Lake Argyle blazes thought to be sparked by campfires scorch Gouldian finch habitat

There is concern for the habitat of a much-loved endangered bird species after two bushfires scorched pristine landscape at a renowned tourist destination in Western Australia’s far north.

The fires, sparked last year, burnt through an estimated tens of thousands of hectares of bushland around Lake Argyle, 3,200 kilometres north of Perth near the WA-NT border.

The lake, the state’s largest, is famed for its beauty and wildlife, including the rare Gouldian finch.

Frustrated locals who fought both fires believe the blazes started from insufficiently extinguished campfires.

While the impact on the strikingly coloured bird’s habitat is difficult to determine, experts say the damage to the ecosystem highlights the importance of appropriate fire management and public education.

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Fire originated from campsite

Tourism operator Greg Smith said the fires started in the area around Spillway Creek, a popular spot for campers.

A photo taken shortly after the fires shows blackened ground near a campfire site.

Mr Smith said he believed the other fire started in similar circumstances.

“Really frustrating … both of the campsites were within a short distance of water,” he said.

“The one down near the spillway plug would have taken nothing at all to put a pair of gloves on, grab the log, drag it down and throw it in the water.”

The fires burned for weeks between July and September, turning diverse wooded spinifex-coated grassland and pockets of richly green springs into ash and bare rock.

‘Nothing left’

When the far-reaching smoke haze cleared, Mr Smith’s colleague Lucas Baikrich hiked into the wilderness and was struck by the transformation.

“Nothing left. It’s just brown and rocky,” he said.

One area known as the Garden of Eden was left unrecognisable.

“A place with really, really dense vegetation … that was pretty green before the fire, so it’s quite amazing to see it all gone,” he said.

The nature enthusiast discovered the fire had destroyed a handful of nesting boxes built for the Gouldian finch.

Mr Baikrich expects to find more burnt boxes given the vast reach of both fires.

“The ones we put in in past years … there was some vegetation in the boxes,” he said.

“So some birds have been coming and checking on those boxes; they were pretty happy to live in there, and those are the ones which have been burned this year.

“You could have had some birds potentially living in there.”

Old trees disappear

Mr Smith said arson and irresponsible behaviour were to blame for an increase in destructive late dry-season fires in the past decade in the area surrounding Lake Argyle.

He said previous blazes had destroyed older gum trees Gouldian finches preferred to nest in.

“In the 25 years that I’ve been here at Lake Argyle, you can notice the difference in the vegetation between the main highway and Lake Argyle.

“Really significant loss of any of the larger trees.

In the Kimberley various authorities, agencies and Indigenous groups try to reduce late dry-season fires by conducting fuel-reduction burns at the end of wet season, using a complex mosaic grid system.

Experts say while this approach suppresses ecologically damaging wildfires, climate change means techniques need to constantly evolve.

The issue of prolific arson continues to exasperate locals and pastoralists in the wider Kimberley who believe more should be done to crack down on those who light fires without considering the grave risks.

Creating healthy country 

Ecologist Alexander Watson has worked with traditional owner groups in the East Kimberley who conduct planned burns to help return the endangered Gouldians to a commonly sighted bird species.

“The idea is that good fire management promotes a diversity of grasses, and that in itself promotes the Gouldian finches and other seed-eaters across northern Australia,” he said.

Mr Watson said the priority for authorities should be the design and implementation of thorough burning regimes and education to protect the much-loved landscape.

“So in terms of the area around Lake Argyle, I would be trying to do my best to implement really rigorous fire management,” he said.

WA Police said the cause of both fires had not been determined.

A spokesperson said, in general, rewards of up to $25,000 were available for information that led to the conviction of an arsonist.