One of the biggest losses in this year’s fires is the
region’s wildlife, says Douglas Morton, a remote-
sensing specialist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight
Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, who has studied fires
and deforestation across Brazil for two decades. Many
creatures thrive in the mosaic landscape of the
Pantanal, which includes flooded areas, grasslands,
lakes and forests. Scientists have so far documented
more than 580 species of bird, 271 of fish, 174
mammals, 131 reptiles and 57 amphibians in the
region . “My lasting memory from being in the
Pantanal is the cacophony of life,” Morton says. “To
me, that’s what’s so heart wrenching about seeing the
extent of fires.”
One of the biggest losses in this year’s fires is the region’s wildlife, says Douglas Morton, a remote- sensing specialist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, who has studied fires and deforestation across Brazil for two decades. Many creatures thrive in the mosaic landscape of the Pantanal, which includes flooded areas, grasslands, lakes and forests. Scientists have so far documented more than 580 species of bird, 271 of fish, 174 mammals, 131 reptiles and 57 amphibians in the region . “My lasting memory from being in the Pantanal is the cacophony of life,” Morton says. “To me, that’s what’s so heart wrenching about seeing the extent of fires.”