Greek fir forests dying as heat, drought, and pests spread

Greece’s fir forests are vanishing as climate change fuels extreme heat, prolonged drought, and pest outbreaks, leaving once-lush mountains scarred by dying trees.

On the forested slopes of Kalavryta, a village in southwestern Greece, dying fir trees with reddish needles are a vivid sign of the environmental toll caused by climate change.

The Greek fir, Abies cephalonica, which thrives in moist and cool conditions, is now struggling during recurring droughts and record-breaking heat. These stressors have also made the trees more susceptible to destructive wood-boring beetles.

Experts like forest entomologist Dimitrios Avtzis warn that these pests, though less populous than bark beetles, are just as deadly, disrupting the trees’ nutrient transport system and accelerating their decline.

Katerina Kolirou, head of the local forest service, notes a dramatic shift: “We used to look for dead trees among the green. Now we’re searching for green among the dead.”

Research shows Greece's average temperatures have risen by 1.5°C — and up to 2°C in some mountain areas, while snow cover, a key moisture source for firs, has dropped by 30–40%.

Kalavryta authorities plan to cut down dead trees to slow the spread, but scientists say this may not be enough.

Greece isn’t alone. In Spain’s Pyrenees, similar declines are being observed in Abies alba. As global temperatures soar, experts stress that the loss of these iconic forests could become a widespread Mediterranean tragedy.

“We can’t create snow,” said meteorologist Kostas Lagouvardos. “All we can do is try to slow the damage.”

Copied