2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
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Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#2If you tour Muir Woods, many redwoods feature fire damage from fires ages ago.
Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#3If you tour Muir Woods, many redwoods feature fire damage from fires ages ago.
Redwoods are adapted to fire, yes, but surely there's some limit to how much they can take. Thankfully it seems this event may have been below that limit.
Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#4“Withstand” is a funny word. Forests need fire. Fire is destructive to the organs (flora and fauna) but beneficial to the organism (a forest).
I’m thinking of all of the sequoia seeds, now germinated from the fire[1], that will sprout next year into full sunlight that hasn’t touched the forest floor in hundreds of years.
It is sad though that it’s also destructive to the lives of so many people. May everyone find safety who is now in harm’s way.
1. https://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/why-the-giant-sequoia-n...
Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#5Redwoods not only survive the fires, they tend to proliferate afterwards. After lesser trees have been cleared out by the fires, redwood seedlings take root.
Redwoods also thrive in low rain areas that are prone to fog because they benefit from the fog in a way that other trees do not.
I once suggested redwoods as an alternate or additional metaphor for giftedness re Stephanie Tolan's "Is it a cheetah?"
https://www.stephanietolan.com/is_it_a_cheetah.htm
My idea didn't get any traction, but I think we need more mental models than the "cheetah" one because that not only implicitly suggests that gifted kids are always fast, it also implicitly suggests that they are dangerous predators. While it is true that intelligence can make you a danger, I would like to see myriad metaphors proliferate and redwoods are at the top of my list as a metaphor I would like to see proliferate.
Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#6I guess 2000 is a long time biologically and I suppose those trees have seen bad fires before climate change really kicked off.
I'm sure there were very dry and warm periods before this too.
Even thought we might think we're dominating nature, I'm sure it has a few tricks up it's sleeve yet.
Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#7I was just at Big Basin Headquarters on August 17th for a hike and some trails were closed due to fire then.
It's hard to believe that's all gone but I am really happy the huge ancient trees survived. It's one of my favorite places in the world.
I did the skyline to the sea trail with my wife a few years ago and it was fantastic. The redwoods are really incredible.
An article about their fire resistance: https://sempervirens.org/redwoods-and-wildfires/
A donation link to the Sempervirens Fund which helps protect these incredible trees: https://secure.sempervirens.org/onlineactions/l2kebl2BfkqzEy...
Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#8A hundred miles north of this fire, at the Armstrong Redwood State Park, there is another lightning-caused wildfire that is burning through an old growth grove.
That fire is burning through the forest floor only, and is significantly less dangerous. The 1400-year-old Armstrong tree, and park buildings, have been protected, while the fire is free to burn through the surrounding undergrowth. Everyone involved seems to suggest that the fire is a net positive for the forest, and an overdue ecological renewal.
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/news/flames-yet-to-rea...
While it's definitely sad to see historic buildings destroyed, not to mention hundreds of homes, I look forward to returning to Big Basin over the next few years to witness this renewal first-hand.
Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#9“Withstand” is a funny word. Forests need fire. Fire is destructive to the organs (flora and fauna) but beneficial to the organism (a forest). I’m thinking of all of the sequoia seeds, now germinated from the fire[1], that will sprout next year into full sunlight that hasn’t touched the forest floor in hundreds of years. It is sad though that it’s also destructive to the lives of so many people. May everyone find saf…
> It is sad though that it’s also destructive to the lives of so many people.
Eh, maybe it's just me but I've always felt worse for the animals than the people.
Re: 2,000-year-old redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park
#10“Withstand” is a funny word. Forests need fire. Fire is destructive to the organs (flora and fauna) but beneficial to the organism (a forest). I’m thinking of all of the sequoia seeds, now germinated from the fire[1], that will sprout next year into full sunlight that hasn’t touched the forest floor in hundreds of years. It is sad though that it’s also destructive to the lives of so many people. May everyone find saf…
There shouldn’t be any Sequoia seeds in the Basin. They’re much further inland.