The Boreal

The Boreal Forest, the primeval North Woods, the Great Northern Forest; what does climate change mean to the world’s largest forest Biome?

The Boreal Forest stretches across Canada, Scandinavia, and Russia. It is the world’s largest continuous forest biome and thus, geographically, the largest carbon absorber. When summer arrives, the vast forest absorbs more CO2 than humans emit, temporarily reducing the greenhouse gas concentration as the giant green lungs of mother earth take in her seasonal breath. If the southern hemisphere had a forest as big, we would not have a global warming problem.

Here in the UP we have some forest dominated by the Boreal, but our forest is usually a mix of it and the Eastern Deciduous Forest. I would be remiss not to mention we have a beautiful old growth forest in the Porcupine Mountains where we can find trees from both biomes. 

But the real Boreal is north of us in Canada. Maine’s boreal forest and Minnesota’s boreal forest in the northeast corner of Minnesota, called the Arrowhead, contain most of what we call the Boreal in the lower 48.  The Arrowhead, geologically, is dominated by the Canadian Shield. It is an area repeatedly scoured by giant ice sheets carving out thousands of depressions giving the area many lakes. The geology, with a cool wet climate, is the perfect condition for the Boreal.

Unfortunately, the cool wet conditions are warming and drying. Doctor Lee Frelich, director of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Forest Ecology, warns us by the year 2100 much of this forest will be in retreat. The forest is now dominated by Jack Pine, Red Pine, Black Spruce, Balsam Fir, Balsam Poplar, Paper Birch, White Spruce, Tamarack, and some Aspen. These boreal forest trees will either be decimated by fire or will be unable to support themselves on the thin drying soil. Additionally forest pests, like borers and beetles, will proliferate because the warming winters will no longer kill them. They will destroy what fire and dehydration misses.

Eventually, as we warm further, the land will be savannah grassland if not eventually a biome even dryer.

The Moose here and in the Arrowhead are goners. The massive animal is built to endure cold not heat. If the heat does not get them, the winter ticks will. In fact, this is already happening in Minnesota and Maine. Years ago, before this was common knowledge, I had hunter friends report shooting a moose they could not harvest. The animal was covered by ticks and was diseased from them. Their meat rotten even as the animal still walked.

The great beasts get covered by winter ticks and in an effort to rid themselves of the insect scourge, they rub off the ticks taking with the ticks their insulative fur. The pests are gone but the “Ghost Moose”, white without their dark fur, die from exposure. 

The Loon will survive, but we will not hear its iconic and haunting call. It will nest in Canada.

Fishermen who prefer trout, walleye and northern pike will have to find solace in bass, sunfish, and bullheads.

The Superior National Forest manages the last of Minnesota’s boreal forest. Inside of the Superior National Forest is the Boundary Waters Canoe Area from which I just returned. Forty years ago, my friends and I canoed our heavy aluminum canoes in to enjoy the wilderness. Within a portage or two we had the lakes to ourselves. Today, outfitters have near featherweight Kevlar canoes. On our trip we did six portages and we still routinely met happy voyageurs.

On our trip we paddled from one pristine lake to another eventually camping on rocky shores shaded by the Boreal canopy. Singing birds woke us in the morning. We watched trumpeter swans, bald eagles, ducks, mergansers, mink, and beaver. We listened to loons call and wolves howl. We ate Walleye and Northern every night. Before sliding into our sleeping bags we drank hot tea as we reflected on our day of paddling while purple sunsets reflected off a mirror calm lake.

People love the BWCA. It is arguably the most frequented, and enjoyed, wilderness area in the world! 

When the Boreal is gone, that is if we do not intervene to stop the warming of the earth, the biggest losers will be us.

Note: If you wish to enjoy the wilderness experience via canoe, we have a small pristine canoe wilderness less than an hour east of Wakefield called Sylvania. It is the best place to get started as the portages are easy and the scenery beautiful. If you do not have your own gear, Sylvania Outfitters will rent the gear to you.  Then, if you enjoy our local great outdoors and you get the itch to go big there are outfitters serving the BWCA in Minnesota and the Quetico in Ontario. 

Advice: On our last trip the mosquitoes were not bad. But, we always take head nets and mosquito repellent just in case. 

Please remember, if it is your desire future generations have our opportunities, we must act now by joining climate organizations and voting for politicians with the moral courage to act to save our climate.