Pyrophile plants: What are, types and examples

When a fire is generated, the fire devastates with everything that is within its reach eliminating the biota present in the ecosystems. However, there are species of plants that support, resist and even need said disturbance, since some They are only able to germinate with the presence of fire. That is, their seeds germinate or their yolks sprout when the fire affects them and eliminates their teguments or protective scales. These are the so -called pyrophils or pyrophite plants.

Pyrophile plants have morphological and physiological characteristics adapted to the fire regime of the environment to which they are part. Let’s know some of them:

• They have the cortex of great thickness: Those species that develop a thick cortex are more likely to survive, and, in the long term, they can become dominant in the plant communities of which they are part.
• They have reserve organs: Some species have powerful reserve or storage organs that allow them to survive in times of stress.
• Certain plants present the roots at greater depths: Those roots located at a centimeter from the ground are mostly affected by the rapid heat transfer. On the contrary, those that are located at approximately five centimeters are not damaged.
• Others have gemiferous roots or underground organs: Species that have this type of structures are capable of rebuilding after fire, persisting thus in environments that are prone to fire.
• Many have seeds with adaptations against fire: Some are able to resist, others are stimulated and in fact some fruits, seed containers, can only be opened when exposed to high temperatures.
• They need some time: All these species need a minimum fire -free period to restore in the middle and perpetuate the species.

We recommend you read about the parts of the seed and its functions and parts of the fruit and its functions.

There are two strategies through which plant species are able to persist in environments prone to fires: evasion and resistance. Evasion It is associated with tissue isolation inside the soil, rapid growth and shorter life cycles, among other features. The perpetuation of the species that use this strategy occurs from the floor seed bank.

The resistance is associated with the modification of tissues and organs that are able to survive after being exposed to fire and recomposing the damaged parts. In turn, the protection of meristemas and the existence of an important yolk bank ensures the disturbance last.

Let us know some types of pyrophite or pyrophile plants:

Obliged Swelling Pyrophite Plants

There are plant species in which its aerial part is not able to resist in front of a fire, but its root systems are able to survive and quickly rebound, taking advantage of their competitors.

GERMINATORY PIOPHITS

In this case, both the aerial and the root system do not tolerate the fire, on the contrary, Your fruits and seeds can survivesince they do not lose their germination capacity. In fact, some fruits need the fire to disperse: high temperatures cause the fruit to “exploit” and disseminate the seeds reaching large distances.

Woody plants usually have more fire -resistant seeds than herbaceous plants.

Optional pyrophite plants

These species combine Both survival strategiesso in addition to being able to rebound, they have fruits that exploit at high temperatures improving the dispersion of their seeds.

Fire -resistant plants

There are plants that present Adaptive characteristics that allow them to resist fires in the ecosystem from which they are part, but that can be inefficient in other environments where the intensity and frequency of fires is different.

These characteristics may be related to those mentioned above such as the thickness of the cortex, the presence of roots at greater depth, among others.

Plants to which fire facilitates colonization

After a fire there are certain species of plants in which their aerial part, its roots, its fruits or seeds are damaged. However, they are capable of Scaresses from this disturbance. These are the species called pioneers in which their seeds are able to travel great distances and deposit at the site where the disturbance occurred, thus conquering the area.

We advise you to take a look at this other article on plants adaptations: types and examples.

Here we present some of the species that present affinity with fire. Within which they rebound from their basewe find:

• Eucalyptus: Eucalyptus genre
• NOTHOFAGUS ANTARCTICA: ñire
• Erica Multiflora: Winter heather

Within which their fruits and seeds survive:

• Cistus: Gender of the jaras
• Pinus halepensis: Aleppo pine
• Pinus Pinaster: Maritime pine
• Salvia Rosmarinus either Rosmarinus officinalis: rosemary

Within the Fire -resistant plants:

• Butia Yatay: Yatay palm
• Aspidosperma: Blanco Quebracho
• Araucaria Araucana: Pehuén
• Araucaria Angustifolia: Pino Paraná
• Quercus suber: cork oak

Now that you know what pyrophil plants, their types and examples are, we invite you to read this article about the consequences of forest fires.

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