baumzaehlen - Primeval Forests & Their Trees

Sequoia National Park , California, USA

Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks together form a protected area of 3500 km ² . Additionally, there are several protected wilderness areas adjacent to the parks. Excluding some specific areas (like Giant Forest), d ispersed camping is allowed.

One of the best known and most exceptional places in the park is Giant Forest at approx. 2000 metres on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada. The largest Sequoiadendron giganteum (giant sequoia) and many of the other very largest individuals are located there ¹ , as are also many named dense Sequoiadendron groups. The giant size, the gnarled, glowing orange-red bark and the perfect cypress-like crown of the younger trees make S. giganteum a truly fascinating species. Even its cone is a work of art. The other most important tree species are Abies lowiana (California white fir), Abies magnifica (red fir), Pinus lambertiana (sugar pine) and Pinus jeffreyi (Jeffrey pine). Annual precipitation in Giant Forest is 1100 mm and average annual temperature 8.1°C ² . Summers are very dry and precipitation is almost exclusively in the form of winter snow.

These forests have been enormously stressed during recent years, which have been exceptionally dry and warm. It is feared that global warming might even result in the extinction of Sequoiadendron from its native range without rescue measures. ³

References:

1 The Largest Giant Sequoias by Trunk Volume . National Park Service.

2 Van Pelt & Franklin (2000): Influence of canopy structure on the understory environment in tall, old-growth, conifer forests . Canadian Journal of Forest Research 30 , 1231-1245.

3 http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/story/news/local/2015/07/05/will-need-rescue-sequoias/29744143/

Official site:

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