One of the greatest ecological disasters the US has ever seen. Chestnut blight wiped out the American chestnut tree in less than 50 years.⁠ A tree that once made up nearly 25% of the eastern forests was reduced to a functionally extinct species.⁠ ⁠ The Asian fungus Cryphonectria parasitica was accidentally introduced into the United States in the late 1800s. While a few diseased chestnuts were noted in the 1880s and 90s, it wasn't until 1904 that the pathogen was identified in New York City. Fro

Chestnut blight changed everything. Watch how this deadly fungus transformed a once-mighty tree. | The American Chestnut Foundation