The National Park Service reports that during the 15 months from 2020 to 2021, an estimated 13-19% of the world’s sequoia tree population was killed or fatally injured. Scientists say the number is particularly staggering, given the number of people who died in the last century.
“I counted a lot of dead giant sequoia, and I don’t like it,” said Dickman, a forest ecologist who spent the fall of last year counting trees that fell due to wind fire. Told. At the end of the day, Mr. Dickman got into his car, put his head on his steering wheel and sobbed.
“It’s like counting dead people,” he added. “It devastated me.”
On Tuesday morning, officials said Mariposa Grove’s mature giant Sequoia “avoided serious damage so far” from the fire and said they were confident they could save them. ..
The cause of the Washburn fire is under investigation, but is most likely caused by Yosemite National Park director Siserie Muldoon. Said at a community meeting Monday night.
“As you know, there was no lightning that day,” Muldoon said.
The battle to save Sequoia is not only a battle against the relentless forces of global warming, but also a battle to save some of the ancient history and Western cultural heritage. Mariposa Grove — First protected by Abraham Lincoln in 1864 — “The roots of the entire national park system,” says Muldoon.
The image of the grizzly giant, taken by Carleton Watkins in 1861, was one of the first photographs of Yosemite sent to the east. According to the Metropolitan Museum of ArtAnd “Yosemite helped solidify the notion that it is a relic of Eden in North America.”