Tresor Regional Nature Reserve
We went for a walk along dedicated trails through the Tresor Nature Reserve. It has an abandance of wildlife and we hoped to see frogs, butterflies, sloughs and a host of other fauna and flora.
Some of the odd fungi that were living on a dead branch.
The fungi and behind, a tree with a diametre of 1.5 metres.
Another big tree where the path was less than a metre wide for comparison.
One tree had fallen over and had opened a gap in the canopy. As it fell, it also damaged or knocked over several other trees as it was so big, making an even larger gap in the canopy than where it stood. There are many saplings and young trees but they fail to thrive in the dark environment created by the thick canopy. With a sudden huge gap in the canopy caused by the falling of the big tree, they all put on a growth sourt to outcompete each other to reach the sun.
Many trees put out buttresses to add to their stability. Even within the same species, some trees put out butresses and others don't, so the process is not clearly understood. ANother reason has been put forward that the butresses collect leaf litter from winds or floods, and as it decoposes, it leaches into the soil and becomes available for the roots of the tree to absorb.
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