The Acadian Forest: Endangered!

The World Wildlife Fund rates the Acadian Forest among the most endangered in North America. Over three hundred years of logging and land clearing has drastically reduced and changed the native forests of this region. Today, only a tiny fraction of old growth Acadian Forest remains in Nova Scotia.

Our Acadian Forest has Old Roots

The Acadian Forest is ancient; it has been developing for over 10,000 years, since the last Ice Age. Many of our trees naturally reach ages ranging from 200 to more than 400 years old. These include towering white pines, majestic red spruce, blazing sugar maples, solid yellow birch, and the grandmother of them all, the hemlock – which can live to be 800 years old. The Acadian Forest is made up of trees of all ages, with younger trees poised to replace dying older ones.

Acadian Forest — More than just trees

From protecting against drought and flood to creating the air we breathe, mature Acadian forests are crucial to many living things. Hundreds of animals and plants, from orchids and lichens, to insects, salamanders, goshawks and bears, depend on large trees and old forests. Together, they create a healthy diverse forest, with many different habitats for plants and animals.

Large ancient trees are a major part of mature Acadian forests, along with a variety of trees of different sizes and ages. When old trees die and fall over, gaps created in the forest canopy allow sunlight to stream through to the forest floor, allowing tree seedlings to grow up. This ‘gap’ growth is how the old forests of Nova Scotia renew themselves. Some dead and dying trees stay standing, their inner cavities providing shelter for birds and animals from woodpeckers to wood ducks, from bats to bears.

Acadian forests reduce the impacts of storms, floods, drought, and insect attacks. Trees shade streams and brooks, keeping water cool, and forest soils store water, reducing the effects of droughts. Tree roots and fallen tree trunks slow down runoff and keep stream banks from eroding, and forest canopies intercept rain and keep it from washing soil away.

The Acadian Forest resists insects and disease because of its diversity of trees types and ages. In contrast, softwood tree farms, with extensive areas of one tree species, can be devastated by pests.

Read some startling statistics about forestry in this region!