Jaymie,+Kaitlyn,+Natasha+and+Steph+T

The Extroidinary Exceptional 'Endangered' Animal Experts By Natasha, Jaymie, Stephanie & Kaitlyn   Marysville media type="googlemap" key="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msa=0&msid=204013701850950075753.0004ab22718806e35a09a&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=-37.542886,145.609703&spn=0.187287,0.276718&vpsrc=6&output=embed" width="816" height="675"
 * It was the 7th February in 2009, when the small town of Marysville was hit by one of the biggest bushfires since Ash Wednesday. Twelve days after the Murrindindi Mill Bushfires started, the official death toll had hit 45 and 90% of the towns buildings had been burnt. It wasn't just the people who suffered; the flora and fauna was also hard hit. Many animals went into rehabilitation and didn't make it through. Luckily the plants and animals are fighting back, the recovery has been so amazing that in some parts it looks as if no bushfires ever came through. **

** Many animals were harmed during the Murrindindi Mill bushfires and now are in the horrible position of being threatened of becoming endangered. The Leadbeater's Possum, Helmeted Honeyeater and the Sooty Owl are a few animals which have become threatened due to the fires, above is a map of Marysville and these three animals have been labeled in the areas where they can be found. Here below is a little more about each animal. **  ﻿ Leadbeater's Possum media type="youtube" key="nSTbubgSZmo" height="333" width="366" align="right" media type="custom" key="10321310" align="left" width="40" height="44"

If you go out in the right time you might be lucky to see the Leadbeater’s possum. This particular possum is endangered and may be found in Marysville. This possum lives in tree holes and feeds on insects such as moths, crickets and beetle’s spiders which it gets from scraping a layer of bark from a tree or finds hanging on bark strips. It also enjoys honeydew, gum, nectar and sap of wattle trees and eucalyptus trees. It is small and the average body length is 15 – 17 cm they weigh about 120-160 grams. They are grey to greyish brown and are identified by their dark mid-dorsal stripe, which is located along the center of the back. Helmeted Honey Eater media type="custom" key="10321268" align="left" width="49" height="53"media type="youtube" key="Z5ORxA72iZk" height="205" width="381" align="right"

The Helmeted Honey Eater is a bird and is about 20cms in length. They are mostly from black to olive brown to yellow colors. This animal is critically endangered and one of the only places it may be found is in between Healsville and Marysville. It feeds on Manna, which is a sap-like substance produced by trees. Sooty Owl media type="custom" key="10317369" align="center" width="394" height="275"

Another animal found in Marysville is the Sooty owl. It’s an averagely sized owl, which can be identified by the white spots on the top of its head and white spots on its wings. The females have a lighter colour then the males and the females are also heavier, their length 37-43 cm in length and weigh 750-1000grams while the males are 37-43 but weigh 500-700 grams. These birds are nocturnal and hide in hollow tree trunks caves and in tall trees with heavy foliage. This Speech was made by the Lorax After the fires happened when there weren't many people helping the animals...

“ Listen all, gather round. Look at me, not the ground.

This information is important, you hear. So make sure you listen with your good ear.

The fires, they’re ruining this earth. It’s more painful than giving birth.

It’s a terrible problem we are facing. We need to stop it, time is racing.

I am speaking on behalf of the animals that were hurt; the poor things were treated like dirt.

The fires came and ruined their lives, yet I was the only one to listen to their cries.

Zoos and other foundations helped as well, trying to again make these animal’s lives swell.

Animals are dying and so are plants, the trees are crying, so are the ants.

Lots of animals are being harmed, the number is so big, I’m alarmed.

Some of the fires were an act of nature; others were started by a random stranger.

It was horrible for the little animals, most of these being mammals.

Some of the birds could fly away, but most the animals became the fires pray.

Marysville was affected by these fires, they lost many of their necessary attires.

People died, children cried, because there was no place for them to hide.

So what I’m saying, incase that isn’t clear, is that fires happen all around us, not just here.

Black Saturday should never of happened, you hear me, lives were blackened.

So help these poor little animals, because humans are also mammals. “   Now, the Lorax would like to ask you a question. Follow the link to his survey below. Click here to take survey media type="youtube" key="N994QIRYkCs" height="481" width="784"

Recovery

The suburb of Marysville is definitely in an area that is prone to bushfires, a few kilometers away is the Yarra Ranges National Park, roughly around 760 square kilometers. Marysville is like any other town; it has houses, schools, shops, Post offices, everything a town needs to run, however it is one of a few suburbs that has been through a dreadful bushfire in the summer of 2009. The majority of Marysville was completely burnt by the unstoppable fires that forced their way through the town on the night of the 7th of February. The devastation was immense as people returned back to their pile of rubble, which used to be their family home, some only coming back with half their family. However the residents of Marysville weren ** ’ ** t going to let a fire break their strong spirit that fills the community. Everyone came together to rebuild their houses, schools, shops and Post offices. A vital part of a healthy happy community is a healthy happy ecosystem, and the residents didn't forget that many cam together to look after wounded and motherless animals as well as putting a great deal of time and effort into making rehabilitation areas for the animals to go to when they are strong enough.

The Helmeted Honeyeater has nearly doubled in its numbers since the start of its rehabilitation and as many plants and trees are starting to grow back and blossom so is the Honeyeater it is absolutely thriving in its habitat.

Visiting the town of Marysville now it is quite hard to see any signs of bushfire damage apart from memorials and plaques because the wildlife and plants have been so resilient in fighting the fire damage.

Above is a short video which shows the recovery of Marysville's ecosystem and below is a video of Sam the Koala who became an emblem of the Black Saturday Bushfires, this video is an excellent example of recovery and powering on. media type="youtube" key="-XSPx7S4jr4" height="480" width="784" align="center"

Support from Healsville Sanctuary Healesville Sanctuary had to evacuate most of their animals during the Black Saturday bushfires. Many of the staff lost their homes and species that were all ready endangered like the Helmeted Honeyeater and Leadbeater’s Possum were put in extreme danger of becoming extinct. Luckily, the staff at Healesville Sanctuary were able to evacuate the animals most in danger and the vet’s worked tirelessly to help any injured animals. Unfortunately, most of the wild animals habitat was lost. Trees that the Leadbeater’s Possums would usually live in were old and decayed, making them collapse and burn easily. Luckily for the Honeyeaters, none of the main habitat was lost and as far as the people as Healesville Sanctuary know, none of the birds were lost either. All the staff at Healesville Sanctuary were quick to do whatever they could for the animals in the bushfires, the sanctuary was in threat of getting damaged and everyone helped to protect the animals. The staff found many injured wild animals, they nursed them back to health and they’re putting them in habitats that are as close to their original ones as possible. Bibliography

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