UniServe Science

Virtual Field Trip - Royal National Park and Heathcote National Park

Prepared by UniServe Science

Regeneration of Australian bushland following a bushfire

The images on this page were taken in and near Royal National Park and Heathcote National Park, south of Sydney in August 2002, about 8 months after the Black Christmas bushfires (2001/2). The photographs have been selected to illustrate adaptations of Australian flora to bushfires.

Click on the thumbnail image to display an enlarged image.

On a ridge near the old Princes Highway near Waterfall, new epicormic shoots provide a green covering to the fire blackened trunk and branches of this eucalypt A row of eucalypts growing along Lawrence Hargraves Drive near Helensburgh, south of Sydney Thick new growth in the crown of eucalypts - near northern entrance to Royal National Park Close up of the new growth A single epicormic shoot on the trunk of a eucalyptus tree
Top row
Eucalypt trees showing regeneration
due to the growth of dormant
(or epicormic) shoots		 Unburnt bush near northern entrance to Royal National Park Trees along the old Pacific Highway escaped the fire Middle row
Compare the trees
above with ones
that escaped
the 2001/2
bushfires
Bottom row
New growth from
epicormic shoots
on a banksia and
an angophora		 Banksia with new growth from epicormic shoots Angophora with new growth from epicormic shoots Right
Thick woody seed pods of the
hakea open after the heat
of the bushfire		 Hakea seed pods open after the heat of the fire
To find out more about the adaptations of Australian native flora to fire, explore the following links
For further information contact
Kaye Placing

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