They survived wildfires. But something else is killing Greece's iconic fir forests

"In the southern Peloponnese, the Greek fir is a towering presence. The deep green, slow-growing conifers have long defined the region's high-altitude forests, thriving in the mountains and rocky soils. For generations they have been one of the country's hardier species, unusually capable of withstanding drought, insects and the wildfires that periodically sweep through Mediterranean ecosystems. These Greek forests have lived with fire for as long as anyone can remember."

"So when Dimitrios Avtzis, a senior researcher at the Forest Research Institute (FRI) of Elgo-Dimitra, was dispatched to document the aftermath of a spring blaze in the region, nothing about the assignment seemed exceptional. He had walked into countless burnt landscapes, tracking the expected pockets of mortality, as well as the trees that survived their scorching. Hardy slow-growing conifers usually thrive in the Peloponnese mountains. This time, however, something felt wrong almost immediately."

"The scale of the damage was profound Dimitrios Avtzis There were hundreds upon hundreds of hectares worth of lost trees, he says not just those lost in the fire itself, but large patches dead and dying among the green, where the flames had not reached them. In the Peloponnese mountains, whole stretches of green forest are turning orange, as the long-lived fir trees dry up and die."

Greek firs dominate high-altitude forests in the southern Peloponnese and are normally hardy against drought, insects and wildfires. A spring inspection revealed extensive tree mortality far beyond burned zones, with large patches dead or dying among still-green stands. Whole stretches of forest are turning orange as long-lived firs dry up and die. The level of destruction exceeds previous observations and prompted immediate alerts to environmental authorities. Climate breakdown is driving ecosystems toward novel, more damaging conditions that can cause mortality independent of direct fire impacts.

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