Oct 16, 2026 · 12 min · 9 segments
From the Summary Podcast - Swarms of Bogong moths have descended on Australia’s East Coast in numbers not seen for years, prompting questions about their endangered status and the health of local…
Marissa ParrottGuest
Josh BryantHost
Marnie OggGuest
Well, the Bogong moths are such an amazing species, and this is how nature should be.
People remember from the past them being in such big numbers that they would block out the stars and the moon as they went overhead, and then their numbers have been lower more recently.
So seeing their numbers return to such healthy sizes is a real positive for what is an endangered species.
We're not sure why their numbers are so much better this year, and there are quite a few potential reasons.
One is that following their collapse of 99.5% in 2017 and 2018, their numbers have been growing every year since then on our moth tracker website.
So hopefully that means that as those numbers grow, they can m- reach that critical mass and become healthy again.
In some areas like New South Wales and the ACT, they've had much more favorable weather patterns and rain, so that's definitely helping on the southeast coast.
But in some areas like Western Victoria, South Australia, and others, they are still in drought, so the numbers are lower there, and we're probably seeing them because of their migration route as well.
They're coming through areas down the southeast coast in particular where there are more people, so more people are getting to see them as they make their epic migration.
Well, the Bogong moths are such an amazing species, and this is how nature should be.
People remember from the past them being in such big numbers that they would block out the stars and the moon as they went overhead, and then their numbers have been lower more recently.
So seeing their numbers return to such healthy sizes is a real positive for what is an endangered species.
We're not sure why their numbers are so much better this year, and there are quite a few potential reasons.
One is that following their collapse of 99.5% in 2017 and 2018, their numbers have been growing every year since then on our moth tracker website.
So hopefully that means that as those numbers grow, they can m- reach that critical mass and become healthy again.
In some areas like New South Wales and the ACT, they've had much more favorable weather patterns and rain, so that's definitely helping on the southeast coast.
But in some areas like Western Victoria, South Australia, and others, they are still in drought, so the numbers are lower there, and we're probably seeing them because of their migration route as well.
They're coming through areas down the southeast coast in particular where there are more people, so more people are getting to see them as they make their epic migration.
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