Mega‐fires are often defined according to their size and intensity but are more accurately described by their socioeconomic impacts. Three factors – climate change, fire exclusion, and antecedent disturbance, collectively referred to as the “mega‐fire triangle” – likely contribute to today's mega‐fires. Some characteristics of mega‐fires may emulate historical fire regimes and can therefore sustain healthy fire‐prone ecosystems, but other attributes decrease ecosystem resiliency. A good example of a program that seeks to mitigate mega‐fires is located in Western Australia, where prescribed burning reduces wildfire intensity while conserving ecosystems. Crown‐fire‐adapted ecosystems are likely at higher risk of frequent mega‐fires as a result of climate change, as compared with other ecosystems once subject to frequent less severe fires. Fire and forest managers should recognize that mega‐fires will be a part of future wildland fire regimes and should develop strategies to reduce their undesired impacts.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

Post-fire forest resilience must be quantified in a long-term perspective considering changes in land-use related to fire dynamics. Historical land-use changes leading to increased wildfire severity may produce no analogue regime shifts including a loss in post-fire growth recovery. Here we reconstruct the historical fire dynamics by combining paleoecological proxies, historical fire records and tree-ring width data of relict Pinus nigra subsp. salzmannii forests in the Sierra de Gredos (central Spain). A high incidence of historical fires was recorded in the 1890s, coinciding with a peak in charcoal accumulation rates and a sharp decrease in pollen of P. nigra/Pinus sylvestris with a rapid increase of pollen of more flammable Pinus pinaster and shrubs. The shift observed in pollen assemblages, coupled with a peak in charcoal influx, support the occurrence of high-severity fires during the 1890s, when abrupt growth suppressions were observed. Trees took 2 years to recover to their pre-fire growth rates. Lasting growth-recovery periods or no growth suppression were observed in the 1920s and 1980s, when fire frequency was also high but the study sites were fragmented or protected. We documented an abrupt regime shift in the fire record during the 1890s affecting pine forests, which rapidly recovered pre-fire growth rates.

No abstract

If citing, it is advised that you check and use the publisher's definitive version for pagination, volume/issue, and date of publication details. And where the final published version is provided on the Research Portal, if citing you are again advised to check the publisher's website for any subsequent corrections.