Kangaroo Island was one Australia's most pristine wildlife environments, a safe haven for many native species that is free of many imported habitat-destroyers such as rabbits. But massive fires over the weekend wiped out the entire western end of the island, including its national park.

Australia's iconic koalas were too slow moving to escape the blaze. "I'm guessing well over 50 percent of our koala population's gone," said Samuel Mitchell, co-owner of the Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park.

Faster moving species like birds had a better chance, but now they have nowhere to live. "Glossy black cockatoos, their habitat's gone. The Kangaroo Island Dunnart, their habitat where they were only found, that's wiped out," said Mitchell.

Some valued imported species are also now at risk, like the Ligurian bee, now extinct in its native Italy.

Honey made by the bees is one of the island's key exports. Beekeepers warn their industry might not survive. "If we can't get them onto a resource where there are flowers, nectar and pollen for them, the queens will stop breeding and they'll just decline in numbers," said local beekeeper Peter Davis.

Unable to contain his grief, Davis insists islanders will fight to rebuild their island and its habitat. "We have a community spirit here on Kangaroo Island that is not burnable. It hurts, it hurts to see this, and I don't want anyone to go through this again."

It is not just Kangaroo Island, wildlife has been devastated across Australia.

Ecologists at the University of Sydney say nearly half a billion mammals, reptiles and birds may have already been killed by the fires in New South Wales, including more than a third of the state's koala population.

The fires have also devastated farmlands, leaving fields and roadsides lined with thousands of animals burned in the fires.

Farmers have had to cull badly injured sheep and cows, usually by shooting them in the head.

"I was having a little cry in the corner occasionally," said New South Wales farmer Andrew Reynolds, adding "I haven't been impacted you know from fire like that before. And it would be a terrible way to die."

Dead farm animals still line the roads to hard hit towns like Batlow on the Snowy River Highway despite hundreds having been removed since the weekend.

Australian soldiers have now been mobilized to help bury dead livestock.

It is predicted that more than two million sheep and eight million cows will perish if the fires do not abate.