Opinion: Your ‘superbloom’ selfie isn’t worth destroying California’s ecosystems
LA TimesAs a botanist, I feel joy and gratitude for the recent winter rains, on behalf of Southern California’s ecosystems; it is a time of renewal and recovery. However, the rains also bring a sense of dread about a potential “superbloom.” I do not dread the recovery of wildflower fields from severe drought, but I do worry about the endless masses of people in search of a blooming spectacle and the damage they’ll cause to these fragile ecosystems. Regions in coastal Southern California have reached 87% to 126% of their total average precipitation for the “water year,” or the period from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30 when hydrologists measure precipitation totals. As the botanist John Thomas Howell once said of the California poppy, “In its abundance, this colorful plant should not be slighted: Cherish it and be ever thankful that so rare a flower is common.” Naomi Fraga is director of conservation programs at California Botanic Garden and a research assistant professor at Claremont Graduate University.
History of this topic
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