These Trees Are Spreading North in Alaska. That’s Not Good

Roman and Brad hired a single-engine bush plane to fly out of the northwest coast of Alaska. The only way to get them deep in the tundra was by hiking for five days.

On the fourth day of that hike, the pair was walking along a caribou trail. His friend had seen a bear. There was a stand of trees. The plants were chest high and well formed. They were bad news because they weren't where they should be. shrubs, grasses, and grass-like sedges are favored in this Alaskan tundra. Even if the trees' seeds fly north, the growing season is too short for them to get a foothold.

It was confirmed by the journey that the shadows in the satellite images were from out of place trees. Plants are being brought down in the far north because of the warm climate, and more vegetation is moving towards the pole. As we headed east, we found more and more trees, until we found a savanna of white spruce trees. It was perhaps the most exciting hike I have ever been on.

Climate damage can be seen on the dashboard, both for the region and the world as a whole. The proliferation of shrubs is one thing, but they are not the only thing. The climate has changed when you see trees grow. It's not like a decade of weather. 30 years of climate has created new trees in new places.

Dial and his colleagues put hard numbers on what they discovered in the Alaskan tundra in a journal. In what should be one of the most inhospitable places on the planet for a tree, the population is moving at a faster rate than any other conifer treeline.