Sunday, June 17, 2007

Macrozamias - Fire - Regrowth

It seems like fire is a huge ecological force everywhere in Australia, and the Top End is no exception. You can imagine how the massive amounts of vegetation generated in the wet season can lead to huge fuel loads and intense fires. The question up here is the same as it is in Sydney where I'm from - how often should areas be burnt to maintain biodiversity? I don't know enough about this topic to discuss it intelligently, but it's definitely something that it's not easy to forget as smoke fills the air on a daily basis and roadside fires are a common sight.

One such roadside fire was burning a few weeks ago, and the flora has shown its ability to regenerate with great enthusiasm. The plants that really catch my eye are the cycads - Macrozamias. So without further ado, here is a series of photos illustrating the regrowth of these plants.







3 comments:

Evan said...

Beautiful shots. They are so lush and green. That green colour is always a great sites after a bushfire.

Evan

Unknown said...

Beautiful shots, Dave.

Somehow, ferns - or cycads - makes me think of fractal geometry. How they repeat patterns within patterns in the way they do. Well done to capture this so well.

Cheers,
Jostein

Rachel said...

I like Macrozamias, and these are really, very nice photos. I like the close up. The Aboriginal people used to eat the fruit, and that starts to bud around December. I like that after a fire, the raw colours of the earth starkly appear, like red epicormic buds and green Xanthorrea.