SYDNEY, Oct 2 — Moth swarms so thick they can blot out the stars are fluttering across Australia, heralding a migratory spectacle unseen since the creatures’ brush with extinction nearly 10 years ago.
The great migration of the Bogong moth was once a yearly feature of the Australian spring, the insects humming down the nation’s east coast in their billions as they searched for cooler climes.
But drought, pesticides and habitat destruction triggered an unprecedented collapse that began in 2017, eventually wiping out an estimated 99.5 per cent of the Bogong moth population.
While vast clouds of flying bugs might not be everyone’s cup of tea, scientists have been delighted to find that the Bogongs are back.
