Drought and fire threaten WA’s famous spring wildflowers

Fontaine, J.B.ORCID: 0000-0002-6515-7864 and Enright, N.J.ORCID: 0000-0003-2979-4505 (2014) Drought and fire threaten WA’s famous spring wildflowers. The Conversation, 4 September 2014 .

Abstract

Spring has sprung. This time of year is peak wildflower season in the area around Perth, and the display is a major tourism draw card. People flock to places like Lesueur National Park and the Eneabba sandplain in search of stunning displays of flowers and vistas that change from yellow to white to pink over the spring months.

But our new research, published in the Journal of Ecology, shows that the region’s rapidly drying climate is making it more difficult for these beautiful landscapes to withstand bushfires, and some wildflower species may die out entirely.

Item Type:	Non-refereed Article
Murdoch Affiliation(s):	School of Environmental and Life Sciences
Publisher:	The Conversation Media Group
Copyright:	The Author
Publisher's Website:	http://theconversation.com/au
URI:	http://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/29735

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