Seagull Lake Island Fire: Photo Courtesy of Carol DeSain
Two months ago I spent a week canoeing, portaging, and camping in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. I visited many lakes, including Seagull Lake at the end of the Gunflint Trail. Today, the landscape of some of the lakes I visited is changing dramatically as fires move through the area. The Cavity Lake Fire is presently spanning about 22,000 acres. It is hard for me to imagine that some of the serene forests I awed at and some of the campsites I relaxed at are now merely ashes.
The wildfires in northern Minnesota got me thinking about the science behind forest fires. Forest fires (also called wildfires) are a natural occurrence. Lightning is the most common natural cause of the fires. Human carelessness and arson are unnatural causes. Droughts in the summer and high winds in the fall make areas more susceptible to forest fires.
The Cavity Lake Fire is a result of lightning. The drought conditions have created a dry wooded environment. Anyone who has a fireplace knows that the driest wood burns the best.
Also, this fire is moving through an area full of debris left over from a blowdown from a storm in 1999. There is unfortunately plenty of fuel to keep this fire going.
Most of the damage from this fire may not be apparent until it's over. The after effects of forest fires can be even more harmful than the fires themselves. Erosion, introduction of invasive species, landslides, and changes in water quality are a few of these negative outcomes.
While wildfires sound like a horrible catastrophe, they can actually be beneficial for an ecosystem. Periodic fires can help the overall health of the forest. They are important for nutrient cycling, improving habitats, and maintaining biodiversity.
It can actually be more harmful to prevent wildfires than to let them happen naturally. Suppression can lead to more dangerous and hotter fires, because the time without fires allows more time for debris to accumulate.
I am interested in revisiting Seagull Lake to see how the fire has altered the ecosystem I remember. From the photos, I can see it beginning to change.
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