The Importance of Balsam Fir (4th in a series about Isle Royale)

Loreen Niewenhuis is an author, adventurer, and dynamic speaker. 

She has completed a trilogy of 1,000-mile adventures exploring the Great Lakes and has authored three books about these adventures. 

To learn more about her work, or to engage her as a speaker, go to 

http://www.laketrek.com/great-lakes-speaker/

It's difficult to imagine how Isle Royale would look if the 2,000 moose weren't there, each munching 40 pounds of vegetation every single day. And in the winter, they primarily munch the soft needles of the balsam fir trees on the island.

There is a place where you can get a glimpse of how moose impact these trees: the exclosure at Windigo. Here, the NPS set up a fenced area to keep moose out.

Inside the exclosure, balsam fir tower above. They can reach heights of 70 feet tall if unmolested by moose.

Balsam fir tower overhead inside the exclosure

Large trunk of balsam fir in exclosure

These trees are all over the island, but most look like the ones in the photos below due to winter browsing by moose. Most of these trees are browsed off at a height of a couple of feet. 

Munched by moose

This balsam fir is denuded of needles as far up as moose can reach (walking stick is about 5-feet tall)