In 1988, wildfires swept through nearly 800,000 acres of Yellowstone National Park. The fire killed many of the trees and shrubs, leaving vast swaths of land without plants. This left the burned area open for new plant colonization. Forest fires also tend to release large amounts of nutrients to the soil. Within a few years, some species of plants, such as fireweed, experienced exponential growth in the burned area. Which of the following environmental factors likely led to the exponential growth seen in fireweed after the Yellowstone wildfires? a. Increase in habitat
b. Increase in nutrients
c. Decrease in competition from other plants
d. Increase in predation from insects
e. Increase in sunlight