A series of wildfires is turning the world’s largest tropical wetland into an open-air inferno. Home to over 3,500 plant species, more than 600 bird species, 124 mammals, 80 reptiles, 60 amphibians, and 260 freshwater fish species, Brazil’s Pantanal is burning as never before recorded in history.
June came to an end with 2,639 fire outbreaks, the highest number since the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) began monitoring fires in 1998. So far, 2024 has seen over 3,538 fire points detected by the agency. The fires have already consumed at least 700,000 hectares (1.7 million acres), causing unimaginable devastation to the biome’s flora and fauna.
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A series of wildfires is turning the world’s largest tropical wetland into an open-air inferno. Home to over 3,500 plant species, more than 600 bird species, 124 mammals, 80 reptiles, 60 amphibians, and 260 freshwater fish species, Brazil’s Pantanal is burning as never before recorded in history.
June came to an end with 2,639 fire outbreaks, the highest number since the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) began monitoring fires in 1998. So far, 2024 has seen over 3,538 fire points detected by the agency. The fires have already consumed at least 700,000 hectares (1.7 million acres), causing unimaginable devastation to the biome’s flora and fauna.