Fire crews have conducted a record number of burn-offs this year on Fraser Island off south-east Queensland after January's floods.
The Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service says more than 30,000 hectares has been burnt this year, with an increase in vegetation growth after the floods.
Ecologist Greg Baxter from the University of Queensland says burn-offs are important on the island.
"The primary tool that is employed everywhere for managing fires is to burn to fuel before the fire season," he said.
"I can't see another way to do it.
"[Fraser Island's] very fire prone - over the last 200,000 years at least the vegetation has become very fire prone and it needs fire to regenerate in lots of circumstances.
"Fire is a very power influence on the composition of the vegetation and following on from that the animal communities that live in them."
© ABC 2013
16:01 EDT South-east Queensland is experiencing an autumn scorcher today as hot air moves in from long-suffering western regions.