Site 1.11 Coniferous shrubbery and Sclerophyll heath after fire
- Backhouse Tarn.
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Grid Reference E4641 S52758. Altitude 1080m.
Site Description: Fire has a devastating effect on alpine vegetation,
as can be seen in the dramatic fire scar (left) and the dead Pencil Pine
stags (right) more than 30 years later. Recovery is slow because
the alpine vegetation is poorly adapted to fire, soil is thin and subject
to erosion after fire, and growth rates of alpine vegetation (especially
the gymnosperms) is very slow.
