An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (<i>Phascolarctos cinereus</i>) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020
In the 2019–2020 Australian bushfires, Kangaroo Island, South Australia, experienced catastrophic bushfires that burnt approximately half the island, with an estimated 80% of the koala population lost. During and after the event, rescued koalas were triaged at a designated facility and a range of in...
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MDPI AG
2021-11-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/11/3237 |
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| author | Evie Dunstan Oliver Funnell Jenny McLelland Felicity Stoeckeler Elisa Nishimoto Dana Mitchell Sam Mitchell David J. McLelland Jerome Kalvas Lynley Johnson Claire Moore Lauren J. M. Eyre Amanda McLune Ian Hough Ludovica Valenza Wayne S. J. Boardman Ian Smith Natasha Speight |
| author_facet | Evie Dunstan Oliver Funnell Jenny McLelland Felicity Stoeckeler Elisa Nishimoto Dana Mitchell Sam Mitchell David J. McLelland Jerome Kalvas Lynley Johnson Claire Moore Lauren J. M. Eyre Amanda McLune Ian Hough Ludovica Valenza Wayne S. J. Boardman Ian Smith Natasha Speight |
| author_sort | Evie Dunstan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In the 2019–2020 Australian bushfires, Kangaroo Island, South Australia, experienced catastrophic bushfires that burnt approximately half the island, with an estimated 80% of the koala population lost. During and after the event, rescued koalas were triaged at a designated facility and a range of initial data were recorded including rescue location and date, sex, estimation of age, body condition and hydration, and assessment of burn severity (<i>n</i> = 304 records available). Koalas were presented to the triage facility over a span of 10 weeks, with 50.2% during the first 14 days of the bushfire response, the majority of which were rescued from regions of lower fire severity. Burns were observed in 67.4% of koalas, with the majority (60.9%) classified as superficial burns, primarily affecting the limbs and face. Poor body condition was recorded in 74.6% of burnt koalas and dehydration in 77.1%. Negative final outcomes (death or euthanasia, at triage or at a later date) occurred in 45.6% of koalas and were significantly associated with higher mean burn score, maximum burn severity, number of body regions burnt, poor body condition score, and dehydration severity. The findings of this retrospective study may assist clinicians in the field with decision making when triaging koalas in future fire rescue efforts. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T05:46:40Z |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T05:46:40Z |
| publishDate | 2021-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-f71219ebc24446f6ace0711fce4601462023-11-22T22:07:31ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152021-11-011111323710.3390/ani11113237An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (<i>Phascolarctos cinereus</i>) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020Evie Dunstan0Oliver Funnell1Jenny McLelland2Felicity Stoeckeler3Elisa Nishimoto4Dana Mitchell5Sam Mitchell6David J. McLelland7Jerome Kalvas8Lynley Johnson9Claire Moore10Lauren J. M. Eyre11Amanda McLune12Ian Hough13Ludovica Valenza14Wayne S. J. Boardman15Ian Smith16Natasha Speight17School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5371, AustraliaZoos South Australia, Frome Rd, Adelaide, SA 5001, AustraliaSchool of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5371, AustraliaKangaroo Island Veterinary Clinic, Kingscote, SA 5223, AustraliaKangaroo Island Veterinary Clinic, Kingscote, SA 5223, AustraliaKangaroo Island Wildlife Park, Parndana, SA 5220, AustraliaKangaroo Island Wildlife Park, Parndana, SA 5220, AustraliaSchool of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5371, AustraliaSchool of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5371, AustraliaZoos South Australia, Frome Rd, Adelaide, SA 5001, AustraliaSouth Australian Veterinary Emergency Management, Bridgewater, SA 5155, AustraliaRoyal Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals, South Australia (RSPCA SA), Lonsdale, SA 5160, AustraliaAustralian Defence Force, Army Headquarters, Canberra, ACT 2600, AustraliaCleland Wildlife Park, National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia, Department for Environment and Water, South Australian Government, Crafers, SA 5152, AustraliaAustralia Zoo Wildlife Hospital, Beerwah, QLD 4519, AustraliaSchool of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5371, AustraliaSchool of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5371, AustraliaSchool of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5371, AustraliaIn the 2019–2020 Australian bushfires, Kangaroo Island, South Australia, experienced catastrophic bushfires that burnt approximately half the island, with an estimated 80% of the koala population lost. During and after the event, rescued koalas were triaged at a designated facility and a range of initial data were recorded including rescue location and date, sex, estimation of age, body condition and hydration, and assessment of burn severity (<i>n</i> = 304 records available). Koalas were presented to the triage facility over a span of 10 weeks, with 50.2% during the first 14 days of the bushfire response, the majority of which were rescued from regions of lower fire severity. Burns were observed in 67.4% of koalas, with the majority (60.9%) classified as superficial burns, primarily affecting the limbs and face. Poor body condition was recorded in 74.6% of burnt koalas and dehydration in 77.1%. Negative final outcomes (death or euthanasia, at triage or at a later date) occurred in 45.6% of koalas and were significantly associated with higher mean burn score, maximum burn severity, number of body regions burnt, poor body condition score, and dehydration severity. The findings of this retrospective study may assist clinicians in the field with decision making when triaging koalas in future fire rescue efforts.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/11/3237burnmortalityPhascolarctidaerescuetraumawildfire |
| spellingShingle | Evie Dunstan Oliver Funnell Jenny McLelland Felicity Stoeckeler Elisa Nishimoto Dana Mitchell Sam Mitchell David J. McLelland Jerome Kalvas Lynley Johnson Claire Moore Lauren J. M. Eyre Amanda McLune Ian Hough Ludovica Valenza Wayne S. J. Boardman Ian Smith Natasha Speight An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (<i>Phascolarctos cinereus</i>) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020 Animals burn mortality Phascolarctidae rescue trauma wildfire |
| title | An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (<i>Phascolarctos cinereus</i>) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020 |
| title_full | An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (<i>Phascolarctos cinereus</i>) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020 |
| title_fullStr | An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (<i>Phascolarctos cinereus</i>) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020 |
| title_full_unstemmed | An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (<i>Phascolarctos cinereus</i>) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020 |
| title_short | An Analysis of Demographic and Triage Assessment Findings in Bushfire-Affected Koalas (<i>Phascolarctos cinereus</i>) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, 2019–2020 |
| title_sort | analysis of demographic and triage assessment findings in bushfire affected koalas i phascolarctos cinereus i on kangaroo island south australia 2019 2020 |
| topic | burn mortality Phascolarctidae rescue trauma wildfire |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/11/3237 |
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