Notícias da sexta extinção: freixo, crónica de uma morte anunciada

Estudos anunciam a extinção do freixo (Fraxinus angustifolia). Vítima de um besouro e de fungos que conquistam novos espaços, o freixo tem agora a sua morte anunciada. As pragas de novas espécies invasoras, aos poucos, vão contribuindo para mudar a paisagem de um novo mundo que se adivinha mais quente e biologicamente mais pobre. Por fim sobrarão os eucaliptos e os pinheiros bravos.

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Segundo se noticia aqui no The Guardian:

Almost all the ash trees in the UK and across Europe are likely to be wiped out by a “double whammy” of a bright green borer beetle and the fungus that causes ash dieback, according to a comprehensive new academic analysis.

The loss of the ash, one of the most abundant tree species in the UK, would mean losing even more trees than the 15 million elms killed by Dutch elm disease in the 1970s. Ash is the most common hedgerow tree, with 60,000 miles of tree lines. It is the second most common tree in woodland, after the oak, and there are many ash trees in towns and cities.

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Dois interessantes sites para saber mais sobre esta árvore:

Árvores e arbustos de Portugal

Florestar

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O fim de uma árvore não é só o fim de uma árvore. Morre sempre algo mais quando ela desaparece.

“If the ash went, the British countryside would never look the same again,” Thomas said. Beyond the loss of the trees themselves, the species is associated with over 1,000 species of animals, birds and plants. In particular, over a 100 species of lichens, fungi and insects would decline or become extinct if the ash was gone.