Greater gliders, an endangered marsupial, have made an unexpected recovery in parts of the southern Blue Mountains, following the devastating Black Summer bushfires of 2019-2020.
Ecologists Dr Peter Smith and Judy Smith, who have been studying the species since 2015, found that the glider population in some areas has increased by 45 per cent compared to pre-fire numbers.
The unlikely pairing between drones and greater gliders
This positive outcome comes after surveys in areas that were only lightly to moderately burnt, such as Mares Forest, Blue Mountains National Park, and Wombeyan Karst Conservation Reserve.
In one survey, they recorded 59 greater gliders in a single night.
“We weren’t expecting them to be able to recover like they have,” Dr Smith told ABC.
The post-fire rainfall has helped promote the growth of young leaves, giving the gliders a much-needed food supply.
However, the situation is not as promising in areas heavily affected by the fires.
In these regions, the eucalypt trees were destroyed, leaving the gliders with no food.
Unfortunately, there have been no signs of gliders returning to these areas, even five years later.
Experts have been using technologies such as drones to help protect greater gliders from logging in New South Wales.
Those using the tech say, “if you can see them, you can save them”, and that enlisting the help of drones is essential in monitoring habitat.
Leanne St George from Ripper Corporation Drones said logging in dense forests has created a housing crisis for greater gliders.
“They gotta wait 75 years until another tree grows, and because they’re shy animals, they’re right up the top of very, very big trees. The drone tech is perfect to fly over the top. It doesn’t disturb them,” George said.
“In fact, they don’t even know it’s there.”
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