The red needles of a tree killed in a mountain pine beetle attack can ignite up to three times faster than the green needles of a healthy tree, new research into the pine beetle epidemic has found.Hey, maybe we should give Christmas trees water, or something, to keep them from getting crispy and flammable!
The findings by U.S. Forest Service ecologist Matt Jolly are being used by fellow ecologist Russ Parsons to develop a new model that will eventually aid firefighters who battle blazes in the tens of millions of acres from Canada to Colorado where forest canopies have turned from green to red from the beetle outbreak.
OK, the problem here is the press, not the science. The scientists are reporting that they have improved models to predict movement of fire in forests devastated by beetles, but the press can only comprehend simple ideas, and think "Dead Trees Burn Fast" is a novel idea.
Seen at Watts Up With That.
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