As fires consumed more than 50,000 hectares of Iberá National Park in northeastern Argentina, rangers managed to rescue four macaws and two anteaters to be reintroduced to the wetlands.
The baby macaws needed antibiotics because their lungs were compromised with smoke from the fire.
Over half-a-million hectares have burnt in Corrientes province, including grasslands, wetlands and native forest.
The fire was fueled by a prolonged drought, high temperatures and the lack of fire management in areas bordering the National Park with pine forest plantations.
The Iberá wetlands are among the largest wetland systems in the world and support a remarkable level of biodiversity.
With 700,000 hectares, Ibera National Park is a sanctuary recently created by donations of lands by Tompkins Conservation, a foundation created by Kris Tompkins and her late husband Doug (co-founder of The North Face).
Rewilding Argentina Foundation, an affiliate of Tompkins Conservation, has several programs in place to reintroduce autochthones fauna like jaguars, anteaters and macaws, among others.
Thanks to the size of the Park, most of the wildlife is able to relocate.
“If the Park had been smaller, all wildlife would be endangered,” says Sofía Heinonen, biologist and executive director Rewilding Argentina.
“Having enough surface gives the fauna time to relocate and recover.”
However, Heinonen is concerned that with over 200 kilometres (125 miles) of fences lost to the fire, cattle and water buffalos from neighbouring ranches that also caught fire are moving deep into the National Park, creating a huge environmental problem.
The other problem is some wildlife that escaped the fire outside the park boundaries may become prey of hunters.
Heinonen said they are looking at future alternatives to fences made with discarded metal tubbing from the oil industry that could resist future fires.
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