Scientists have found out whether fir trees in Krasnoyarsk Pillars will be able to recover

Krasnoyarsk scientists have found that fir forests in the Krasnoyarsk Pillars National Park are able to recover from droughts and bark beetle infestations. The results of the study were published in the Siberian Ecological Journal.

Specialists from the Krasnoyarsk Scientific Center SB RAS, together with their colleagues, studied the reasons for the massive decline of Siberian fir in the mountain taiga forests of the Eastern Sayan. The study was carried out on the territory of the Krasnoyarsk Pillars, where in recent years the death of fir plantations and the spread of the Ussuri polygraph have been recorded.

Scientists have found that the main reason for the weakening of trees was not insects, but long-term water stress and abnormal droughts. Fir is highly dependent on soil and air moisture, so dry periods have made the trees more vulnerable.

After this, the weakened forests became a suitable food source for the bark beetle. Mass reproduction of the pest occurred as a result of the deterioration of the fir tree. The outbreak peaked between 2013 and 2018. Then the drying out affected more than 500 thousand hectares of fir forests, including the territory of the national park. At the same time, researchers note that the fir is not in danger of being destroyed.

“In recent, wetter years, the fir began to recover successfully. This indicates the absence of a previously identified threat of its extinction in the Stolby National Park,” noted Vyacheslav Kharuk, chief researcher at the Forest Institute of the SB RAS.

However, scientists warn that the problem may recur. According to climate forecasts, droughts will occur more frequently this century. This means that periods of weakening and partial restoration of fir forests can occur in cycles.