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Die the biggest trees on the planet
Large trees 100-300 years massively dry — and this phenomenon is common to many forests, savannas, parks and cities, say environmentalists.
"It's a very very disturbing trend. We are talking about the loss of the largest living organisms on the planet, of organisms that play a key role in regulating and enriching our world," says Professor bill Laurence of James cook University from Australia, AFP reports.
Large old trees play an important role in ecology, writing in his study of bill Lawrence and his colleagues Jerry Franklin from the University of Washington, USA, and David Lindenmayer from the Australian national University. In such trees there are up to 30% of birds and insects of the individual ecosystems. Green giants retain large amounts of carbon and recycle nutrients from the soil, and create conditions for life of living beings and affect the landscape and the local climate, the researchers said.
In addition, trees of a certain age provide food for most of the living beings residing nearby. With the death of green giants under threat of extinction and are living on their species.
To notice a disturbing trend has been Professor David Lindenmayer in the course of studying the records of forestry of Sweden of the nineteenth century. The scientist compared these data with their own experiences — 30 years, he studied the life of the forests of Australia and came to the conclusion that in our days the old trees are dying 10 times faster than normal.
A group of researchers believes that green giants are disappearing for many reasons. The extinction of the trees cause and practice of land clearing, and agricultural work in the surrounding territories, artificial changes in the regime of fires, logging, insects and rapid climate change, says Professor Jerry Franklin.
Environmentalists argue that the global loss of big trees such tragedies that befell the world's largest mammals: elephants, rhinos, tigers and whales, species that are also rapidly declining.
Source: /users/104
"It's a very very disturbing trend. We are talking about the loss of the largest living organisms on the planet, of organisms that play a key role in regulating and enriching our world," says Professor bill Laurence of James cook University from Australia, AFP reports.
Large old trees play an important role in ecology, writing in his study of bill Lawrence and his colleagues Jerry Franklin from the University of Washington, USA, and David Lindenmayer from the Australian national University. In such trees there are up to 30% of birds and insects of the individual ecosystems. Green giants retain large amounts of carbon and recycle nutrients from the soil, and create conditions for life of living beings and affect the landscape and the local climate, the researchers said.
In addition, trees of a certain age provide food for most of the living beings residing nearby. With the death of green giants under threat of extinction and are living on their species.
To notice a disturbing trend has been Professor David Lindenmayer in the course of studying the records of forestry of Sweden of the nineteenth century. The scientist compared these data with their own experiences — 30 years, he studied the life of the forests of Australia and came to the conclusion that in our days the old trees are dying 10 times faster than normal.
A group of researchers believes that green giants are disappearing for many reasons. The extinction of the trees cause and practice of land clearing, and agricultural work in the surrounding territories, artificial changes in the regime of fires, logging, insects and rapid climate change, says Professor Jerry Franklin.
Environmentalists argue that the global loss of big trees such tragedies that befell the world's largest mammals: elephants, rhinos, tigers and whales, species that are also rapidly declining.
Source: /users/104
