources prevents more effective planning to prevent new fires.

"Prevention is much cheaper, but there is no planning because of the lack of data, the costs after the fires are much higher, they use planes, equipment, not to mention the risk of death. which these professionals are exposed to. "

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