To look at fires in the Guadalupes please visit our Fire Photo Gallery. Not so long ago, fire was perceived as a harmful force to be eliminated at all costs. Yet, despite improvements in skills and equipment, fires cannot always be stopped, and scientists now know it is not always beneficial to stop them. Nearly every ecosystem depends on fire to maintain its health and existence.
Fire speeds the process of decay and recycles valuable nutrients back into the soils.
Insect pests and plant diseases are controlled. Fires limit the spread of certain plants while encouraging others to grow, and fires create a diversity of plant communities as burned areas recover at different rates. The variety of plants provide a more complex mix of food and cover for wildlife. This increased complexity in turn leads to a greater diversity of wildlife inhabiting the burned regions and a more stable and disaster-resistant ecosystem. Today, fire management policies reflect both a commitment to public safety and the understanding that fire is a natural component of ecosystems.