Forest fire regrowth
| Title | Info |
|---|---|
| Source | Dan L. Perlman |
| Ecosystems | Forests |
| Forests | Temperate coniferous forest |
| Change over time | Disturbance; Succession |
| Succession | Secondary succession |
| Disturbance | Fire ecology |
| Lessons | Disturbance; Succession |
| Date | July 15, 2000 |
| Location | Pine,Colorado,USA,North America |
Regrowth, 30 days after the Hi Meadow fire, Colorado. This site was at the edge of the Hi Meadow fire and not as heavily burned as other regions. Here is an example of the regrowth that was occurring only 28 days after this site was burned.
The Hi Meadow fire burned nearly 11,000 acres (17 square miles or 44 square km) of Ponderosa pine forests, which, under natural conditions experience frequent low-intensity fires. However, like much of the US West, decades of fire suppression had allowed fuel loads of dead branches and undergrowth to build to dangerous levels, and this fire was hot, intense, and fast moving. The fire lasted about ten days in mid-June, 2000, destroyed 51 houses, and cost approximately $8 million in suppression and rehabilitation plus another $5-10 million in property loss, according to the US Forest Service. A single cigarette was determined to be the cause of the fire (investigators actually found the cigarette butt after the fire).
