We Didn't Start the Fire

Trees encourage wildfires to protect their habitat

Conventional wisdom says fire is bad for trees. But according to a new study published in the December 2009 issue of the journal The American Naturalist, that is not always the case.

Some trees actually play a part in starting wildfires in order to engineer their own environment, increasing their abundance while keeping competitors out of their ecosystems.

"The research proposes a scenario for the development of savannas in landscapes that would otherwise become closed forests," according to a press release issued by the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis.

"Examples of savanna trees that facilitate frequent low-intensity fires include the longleaf pine and the south Florida slash pine, both of which frequently shed their needles, providing fodder for wildfires. The savanna tree initially invades grassland, but by facilitating frequent fires, it limits its own density and thus prevents conversion to a forest."

GET INVOLVED

• Support Trees for the Future, a non-profit organization that has been helping communities around the world plant trees
• Download the Greenpeace Tissue Guide so you can purchase tissue and toilet paper that is manufactured from recycled paper -- not old growth forests

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image: Longleaf pine needles from a 30m specimen near Tallahassee, Florida (credit: Rasbak)