Have you noticed the summers getting smokier? If you’ve found yourself coughing more, seeing the sky tinged with an eerie orange, or even just catching the faint scent of burning in the air, you’re not alone. We all know that this smoke isn’t great for our human lungs, but have you ever stopped to wonder how it might impact our wildlife?
Fire has always been a critical component of the Earth’s natural systems. Countless species and entire ecosystems, such as prairies, savannahs, and pine barrens, would not exist without it. Indigenous peoples have long understood this, using fire to enhance natural systems and produce food. However, this restorative relationship between fire and the environment has changed dramatically in recent decades.
For example, in 2023, Alberta, Canada, was hit by over 650 wildfires, burning an area 150 times larger than the total area burned in the previous five years—over just a few short months. The smoke from these fires traveled thousands of miles, casting a hazy pall over cities and countryside alike. These blazes were not the first, nor the last, of this century’s massive megafires.
These unprecedented large wildfires aren’t just a series of unlucky natural disasters; they’re a symptom of much bigger problems: climate change, and poor land management choices. Our planet’s average global temperature is rising, and that’s leading to more frequent and more intense wildfires. This, coupled with historically mismanaged fire—including the suppression of fire in places where its presence is crucial for ecosystem functioning—has caused a shift from fire as a primarily regenerative power, to an unnaturally destructive force. Some scientists even say we might be entering a new epoch, the ‘Pyrocene’, where these large-scale megafires become a normal, devastating feature of our world.
How Does Wildfire Smoke Affect Wildlife? • The National Wildlife Federation Blog
Fire has always been a critical component of the Earth’s natural systems. Countless species and entire ecosystems, such as prairies, savannahs, and pine barrens, would not exist without it. Indigenous peoples have long understood this, using fire to enhance natural systems and produce food. However, this restorative relationship between fire and the environment has changed dramatically in recent decades.
For example, in 2023, Alberta, Canada, was hit by over 650 wildfires, burning an area 150 times larger than the total area burned in the previous five years—over just a few short months. The smoke from these fires traveled thousands of miles, casting a hazy pall over cities and countryside alike. These blazes were not the first, nor the last, of this century’s massive megafires.
These unprecedented large wildfires aren’t just a series of unlucky natural disasters; they’re a symptom of much bigger problems: climate change, and poor land management choices. Our planet’s average global temperature is rising, and that’s leading to more frequent and more intense wildfires. This, coupled with historically mismanaged fire—including the suppression of fire in places where its presence is crucial for ecosystem functioning—has caused a shift from fire as a primarily regenerative power, to an unnaturally destructive force. Some scientists even say we might be entering a new epoch, the ‘Pyrocene’, where these large-scale megafires become a normal, devastating feature of our world.
How Does Wildfire Smoke Affect Wildlife? • The National Wildlife Federation Blog