Wildlife Wednesday - Birth of a forest
By Andy Ames
I find the successional process after a wildfire fascinating. As many of you may remember, in October of 2020, the East Troublesome fire roared through the old growth forest of Fern and Spruce Canyons. Parts of the areas hadn’t seen significant fire for hundreds of years and the results were shocking. Due to the variations in wind and terrain, the fire left a mosaic of habitat and ecological patches. Some parts were burned to bare ground, others practically untouched. Succession is a pattern of change after a disturbance. Stages proceed from pioneer to tall shrubs, to young forest, to mature forest, and ultimately to climax, or old growth, forest. Depending on the severity of the disturbance, the speed of change can vary greatly. Those first to return, pioneer plants, are often carried in by the wind and must be able to take root and grow quickly and withstand wind and sun exposure. Pioneer plants include grasses and wildflowers such as arnica and fireweed. If the fire is not too severe, seeds and root systems may survive. With fire, minerals stored in trees is returned to the soil creating a nutrient rich environment. Over time, with intense competition for sunlight and nutrients, ecosystems move from one stage of succession to the next. While the first year looked pretty harsh, Fern Canyon is now thriving with and filled with an abundance of flora and fauna. It was well worth the wait.
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