BAL Assessment Tuerong Mornington Peninsula

When undertaking a BAL assessment in Tuerong on the Mornington Peninsula, I came across this fine specimen of a Costal Manna Gum Eucalyptus Viminalis subspecies Pryoriana, standing tall in the afternoon sunlight like a reverent pyre.

Pryoriana, with its long ribbon bark can produce substantial quantities of embers that can travel distances greater than 2kms. These ribbons accumulate on the tree with the annual shedding of the old bark layers. The long strips curl tightly inward to form a candle-like shape which are known to burn and smoulder for 10 minutes or more.

The bark strips often drape around the trunk and over the branches and around surrounding shrubs to create a ladder of fine fuels from near surface and elevated fuels that are often retained in the upper trunk and the canopy of the tree.

The bark is moderately flammable (can be lit with a cigarette lighter when dry), and the pieces that break off are relatively light for their size and can be easily transported by strong winds and travel up to 30kms.