Fears of massive ‘forest collapse’ event as Western Australia’s record dry spell continues
After a record-breaking hot summer and significant dry spell, ecologists are warning large pockets of WA’s central to south-west coast are facing a potential forest collapse event, where trees and other smaller plants get so dry they die.
One expert has likened it to coral bleaching on land, and just like in the ocean, such an event can have serious implications on the wider ecosystem, impacting breeding habitats and potentially populations of entire species.
Murdoch University fire and plant ecologist Dr Joe Fontaine has been tracking and recording signs of tree and plant stress since early February, with numerous areas displaying large swathes of dry and dying flora, some of it already dead. [Continue reading…]