Researchers discovered that intense cyclones helped to recover the forests in the Pacific Island of Tanna in Vanuatu amidst the growing threats of climate change and global warming.
Forests are crucial for the environment and wildlife, providing essential food sources and supplies for communities and animals. As a result, forest protection is essential to save species from decline and population loss.
However, forests are no stranger to threats, including the following:
- pollution
- climate change
- extreme weather events
- deforestation
- urbanization
The growing threats to the world's forests can lead to widespread damage to life, biodiversity, and the economy.
For instance, extreme weather events pose a devastating threat to forests. While trees protect from flooding and storms, intense cyclones can damage trees and communities.
Intense Cyclones Help Trees in Pacific Islands
Hawaii stormy conditions. Although forests can become resilient to climate change effects, intense impacts of global warming could become disastrous to trees and communities.
In a recent report, researchers discovered that powerful cyclones assisted in the remarkable recovery of the forests on the Pacific island. The research findings were published in Science of the Total Environment.
Understanding tree resilience and recovery is essential to save trees from climate change effects, and offer new insights into conservation and protection efforts.
Researchers documented the ways how forests managed to recover due to the powerful cyclones that impacted parts of the Pacific island of Tanna in Vanuatu. One of the devastating cyclones was the Cyclone Pam, which unleashed strong weather conditions in the Pacific island.
In an effort, the study analyzed the recovery of forests affected in the said areas. The study was conducted together with the following:
- Vanuatu Cultural Center and Vanuatu Department of Forestry
- University of the South Pacific
- New York Botanical Garden (NYBG)
Also Read: US Pacific Northwest Forests Suffer from Climate Change Effects, Growth Decline, New Report Warns
Frequency of Cyclones and Preparedness
Analyzing the post-cyclone recovery will give new ideas for conservation efforts amidst the growing threats of global warming and intensifying cyclones.
"Compared to cyclones on other Pacific Islands, Pam caused relatively low levels of severe damage to Tanna's trees. In addition, there was high resprouting, widespread recruitment of most tree species present, and basically no spread of invasive species," UH MÄnoa School of Life Sciences Professor Tamara Ticktin said, as quoted in a UH Hawaii news. Professor Ticktin is also a lead author on the paper.
In addition to the findings, the researchers explained that the frequency of cyclones made the species in the area more resilient against changing climate conditions. The promotion of tree diversity allowed the forests to adapt and withstand the threats of severe to devastating storms.
"This highlights the key role of forest management in building resilience to climate change. "As the world comes to grips with more frequent extreme weather events, our work suggests that the right kind of human interaction can play a significant role in the survival of forests," Gregory M. Plunkett, Ph.D. said, who is also the study senior author, as quoted in the same report.
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