#massmortalities — Public Fediverse posts

Australian wildlife, H5N1 bird flu and poultry factory farming

* Chicken meat prices rise regardless of whether bird flu spreads to poultry >>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-29/bird-flu-price-and-supply-of-chicken-australia/107085462

* Australian native wildlife - "these animals are getting sick, they are suffering and then they are dying." >>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2026-08-29/australian-birds-animals-bird-flu-infections-deaths/107074780
#birds #chicken #poultry #meat #MeatIndustry #FactoryFarming #IntensiveLivestockFarming #BatteryFarming #BirdFlu #mammals #wildlife #biodiversity #MassMortalities #penguins #seals #shorebirds #dolphins #mammals
Image: Dead chickens, Georg Scholz, 1926

"Hotter oceans
exacerbate the sea level rise and extreme storms that threaten billions of people, as well as driving marine heatwaves that decimate sea life and undermine coastal livelihoods, scientists warned."

"The average surface temperature was 21.1C, with the rising marine heat a stark indicator of the climate crisis. More than 90% of the heat trapped by carbon dioxide from fossil fuel burning enters the oceans."

"Most of the planet-heating CO2 from fossil fuel burning and forest destruction is absorbed by the oceans. However, a hotter ocean is less efficient at absorbing CO2. This is potentially weakening one of the planet’s most important natural buffers against global heating, the scientists said."

“Fossil fuel emissions need to be rapidly reduced. Meanwhile, it is essential that countries protect marine and coastal ecosystems. Kelp beds, mangroves and marshes absorb carbon and coral reefs protect against storms and provide habitat. More than 190 governments have committed to protect and conserve at least 30% of the planet by 2030, and now is the time to turn that commitment into effective, durable conservation on the ground.” >>
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/aug/24/worlds-oceans-hit-hottest-temperature-on-record-in-august
#FossilFuel #ForestDestruction #destruction #HotOcean #MarineLife #CoastalEcosystems #HABs #MassMortalities

Bird flu ruled out after hundreds of dead pelicans found at Menindee Lakes

An "ecologist ... found the 400 dead birds earlier this month said they appeared to have suddenly "collapsed on each other"."

"The cause of the deaths of hundreds of pelicans in outback New South Wales is unclear, but bird flu has been ruled out."

"Sightings should be reported to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-17/dead-pelicans-menindee-lakes-h5n1-bird-flu-negative-test/107027670
#birds #MassMortalities #NSW #biodiversity

An underwater disaster: Marine heatwaves are cooking our ocean ecosystems – and will only become more common

" Marine heatwaves happen when the ocean remains abnormally hot for an extended period. While they may be invisible from the shore, their impacts can wreak havoc underwater – killing various kinds of coral, seagrass and fish." >>
https://theconversation.com/marine-heatwaves-are-cooking-our-ocean-ecosystems-and-will-only-become-more-common-288400
#FossilFuels #ocean #MarineHeatwaves #HABs #disasters #MassMortalities #MarineEnvironment #biodiversity #lossOfHabitability #loss

Penguins and dolphins among nearly 400 Australian species under threat from bird flu as ‘true extent of disaster’ revealed

"Australia is already in the midst of an extinction crisis and we need to be prepared for just how harrowing this could get." Jess Abrahams, Australian Conservation Foundation

"Assessment of more than 2,000 native species reveals nearly one in five at high risk of deadly H5N1, including parrots, fur seals and quolls." >>
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/aug/05/penguins-dolphins-nearly-400-australian-species-threat-bird-flu-true-extent-disaster
#biodiversity #H5N1 #BirdFlu #pandemics #SlowTheSpread #wildlife #birds #roaming #pets #MassMortalities #NSW #extinction

Our climate fiasco: Falls in whale sightings, rare seabirds appearing

"A huge, long-lasting and extreme marine heatwave stayed in place for many months. It became known as “the Blob”. Water temperatures were between 2°C and 6°C above normal. While this may not seem like a drastic change, it led to widespread ecosystem disruption. At least 240 species were found outside their normal ranges – some further north than ever recorded."

"It’s hard to overstate how extensive its effects were. Kelp forests disappeared. Millions of starfish dissolved into goo. Whales died. Seabirds starved. Toxic algal blooms appeared." >>
https://theconversation.com/falls-in-whale-sightings-rare-seabirds-appearing-is-something-unusual-happening-in-the-southern-ocean-287961
#FossilFuels #ClimateFiasco #MarineHeatwave #HABs #MassMortalities #heatwaves #heatrecords #krill #whales #birds #seabirds #loss #biodiversity #LossOfHabitability #SacrificeZones

How media covers death and destruction in nature
Explicit content warnings needed for ecological disasters?

"Disasters that affect our ecosystems can generate anxiety, grief and a sense of helplessness, which media reporting can amplify."

"SA’s experience with the algal bloom suggests it’s time to extend the logic of existing media guidelines into the environmental domain. A dedicated framework for reporting on environmental disasters would not censor or dilute journalism. It would strengthen it." >>
https://theconversation.com/media-coverage-of-environmental-disasters-doesnt-come-with-a-content-warning-its-time-for-change-286564
#ecocide #trauma #destruction #harm #ecosystems #grief #EmotionalBracing #news #HABs #MSM #narrative #experiences #exposure #TriggerWarnings #ContentWarnings #DistressingContent #MassMortalities #FossilFuels #extractivism #environmental #disasters #biodiversity #extinctions

Uncharted territory: Ocean surface temperatures hit a record high for June

"As a result, the oceans are warming at an accelerating rate. In 2020, the amount of heat being added to the oceans was equivalent to about five Hiroshima bombs a second. Last year, it was closer to 11 Hiroshima explosions a second. The UN’s secretary general, António Guterres, has warned “Earth is being pushed beyond its limits”. >>>
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/01/ocean-surface-temperatures-hit-a-record-high-for-june
#ExtremeHeat #ocean #biodiversity #FossilFuels #climatedisasters #SA #Massmortalities #limits #boundaries

Hot climate extremes and overcrowded industrial agriculture

* Extreme heat wave in France kills hundreds of thousands of poultry >>
https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/06/extreme-heat-wave-in-france-kills-hundreds-of-thousands-of-poultry/

* "The ​heat is also hitting cattle farmers. High temperatures reduce feed intake, increase ​water demand and ⁠cut milk output. They're standing there with ​their mouths wide open, just trying to find air...It's very difficult, physically for people and for the animals." >>
https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/record-heat-causes-mass-poultry-deaths-france-2026-06-24/
#FossilFuels #Climate #HotPlanet #FactoryFarming #livestock #Meat #poultry #cattle #pigs #DieOff #ExtremeHeat #water #cyanobacteria #eutrophication #Birds #wildlife #Biodiversity #MassMortalities #carcasses #agriculture #Pathogens #PoultryFlu #overstocking #habitability

A multi-stressor scenario for the ocean and waterway ecosystems:

* The ocean is 'cooked' by the combustion of fossil fuels.
* Add a generous heap of 'nutrient-rich' floodwaters (runoff) from farms and suburbia.
* Get a harmful algal bloom (HAB) disaster, killing bio-diverse marine life and threatening the hip pocket nerve of coastal dwellers.

"A survey found that Australians remained far more concerned about disasters such as bushfires and flooding than they did HABs, despite 22 million people living with seven kilometres of the coastline and climate change modelling predicting more frequent and severe blooms."

"The study also found Australians had a "relatively low prioritisation of disasters — and HABs in particular — when compared with everyday socio-economic concerns"...Cost of living and healthcare dominated respondents' concerns in Australia, while environmental and climate change-related risks were perceived as less pressing.' >>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-06-25/sa-harmful-algal-bloom-public-understanding-survey-findings/106833676
#ocean #MarineLife #waterways #Biodiversity #FossilFuels #ClimateDisasters #disasters #MarineHeatwaves #ToxicBlooms #eutrophication #SystemicDisaster #MassMortalities #fish #hypoxia #FishKills #farms #fertiliser #Impervioussurfaces #runoff #pollution #Sewerage #Infrastructure #HipPocket #mindsets

Koalas at risk of death once seven-day temperatures rise beyond 27C
Nutritional and climate refugia for koalas

"Extreme heat is a major factor in the number of deaths and hospitalisations of Australians every year....An analysis of 11,862 koala rescue admissions to NSW animal hospitals found the marsupials were more likely to die when the seven-day average maximum temperature was greater than 27 degrees Celsius."

"Dr Mella said water stations could be left out as well as shade structures built for koalas in hot regions like north-west NSW. We do that for cattle and we do that for animals that we use for our needs, so we really should be doing it for wildlife as well."

When koalas rests low to the ground in the shade trying to beat the heat they are usually chased and injured by dogs and car. >>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2026-05-27/koala-deaths-linked-to-a-few-extra-degrees-of-heat/106722276
#Koalas #refugia #FossilFuels #heatwaves #drought #climate #cars #sprawl #dogs #NSW #MassMortalities #widllife #extinctions #DomesticAnimals #HeatRelatedRisks #biodiversity

‘We don’t hear the frogs, we don’t see the birds’:
government repeatedly delayed water to NSW wetlands, documents reveal

"The New South Wales government has routinely delayed environmental flows to critical wetlands in the state’s north-west in favour of farming, despite admitting it could harm the breeding cycles of frogs and endangered birds and damage local ecosystems."

“I was furious when I saw the impact that delaying the delivery of environmental water is having on the wetlands and the thousands of waterbirds and other animals that rely upon healthy wetland ecosystems to survive." >>
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/may/02/nsw-government-delayed-water-wetlands-documents-reveal

#biodiversity #ecosystems #conservation #Ramsar #wetlands #GwydirWetlands #NSW #EnvironmentalFlows #birds #frogs #turtles #waterbirds #MassMortalities #irrigation #governance

Restrictions after drop in Menindee Lakes water level are ineffective, expert warns. Loophole keeping things pumping

"The NSW government last week introduced a temporary water embargo aimed at preserving water in the Darling River system and preventing ecological events such as fish kills and turtle deaths."

"The government has dragged its heels." >>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-05-02/murray-darling-water-restriction-loophole/106616196
#biodiversity #wildlife #MassMortalities #water #rivers #MDB #cotton #irrigation

State of the Global Climate 2025

The World Meteorological Organization "State of Climate report confirms

2015-2025 hottest 11 years on record

Earth’s energy imbalance is highest in sixty five-year record.

The ocean has been absorbing about eighteen times the annual human energy use each year for the past two decades.

Extreme weather impacts millions and costs billions."
>>
https://wmo.int/publication-series/state-of-global-climate/state-of-global-climate-2025
#FossilFuels #climate #GHG #ExtremeWeather #Extremes #heatwaves #ocean #MassMortalities #cryosphere #atmosphere #WMO #ClimateDisruption #bushfires #floods #droughts #heatwaves #instability #war #pollution

Life After Cars
The harms of car culture

"Heralded as a world-changing invention, automobiles promised a dream of freedom and independence. Instead, they’ve delivered pollution, noise, expense, sprawling isolated cities, climate catastrophe, and hundreds of thousands of deaths per year."
>>
https://visionzerovancouver.ca/2025/08/01/life-after-cars/

Life After Cars: Freeing Ourselves From the Tyranny of the Automobile (book)
"Instead of unbounded freedom, the never-ending proliferation of automobiles has delivered a host of costs, among them the demolition of our neighborhoods, towns, and cities to make way for car infrastructure; an epidemic of violent death; countless hours lost in traffic; isolation from our fellow human beings; and the ongoing destruction of the natural world."
>>
https://www.lifeaftercars.com/
#cars #vehicles #EVs #roads #pollution #RoadTrauma #MassMortalities #violence #climate #FossilFuels #sprawl #destruction #harm #biodiversity #book

Fossil fuels are heating the oceans, killing fish and corals

"Authorities investigate after thousands of leatherjacket fish wash up on NSW and Queensland beaches Mass fish kill of juvenile leatherjackets along NSW south coast, from Lake Conjola to Narooma, and on Sunshine Coast." >>
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/mar/21/mass-fish-kill-leatherjacket-wash-up-on-nsw-queensland-beaches

Ningaloo and Great Barrier Reef hit by ‘profoundly distressing’ simultaneous coral bleaching events >>
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/mar/23/ningaloo-and-great-barrier-reef-hit-by-profoundly-distressing-simultaneous-coral-bleaching-events
#FossilFuels #ocean #MarineLife #biodiversity #GBR #reef #runoff #pollution #eutrophication #MassMortalities

From water pollution to blue gold

Water "“blighted by mats of algae, mountains of foam, scum, and dead fish floating on the surface. Pollution from water companies and agricultural runoff are driving the contamination, which affects all parts of the country, causing toxic algal blooms, mass die-offs of fish, and risks to human health."

"A country that once let raw sewage and industrial wastewater flow directly into its water. Today, it is 98%, and the country has a reputation for pristine swimming waters, sometimes referred to as its “blue gold” – and it’s all thanks to a complex network of sewage plants."
>>
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/mar/17/from-sewage-and-scum-to-swimming-in-blue-gold-how-switzerland-transformed-its-waterways-aoe
#water #pollution #micropollutants #ecosystem #health #swimming #Australia #sewage #floods #runoff #ImperviousSurfaces #roads #MassMortalities #SepticTanks #sprawl #biodiversity #rivers #civilisation