Camera: Nikon F90     Lens: Nikkor F-AF 3.5-4.5/28-70mm     Film: Agfa RS100     Date: 23.08.1994

Recovering from a forest fire, Eagle Plains, Dempster Hwy, Yukon

For millennia, black spruces have been a common presence across Arctic forests in North America, but they are now being threatened by more frequent and severe wildfires. Like many other trees in these forests, the spruce - an evergreen conifer - depends on fire for regeneration. As fire moves across the landscape, the trees’ cones, which are covered in a waxy coat, heat up and slowly open to release their seeds onto the new seedbed. But the cumulative effects of a drier, warming climate plus increased fire activity is pushing black spruce to the point that it's not able to maintain dominance on the landscape. More deciduous trees, like birch, poplar and aspen are now growing in the areas affected by wild fires.