The Platypus is now on the brink of extinction.
Platypuses are now at risk of extinction because of the recent drought in Australia. A prolonged drought over recent years, alongside the recent Australian bushfires, has been detrimental to Platypuses, and is now threatening their survival.
These unique animals, native to Australia, could now face extinction like other animals within Australia due to the recent extreme weather events over the past few months.
The Australian bushfires has been going on for months and they are still raging on today. However, there has been rain and hail over the past few days in some places in Australia.
The bushfires so far have devastated an enormous amount of the Australian wildlife population: it is estimated that over 1 billion animals have died so far as a result of the recent Australian bushfires. There are also other animals that are dying as a result of the bushfires.
One of the reasons animals are still dying is due to starvation. The few animal survivors in places that have been scorched are at risk of starvation due to no vegetation being left in places which have burned. As a result, the Australian government has been dropping carrots and sweet potatoes from helicopters to the ground to help the animal survivors.
The devastation caused by the recent Australian bushfires may mean that these ecosystems may never recover. If these ecosystems that have been scorched never recover, then the animals who rely on them could go extinct.
Animals, such as: the Platypus.
The Platypus has suffered a steep drop in their population recently, due to the droughts. Scientists are saying that climate change are pushing these unique and beautiful animals towards the brink of extinction.
There has been a 40% decrease in the Platypus population due to the droughts. There are also other reasons why their population has declined so drastically - their population has also declined due to land clearing by humans, dam building and pollution. If such things continue, then the Platypus population will continue to decline so severely that they will eventually become extinct - scientists think that they could now become extinct within the next 50 years if nothing changes to help Platypuses survive.
Platypuses are mainly found in Australia's South East. The worst of Australia's recent bushfires have also been across the South East.
The Platypus was already in trouble before the Australian bushfires though; there was a silent decline in the Platypus population last year before the bushfires took hold, as droughts and dams were badly affecting the animals.
Their population was last assessed by the IUCN Red List in 2014, when they found that the Platypus population was decreasing. These animals were also classed as being 'near threatened' with extinction. However, in just six short years, things have changed dramatically for the Platypus, as their population has now almost halved and they are now thought to be on the brink of extinction.