At home with Jackie

When bushfire strikes, our wildlife needs help – but what are the right and wrong things to do? JACKIE FRENCH shares what she has learnt over decades of caring for animals

The right way to feed and water wildlife after fires

The first bushfire to threaten us last summer came from the west, in November. By mid-January, we were ringed by fires, with birds and animals fleeing to the conservation refuge on our property. In Australia, an estimated 18.6 million hectares burnt last summer, with a loss of perhaps three billion animals, many starving or dying of thirst.

Thousands of people offered to help, to feed and water starving wildlife in those tragic days. Sadly, the wrong kind of help can lead to more deaths. So how can you set up a food and water station for wildlife? 1. Make a commitment. Don’t start a food and water station unless you can visit at least once a day, or arrange for someone to visit, or organise a daily roster. Weekend visits aren’t enough. Food rots or ferments, and water can grow toxic algae. Worse, the station will attract wildlife from many kilometres away, and if the food and water is suddenly no longer replenished, the area around it won’t be able to support all the animals. They would have been better off trying to reach an area where they could survive without any help. Be prepared to maintain the food and water station for months, or even years. While some areas have regenerated from fire, others are still bare ground, and some are still in drought. 2. Choose a safe location. The easiest place to replenish a bush feeding station is by a road – and that’s the worst place. Animals may be run over after they’ve fed or while travelling to the station. Worse, you will teach them that food and water can be associated with roads, and they may seek out road verges in the future. Food and water are heavy to carry on foot, so the perfect place is a drivable paddock or near a bush track that’s rarely used by vehicles.

3. Move the station regularly. About three weeks into the emergency last year, I noticed the smell of built-up droppings and urine. We moved the station, and kept moving it every three days. I also put down hay to absorb the waste, then raked it away each day – mostly (sometimes you just need to do the best you can).

4. Beware of feral animals. Rabbits, goats, foxes, feral cats, deer and other feral animals may come to the station, too. Cats and foxes kill wildlife, and ferals can spread disease. I was able to observe our food and water station from the house, and take action with live traps, but we also use motion-sensing cameras to help control feral pests. Become familiar with droppings and animal tracks.

5. Provide the right food. Ask your local licensed wildlife organisation which animals you’ll be feeding, and what foods they recommend. In times of widespread destruction, it’s impossible to give wildlife their usual foods. Luckily, starving animals will usually eat food that’s strange to them. Unluckily, the wrong food can kill or cause major health problems, or it can be lethal in the long term. Foods for some native animals can be found at the supermarket, such as carrots, sweet potatoes, celery or corn, and various processed pellets may be suitable. Other animals need plant food that might come from local gardens. Jam sandwiches are never on the menu. ASK. 6. Make water available. Water must be fresh and accessible, with plenty of access. Echidnas can’t reach up and over even small barriers, and wombats drink slowly. The koalas you see being helped with drink bottles in touching photos may get water in their lungs, which can be lethal. We topped up our water ponds from a drip-irrigation system and cleaned them out daily. Your local wildlife organisation can give you excellent easy-to-assemble designs for waters stations. These just need to be topped up daily and scrubbed weekly.

7. Have a sense of wonder. Feeding and watering wildlife is hot and heavy. Sometimes it feels endless. As drought or fires worsen, you may find yourself catering for hundreds of animals. But I remember the night in January when a small black wombat crept starving and desperate through our garden, collapsing 10m from the water. I held up a bowl to her and she drank, then slowly, very slowly, crept towards the food. The animals all stepped back to let her through – stroppy wombats, wallabies and many others. Every night and every day at the feeding station brought wonder. It was an honour and a privilege to help, as it will be for as long as we are needed.