Imagine the coniferous forests of the American West and you probably picture tall trees, forest floors littered with pine needles and pinecones, black bears, mountain lions, croaking frogs, and mountain blue birds. Natural forest fires should also be a part of that picture. Over millions of years, the forests of western North America have become adapted to routine burning, caused by lightning strikes, allowing forests to retain a variety of old, middle-aged, and young plants that support myriad species of animals.

Many of the animals that make their homes in those forests depend on—or at least can tolerate—the disturbance that comes from the blazes. Take the black-backed woodpecker. For decades, it has been held up as a prime example of