As farmers report high numbers of dying and distressed native trees and shrubs, a botanist is warning of the potential for "devastating" losses.
Farmer Andrew Smith noticed dying trees and wattle bushes after the driest June-July on record at his 810-hectare sheep property at Laura in South Australia's Mid North.
University of Melbourne botanist Gregory Moore said there were widespread reports of native species dying off this year.
"It's happening in quite a number of places, SA and Victoria, but also parts of Tasmania, so it's been a sort of reasonably common observation in the last maybe three to six months," Dr Moore said.
Dr Moore said while Australian natives were resilient and well-adapted to harsh conditions, recent seasonal changes led to more dying out.
"But you also get this slightly slower response where trees die over a period of weeks or months, literally from starvation of the root system.
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