South America. Fires engulfing Pantanal Wetland threaten unique biodiversity

Another large fire has engulfed the wetlands, and thick smoke is rising over the Pantanal Plain in South America. According to the Reuters agency, the cause of the fires is significantly lower rainfall.

The Pantanal Plain stretches across the northeastern area of Paraguay, eastern Bolivia, and central-western Brazil, making it the largest wetland in the world. It has an extraordinary diversity of plants and animals, including up to five thousand species, many of which are endangered.

Due to another large fire engulfing the wetlands, thick smoke is rising over the Pantanal plain in South America. This situation raises serious concerns about further losses for this unique ecosystem.

Pantanal is known as the largest wetland area in the world, and now it is a desert with fire everywhere.

It's hard to breathe. It's hard for newborn children. The heat gets stronger and stronger," declared Amilton Brandao, a resident and guide, to the Reuters agency. "The Pantanal is already hot and it gets hotter, drier, with smoke, the weather gets very bad."

The Brazilian National Institute for Space Research warns that the number of fires in the Pantanal has increased dramatically - almost tenfold by the beginning of June this year compared to last year. According to the Reuters agency, not too long ago, the largest fires in this region mainly occurred in August and September.

Now, their earlier occurrence may have catastrophic consequences for this exceptional ecosystem. Increased fires threaten the unique biodiversity of the Pantanal, and the ecosystem's ability to regenerate may be severely weakened. The Pantanal wetlands are home to many animals, including jaguars, anacondas, and giant anteaters.

"There used to be no smoke here. The sun shone clearly, and the sky was always blue. Now the whole hill is burning, and smoke has covered the entire area," said one resident.

The main cause of the fires is that during the last rainy season, the total rainfall was as much as 1,525 millimetres (mm) lower than the historical average. This shortage of rain significantly affects soil and vegetation moisture, making areas more prone to catching fire and spreading quickly.

The shortage of rain this year has caused the fire season to start earlier and become more intense. Let us remind you: fires in 2020 affected one-third of the wetlands and killed 17 million vertebrates.