Eleven degrees - eucalypts and climate change

Research by the National Environmental Research Program shows that most eucalypts grow best at an optimal temperature of 11°C. Above or below 11°C, eucalypts grow more slowly. Large trees in particular are affected most. As growth rates drop, trees will recover more slowly from bushfire and landscapes will be transformed for ever.

Below 11°C, the trees’ growth is slowed by a reduced metabolic rate. Above 11°C increased rates of evaporation and respiration result in reduced growth.

The Australian Conservation Foundation MyClimate Tool indicates that Drouin’s average daily maximum temperature from 1960-1990 was 19°C. The prediction for Drouin in 2050 is for the average daily maximum temperature to be 1·6°C hotter. Some areas within Australia will experience predicted increases of more than 4°C and the ‘winter’ season will virtually disappear.

The European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service just announced that Sunday 21^st July 2024 was the world’s hottest day since the 1940’s. DEECA and the CSIRO predict that Gippsland rainfall will continue to decline and that by 2050, Traralgon’s climate will be more like the current climate of Bairnsdale.

All types of eucalypt forest are under threat by rising global temperatures and reduced rainfall. Let’s hope that nature can adapt.