August M
High in southern Greece, a familiar and resilient forest is undergoing a dramatic transformation. What once appeared to be routine wildfire damage has revealed a deeper and more troubling shift linked to the climate crisis.
Researchers now warn that Greece’s highland fir forests are being pushed beyond conditions they have historically endured.
An unexpected sight
According to reporting by the Guardian, Greek fir trees have long been a defining feature of the Peloponnese’s mountain landscapes. Known for their ability to withstand drought, insects and fire, the slow-growing conifers have coexisted with seasonal blazes for centuries.
That history shaped the expectations of Dimitrios Avtzis, a senior researcher at the Forest Research Institute of Elgo-Dimitra, when he surveyed the aftermath of a spring fire in the region. What he encountered quickly broke with precedent.
“There were hundreds upon hundreds of hectares worth of lost trees,” Avtzis said, describing not only burnt areas but vast stretches of dying forest where flames had never reached.
Beyond fire damage
Whole sections of previously green forest are now turning orange as fir trees dry out and die. The scale of loss was so unusual that Avtzis immediately alerted Greece’s environment ministry.
While wildfires remain a major driver of forest loss, they are no longer acting alone. Data from Global Forest Watch shows Greece lost about 200,000 hectares of tree cover to fires between 2001 and 2024. But researchers say the forces shaping forest decline have changed rapidly in recent years.
What Avtzis observed reflects overlapping stresses, each intensified by climate breakdown.
Drought and insects
Prolonged drought has become a defining feature of Greece’s climate, weakening trees and drying soils. The problem is compounded by declining snowfall, which traditionally provided slow-release moisture during warmer months.
A study cited by the Guardian found Greece lost an average of 1.5 days of snow cover each year between 1991 and 2020. That loss has left fir trees more vulnerable to biological threats.
Bark beetles, particularly from the Scolytinae subfamily, have taken advantage. “We know that severe drought weakens the trees,” Avtzis said. “But when we looked more closely… we found bark beetles had taken advantage.”
Once established, outbreaks are difficult to control, and similar patterns are now being observed across southern and central Europe.
Pressure to act
Avtzis argues that scientific understanding already exists, but decisive action is now required. He said funding discussions have begun, but implementation remains critical.
“There is no time to be pessimistic,” he said. “But we have a lot of work to do.”
As climate pressures intensify, researchers warn that what is unfolding in Greece’s mountains may foreshadow the future of forests across southern Europe.
Sources: The Guardian
