Conservation implications of limited Native American impacts in pre-contact New England

Oswald, W. Wyatt; Foster, David R.; Shuman, Bryan N.; Chilton, Elizabeth S.; Doucette, Dianna L.; Duranleau, Deena L.

doi:10.1038/s41893-019-0466-0

Cited by 60 publications

(65 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…A more subtle yet no less important role of humans in fire regimes is the potential augmentation of fire frequencies and alteration of forest communities through the intentional use of fire by Indigenous peoples, a contention that was first popularized within Western perspectives of North America by Stewart (1951) and later endorsed and expanded by others (Day 1953;Sauer 1956;Denevan 1992;Stewart 2002;Cronon 2003;Mann 2005). The notion of a nearly ubiquitous and substantial influence by Native Americans on vegetation communities of North America has been challenged by a number of authors who suggest a more spatially limited role for people in influencing vegetation communities (Kaye and Swetnam 1999;Vale 2002a;Foster 2017;Oswald et al 2020). The actual impact of Native Americans on fire regimes likely lies somewhere between these extremes, but identifying the specific places and extent of these practices is challenging due to losses of historical knowledge and oral traditions among many Indigenous communities during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries (Vale 2002b).…”

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confidence: 99%

People, Fire, and Pine: Linking Human Agency and Landscape in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Beyond

Larson

Kipfmueller

Johnson

2020

Annals of the American Association of Geographers

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The creation and modification of landscape patterns through interactions among people and the environment is a defining focus in the discipline of geography. Here, we contribute to that tradition by placing 500 years of red pine (Pinus resinosa) tree-ring data in the context of archaeological, ethnographic, and paleoecological records to describe patterns of Anishinaabeg land use and fire occurrence in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) of northern Minnesota. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that stories of people, fire, and red pine are tightly interwoven in the BWCAW. We suggest that preferential use and maintenance of specific sites with fire by Border Lakes Anishinaabeg before 1900 led to the xerification of forest communities that produced conditions more desirable to people in a rugged nearboreal landscape. Today, after a century of fire absence, these sites represent fading ecological legacies that are still sought by wilderness users for their recreational values and perceived wilderness character. Ironically, protections granted by the 1964 Wilderness Act are resulting in a decline of the red pine forests once used to help justify establishment of the BWCAW. An opportunity exists for wilderness managers, users, and advocacy groups to reassess the need for active management and the strategic return of frequent fire to the aging pine forests of the BWCAW. Engaging descendent communities of the Border Lakes Anishinaabeg in these efforts could help move beyond conventional approaches to wilderness management and restore the reciprocal relationship between people, fire, and red pine in the BWCAW and beyond.

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confidence: 99%

People, Fire, and Pine: Linking Human Agency and Landscape in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Beyond

Larson

Kipfmueller

Johnson

2020

Annals of the American Association of Geographers

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“…However, many wildfires today globally are ignited by humans, especially in fire-prone environments (Ganteaume et al, 2013; Guo et al, 2015; Syphard and Keeley, 2015). The history of human fire use and how its importance has grown over time are contested (Bowman et al, 2011; Williams et al, 2015; Oswald et al, 2020). Bowman et al (2009) suggest that human mastery of fire may have begun with the expansion of tropical savanna biomes 7–8 mya.…”

Section: From Fire To Fire Regimesmentioning

confidence: 99%

What the past can say about the present and future of fire

Marlon

2020

Quat. res.

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Wildfires are an integral part of most terrestrial ecosystems. Paleofire records composed of charcoal, soot, and other combustion products deposited in lake and marine sediments, soils, and ice provide a record of the varying importance of fire over time on every continent. This study reviews paleofire research to identify lessons about the nature of fire on Earth and how its past variability is relevant to modern environmental challenges. Four lessons are identified. First, fire is highly sensitive to climate change, and specifically to temperature changes. As long as there is abundant, dry fuel, we can expect that in a warming climate, fires will continue to grow unusually large, severe, and uncontrollable in fire-prone environments. Second, a better understanding of “slow” (interannual to multidecadal) socioecological processes is essential for predicting future wildfire and carbon emissions. Third, current patterns of burning, which are very low in some areas and very high in others—are often unprecedented in the context of the Holocene. Taken together, these insights point to a fourth lesson—that current changes in wildfire dynamics provide an opportunity for paleoecologists to engage the public and help them understand the potential consequences of anthropogenic climate change.

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“…In a recent article, Oswald et al [1] argue that Indigenous Peoples had limited impact on landscapes in pre-contact New England. Claiming an interdisciplinary research approach, the authors conclude that fire should not be used as a land management tool today.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…We fully agree with the authors that "conservation strategies need to be grounded in strong, interdisciplinary, retrospective science on past environments, socioecological systems and ecosystems." 1 Unfortunately, their study lacks the historical and cultural data to meet the criteria [2] for such strong, interdisciplinary studies. Oswald et al mischaracterize past fire occurrence and provide misguided conservation advice precisely because they fail to incorporate interdisciplinary and Indigenous knowledge to meet these criteria.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…They misunderstand monographs by historians Cronon and Pyne, characterizing them as uncritical, popular accounts, and they do not cite Pyne's most relevant work on fire in the northeastern United States [9] . Oswald et al also seem to be unaware of historical scholarship [10] prior to Day (1953) 1 . They take no account of the many primary historical sources describing extensive open fields and forests in the region.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Indigenous Conservation Practices Are Not a Monolith: Western cultural biases and a lack of engagement with Indigenous experts undermine studies of land stewardship

Léonard¹,

Aldern²,

Christianson³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Conservation implications of limited Native American impacts in pre-contact New England

Cited by 60 publications

References 34 publications

People, Fire, and Pine: Linking Human Agency and Landscape in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Beyond

People, Fire, and Pine: Linking Human Agency and Landscape in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Beyond

What the past can say about the present and future of fire

Indigenous Conservation Practices Are Not a Monolith: Western cultural biases and a lack of engagement with Indigenous experts undermine studies of land stewardship

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