Fire history from three species on a central Appalachian ridgetop

Abstract

The impact of settlement era fires on Appalachian forests was substantial, but whether these fires affected the extent of fire-adapted ridgetop plant communities is poorly understood. Here we present fire history and stand structure of an Appalachian ridgetop (Pike Knob, West Virginia) based on fire scars from three species (Pinus pungens Lamb., Pinus resinosa Soland., and Quercus rubra L.) and stand structure from two species (P. pungens and P. resinosa). Our research objectives are to determine (i) the degree to which the fire frequency on Pike Knob was affected by European American settlement (~1780–1900) and (ii) how the history of fire on Pike Knob shaped the current age structure of P. resinosa and P. pungens. All three species documented fire activity beginning in the mid- to late 1800s and continuing into the middle of the 20th century, when pasture lands were most active. The majority of P. pungens and P. resinosa established during or shortly after the ~85-year period of fires (1868–1953), suggesting a strong influence of past land use on current forest composition. Ridgetop pine communities have been resilient to both the absence of fire and frequent fire, indicating that pine communities will also be resilient to modern fire management, whether fire is excluded or re-introduced.

Central Appalachians forest ecosystem vulnerability assessment and synthesis: a report from the Central Appalachians Climate Change Response Framework project

“…Many of the species are currently near the southern limit of their range in the assessment area or exist as disjunct populations. Balsam fir and red pine are glacial relicts that are currently limited to higher elevations in West Virginia, and the majority of these species' ranges are much farther north (Hessl et al 2011, Potter et al 2010. Black ash distribution in the assessment area is closely tied to the Greenbrier Limestone.…”

Fire history, related to climate and land use in three southern Appalachian landscapes in the eastern United States

“…Although these point fire intervals are quite short, they probably overestimate the length of the actual fire interval because every surface fire probably did not scar every tree (Dieterich andSwetnam 1984, Van Horne andFule´2006). According to the filtered composite fire interval, considered a reliable estimate of fire frequency (Van Horne and Fule´2006), fires typically burned at intervals of about 7-9 years in pine stands in Virginia and West Virginia (Aldrich et al 2010, Hessl et al 2011, and about 12 years in an oak forest in Virginia (Hoss et al 2008). The equivalent estimates that we obtained here are even shorter, and indicate that fires occurred at approximately 4-8 year intervals in pine stands of the southern Appalachian Mountains.…”

“…The frequency and extent of past burning remain uncertain, however. Fire may have been uncommon except near aboriginal, and later, Euro-American settlements, gradually expanding as populations grew, before emerging as a widespread and devastating force during the industrial logging period (Williams 1998, Hessl et al 2011. Alternatively, widespread burning may have occurred frequently over much of the landscape for a long time, even before Euro-American settlement, promoting extensive oak and pine forests as well as patches of grassland (Pyne 1982, Denevan 1992).…”

Forest Disturbance History from ‘Legacy’ Pitch Pine (Pinus rigida) at the New River Gorge, West Virginia

“…Maxwell and Hicks (2010) noted a general cessation of fires along the Endless Wall section of the New River Gorge following the closure of the Nuttalburg Mine (1952) and associated train depot (1966). The last major fire occurred in 1953 at a site on North Fork Mountain in Pendleton County, West Virginia, approximately 150 km to the northeast of the present study (Hessl et al 2011). Land use change, including a reduction in grazing activities, and a decrease in population density coincided with fire cessation in this mountain landscape.…”

“…Dormant season scars were assigned to the previous calendar year in order to remain consistent with nearby fire history studies (Maxwell and Hicks 2010;Hessl et al 2011). Fire scar data were entered in the Fire History Analysis and Exploration System (FHAES) (Grissino-Mayer 2001b; Sutherland et al 2015) and summary statistics were generated.…”