Effects of wildfires on flora, fauna and physico-chemical properties of soil-An overview

Abstract

Abstract:Fire is one of the most destructive threats faced by our forests. Fire is good servant but a bad master. The fire season starts in March/April continues up to June. Wildfires destroy not only flora (tree, herbs, grassland, forbs, etc.) and their diversity but also considerable long term negative impact on fauna including wild endangered species. Repeated fires can convert some shrub-lands to grass and fire exclusion converts some grassland to shrub-land and forest. Fires affect animals mainly through effects on their habitat. The extent of fire effects on animal communities generally depends on the extent of change in habitat structure and species composition caused by fire. Fire can also influence a physico-chemical property of soil including texture, color, bulk density, pH, porosity, organic matter, nutrient availability and soil biota. Drought, disease, insect infestation, overgrazing or a combination of these factors may increase the impact of fire on an individual plant species or communities. Common effects include plant mortality, increase flowering, seed production and numerous communal affects. Fire affected area showed reduction in species diversity both in flora and fauna. In a social context, fire directly affects people, property and infrastructure, thereby directly affecting the health and livelihood of individuals and communities.

A review on status, implications and recent trends of forest fire management

“…However, rain extinguishes such fires without causing much damage in most cases. High atmospheric temperatures and dryness (low humidity) offer favorable circumstance for a fire to start (Jhariya and Raj, 2014;Satendra and Kaushik, 2014;Juarez-Orozco et al, 2017).…”

“…The illicit collectors of honey, scaring away of the wild animals from the village and destroy the stumps of the felled trees. The forestry personnel are also when negligent and without due precautions put fire in controlled burning leads to big fires (Jhariya and Raj, 2014;Satendra and Kaushik, 2014;Juarez-Orozco et al, 2017). Table 1.…”

“…Forest fire affects severely to the forest composition, diversity and soil properties. Due to these effects exotic species encroach the burnt area and spreading of such species affects vegetation diversity (Jhariya and Raj, 2014;Lee et al, 2015;Juarez-Orozco et al, 2017). So that the study of forest fire, its impacts and management is very essential for the conservation flora and fauna of the forest.…”

Pressures and Threats to Nature Related to Human Activities in European Urban and Suburban Forests

“…For example, they cause changes in trophic structures and reduce the resilience of ecosystems [32]. Fire may also affect all forest species, both through direct mortality [198], habitat alteration [26], and changes in food resources [198]. Fires can also change the succession [26] and affect the species composition of the forest.…”

Review of the use of remote sensing for monitoring wildfire risk conditions to support fire risk assessment in protected areas

“…However, fires in PAs are paradoxical (Pereira et al, 2012), in that if properly planned, desired outcomes such as regulating fuel accumulations, regeneration of vegetation by removing fungi and microorganisms, disease and insect control, receiving more energy through exposure to solar radiation, mineral soil exposure and nutrients release are achieved (Bond et al, 2005, Pausas andPaula, 2012). In contrast, unwanted or uncontrolled fires can be destructive or result in ecological disturbance causing bush encroachment, invasion by alien plants, reduction in water yield and loss of biodiversity (Brown andSmith, 2002, Jhariya andRaj, 2014). It is always a challenge to reconcile the fire management goals that relate to safety on one hand to the maintenance of ecosystem health as acknowledged by Van Wilgen et al (2011).…”