Ghost Forests

Ghost forests are areas of dead trees in former forests, typically in coastal regions where rising sea levels or tectonic shifts have altered the height of a land mass. Forests located near the coast or estuaries may also be at risk of dying through saltwater poisoning, if invading seawater reduces the amount of freshwater that deciduous trees receive for sustenance. Looking at the stratigraphic record, it is possible to reconstruct a series of events that lead to the creation of a ghost forest. Where, in a convergent plate boundary, there has been orogenic uplift, followed by earthquakes resulting in subsidence and tsunamis, altering the coast and creating a ghost forest.

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Along the marshy backroads of the mid-Atlantic, some 40,000 acres of dead trees spear the sky, an insidious symptom of climate change. Our latest news feature at Front Matter (the magazine of PNAS) explores efforts to map these ghost forests and what's at stake for coastal communities.

Microbes making tree methane in ghost forests are in the soils

Sea level rise is killing trees along the Atlantic coast, creating 'ghost forests' that are visible from space

As Ghost Forests Spread, Researchers Ask for Help Keeping Track

‘Tree farts’ contribute about a fifth of greenhouse gases from ghost forests

'Tree Farts' Increase Carbon Emissions in Ghost Forests

Standing dead trees in 'ghost forests' contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, study finds

Mapping North Carolina’s Ghost Forests From 430 Miles up Provides New Answers