Book 12, Question 98
Why Do Lava Fields Look Lifeless Then Bloom Later?
New lava rock looks empty, but life starts quickly! Tough pioneers like mosses and lichens move in first and help make soil for later plants. A black lava field can turn green in just a few decades.
More fun facts
- Lava flows can bury land under tens of meters of hardened black rock.
- At Craters of the Moon, a lava field of about 1,600 square kilometers (618 square miles) looks barren but is full of life.
- After each eruption there, plants and animals began returning while the lava was still cooling.
- In the dry, cold Snake River Plain, it takes thousands of years for plants to cover lava flows.
- Islands of plants surrounded by lava are called kipukas.
- Kipukas are protected by the lava around them, like islands in an ocean of black rock.
Sources: National Park Service, U.S. Geological Survey
Questions kids ask
What is a kipuka?
An island of plants surrounded and protected by lava flows.