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Friends of the Environment Abaco, Bahamas | ||||||
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The Fire Climax Community- How Do They Survive | ||
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The plants and animal that live and thrive in the Abaco Pine Forest have adapted their lifestyle in order to survive the frequent forest fires that occur in their Fire Climax community. The mature pine trees have developed a thick bark with volatile resins in the bark that explode when heated and thus extinguishing small fires that start on the bark, the pine needles create ground cover and protect the fallen buds from a fires heat, high tree top crowns allow the heat from fires to escape and shrubs and herbs have adapted and can re-sprout quickly. |  | ||||||||||||||
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Fire also prepares the soil beds for the seedling to grown by clearing the area and allowing light to get in. It also serves as a stimulant to growth and cleansing of sorts. Animals have adjusted their habitats to survive the fires. The Abaco Parrot species is a prime example, it makes it's nest in limestone cavities under the floor of the pine forest, protecting their nests from the surface forest fires above. | |||||||||||||||
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It is important to note that too many forest fires, too close together can be more harmful than helpful. Too many fires, without enough recovery and re-growth time in-between can cause the understory to grow back as grasses and thus a lack of food for the birds that inhabit the pine forest. | |||||||||||||||
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Too few fires can also be damaging. This causes animals and plants to be displaced by competitive plants and animals. Over growth squeezes out the natural habitat and replaces it with habitat foreign to existing plants and animals. This causes the animals to go elsewhere in search of food. | |||||||||||||||
Although fire in natures order of things is fine, human fires should be prescribed and controlled to ensure that the area being burned is managed properly. Low intensity fires cleanse the forest, high intensity fires destroy the forest and all that live within it. | |||||||||||||||
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There should be a balance in nature to ensure that the pine forest ecosystem stays in check and all that live within her boundaries remain safe and well fed. | |||||||||||||||
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