Approximately 70 nationally threatened species have had at least 50% of their range burnt, while nearly 160 threatened species have had more than 20% burnt. Michelle Ward, PhD Candidate, The University of Queensland Aaron Greenville, Lecturer in Spatial Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney April Reside, Researcher, Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science, The University of Queensland Ayesha Tulloch, DECRA Research Fellow, University of Sydney Brooke Williams, PhD Candidate, The University of Queensland Emily Massingham, PhD Student, The University of Queensland Helen Mayfield, Postdoctoral Research Fellow School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland Hugh Possingham, Professor, The University of Queensland James Watson, Professor, The University of Queensland Jim Radford, Principal Research Fellow, Research Centre for Future Landscapes, La Trobe University Laura Sonter, PhD Candidate in Global Environmental Change, The University of Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The ecological costs of huge, repetitive, high-severity wildfires on ecosystems could be colossal. Darren Evans, Reader in Ecology and Conservation, Newcastle University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

As well as a stark warning about climate change, the disaster underlines the importance of wildlife monitoring. Tim Birkhead, Emeritus Professor of Zoology, University of Sheffield Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The Toolkit for Ecosystem Service Site-based Assessment (TESSA) allows NGOs to quantify the economic advantages of maintaining ecosystems, helping preserve biodiversity by putting a value on it. Kelvin S.-H. Peh, Lecturer in Conservation Science, University of Southampton Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Once you include insects, snails, worms and other small creatures, it's clear the fires could cause one of the biggest extinction events of the modern era. Mike Lee, Professor in Evolutionary Biology (jointly appointed with South Australian Museum), Flinders University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

In a matter of weeks, the fires have subverted decades of dedicated conservation efforts for many threatened species. John Woinarski, Professor (conservation biology), Charles Darwin University Chris Dickman, Professor in Terrestrial Ecology, University of Sydney David Bowman, Professor of Pyrogeography and Fire Science, University of Tasmania David Keith, Professor of Botany, UNSW Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Building connections and grassroots efforts will sustain conservation over the long term. Mucha Mkono, Research Fellow (Australian Research Council DECRA Fellow), Business School, The University of Queensland Jason I. Ransom, Wildlife Ecologist, National Park Service Katarzyna Nowak, Fellow, The Safina Center; Research Associate, University of the Free State Patrick O. Onyango, Lecturer, Maseno University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

There is little to fear and lots to love about spiders, which have not killed anyone in Australia for 40 years. Leanda Denise Mason, Associate Lecturer, Curtin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

It's well-established that green spaces are good for our well-being. Now we can demonstrate that greater biodiversity boosts this benefit, as well as helping to sustain native plants and animals. Zoe Myers, Lecturer, Australian Urban Design Research Centre, University of Western Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

New research shows that slowing deforestation is the most essential step for saving Madagascar's lemurs, and can help protect them against the longer-term threat of climate change. Andrea L. Baden, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Hunter College Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Most of Kenya's biodiversity needs protecting outside protected areas in human‐dominated landscapes that are undergoing rapid change. Peter Tyrrell, PhD Candidate and Mistler Graduate Scholar, University of Oxford Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Non-living nature such as rocks, landforms, soil and water form the Earth's 'geodiversity' - a crucial part of the planet's life support system. Joseph J. Bailey, Lecturer in Biogeography, York St John University Franziska Schrodt, Assistant Professor of Biogeography, University of Nottingham Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Wildlife TV producers used to think that focus on environmental issues could only be structured around doom and gloom stories – scaring away large audiences. Jean-Baptiste Gouyon, Associate professor in Science Communication, UCL Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Insects are vital to sustaining life on Earth – and their numbers are falling fast. So consider ditching the fly spray and see what you can do to help. David Yeates, Director of the Australian National Insect Collection, CSIRO Katja Hogendoorn, University of Adelaide Manu Saunders, Research fellow, University of New England Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Weeks out from summer, new research says there is no evidence shark nets keep us safe from sharks. Leah Gibbs, Senior Lecturer in Geography, University of Wollongong Lachlan Fetterplace, Environmental Assessment Specialist, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Quentin Hanich, Associate Professor, University of Wollongong Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Biodiversity, public transport and home insulation loom large in Labour's flagship programme for green governance. Stephen Hall, Research Fellow in Energy Economics and Policy, University of Leeds Marc Hudson, Researcher in Sustainable Consumption, University of Manchester Mike Jeffries, Associate Professor, Ecology, Northumbria University, Newcastle Nicole Badstuber, Research Associate in Transport, University of Cambridge Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Instead of boycotting palm oil, source it from pastureland and not recently logged forests. Denis J Murphy, Professor of Biotechnology, Head of Genomics & Computational Biology Research, University of South Wales Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

After the woolly mammoth and other megafauna became extinct, surviving animals mingled less. This has big implications for modern conservation. Aniko Blanka Toth, Postdoctoral Fellow, Macquarie University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Although less well known than its cousins, coral reefs and mangroves, seagrass plays a crucial role in climate change mitigation. Andri Irawan, Researcher at Research Center for Deep Sea, Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Indigenous people learnt to use fire skillfully and to their advantage, including to moderate bushfires. In this time of crisis, we must learn from them. David Bowman, Professor of Pyrogeography and Fire Science, University of Tasmania Ben J. French, PhD student in Environmental Change Biology, University of Tasmania Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.