How do fires kill plants? The hydraulic death hypothesis and Cape Proteaceae “fire-resisters”

Midgley, Jeremy J.; Kruger, Laurence; Skelton, Robert P.

doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2010.10.001

Cited by 63 publications

(58 citation statements)

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“…Additionally, forests dominated by fire resistant species had lower post-fire relative NPP losses compared to those dominated by fire-susceptible species or a mix (Figure 3). These data are congruent with evidence at the tree scale where trees that do not develop fire resistant traits, such as 25 thick bark, have a higher probability of fire-induced damage and mortality (Midgley et al, 2011;Ryan and Reinhardt, 1988;VanderWeide and Hartnett, 2011). NPP loss at two years post-fire (~19-152 g C m -2 yr -1 ) in forests dominated by fire-resistant species is comparable to two-year post-fire aboveground NPP differences between unburned and burned temperate Pinus ponderosa forest stands (~83-148 g C m -2 yr -1 ), estimated using field measurements (Irvine et al, 2007 There was considerable variability in the dose-response relationships within each fire resistance grouping, which could potentially be attributed to differences in stand structure and age as well as differing proportions of burned and unburned area within each NPP pixel (mixed pixels).…”

Section: Higher Fire Intensity Results In Lower Post-fire Nppsupporting

confidence: 86%

“…They have also not evaluated how relative fire resistance, or the ability of a tree species to withstand and survive heat-induced damage from fire (Midgley et al, 2011;Starker, 1934;VanderWeide and Hartnett, 2011), may affect the observed doseresponse relationship. Numerous studies have linked morphological traits to post-fire survival; thicker bark, deep rooting depth, and a high, open tree crown have all been identified as characteristics that increase relative fire resistance of a tree (Fischer and Bradley, 1987;Harrington, 2013;He et al, 2012;Keeley, 2012;Midgley et al, 2011;Ryan and Reinhardt, 1988;Starker, 20 1934;VanderWeide and Hartnett, 2011).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Numerous studies have linked morphological traits to post-fire survival; thicker bark, deep rooting depth, and a high, open tree crown have all been identified as characteristics that increase relative fire resistance of a tree (Fischer and Bradley, 1987;Harrington, 2013;He et al, 2012;Keeley, 2012;Midgley et al, 2011;Ryan and Reinhardt, 1988;Starker, 20 1934;VanderWeide and Hartnett, 2011). However, many studies assume a binary response regarding fire impacts on vegetation: either mortality (immediate or delayed) or no physiological effect .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Fire intensity impacts on post-fire temperate coniferous forest net primary productivity

Sparks¹,

Kolden²,

Smith³

et al. 2017

Preprint

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Abstract.Fire is a dynamic ecological process in forests and impacts the carbon (C) cycle through direct combustion emissions, tree mortality, and by impairing the ability of surviving trees to sequester carbon. While studies on young trees have demonstrated that fire intensity is a determinant of post-fire net primary productivity, wildland fires at landscape to 10 regional scales have largely been assumed to either cause tree mortality, or conversely, cause no physiological impact, ignoring the impacted but surviving trees. Our objective was to understand how fire intensity affects post-fire net primary productivity in conifer-dominated forested ecosystems at the spatial scale of large wildland fires. We examined the relationships between fire radiative power (FRP), its temporal integral (fire radiative energy -FRE), and net primary productivity (NPP) using 16 years of data from the MOderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) for 15 large fires in western United States 15 coniferous forests. The greatest NPP post-fire loss occurred one year post-fire and ranged from -67 to -312 g C m -2 yr -1 (-13 to -54%) across all fires. Forests dominated by fire-resistant species (species that typically survive low intensity fires) experienced the lowest relative NPP reductions compared to forests with less resistant species. Post-fire NPP in forests that were dominated by fire-susceptible species were not as sensitive to FRP or FRE, indicating that NPP in these forests may be reduced to similar levels regardless of fire intensity. Conversely, post-fire NPP in forests dominated by fire resistant and mixed species decreased 20 with increasing FRP or FRE. In some cases, this dose-response relationship persisted for more than a decade post-fire, highlighting a legacy effect of fire intensity on post-fire C dynamics in these forests.

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Section: Higher Fire Intensity Results In Lower Post-fire Nppsupporting

confidence: 86%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Fire intensity impacts on post-fire temperate coniferous forest net primary productivity

Sparks¹,

Kolden²,

Smith³

et al. 2017

Preprint

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“…Therefore, stem girdled trees can survive for a long period of time, up to years or decades (Kramer and Kozlowski , Michaletz and Johnson , Midgley et al. , Michaletz et al. ).…”

Section: Fire Resistance At Individual Tree Levelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fire‐induced deforestation in drought‐prone Mediterranean forests: drivers and unknowns from leaves to communities

Karavani

Boer

Baudena

et al. 2018

Ecological Monographs

110

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Over the past 15 years, 3 million hectares of forests have been converted into shrublands or grasslands in the Mediterranean countries of the European Union. Fire and drought are the main drivers underlying this deforestation. Here we present a conceptual framework for the process of fire‐induced deforestation based on the interactive effects of fire and drought across three hierarchical scales: resistance in individuals, resilience in populations, and transitions to a new state. At the individual plant level, we review the traits that confer structural and physiological resistance, as well as allow for resprouting capacity: deforestation can be initiated when established individuals succumb to fire. After individuals perish, the second step toward deforestation requires a limited resilience from the population, that is, a reduced ability of that species to regenerate after fire. If individuals die after fire and the population fails to recover, then a transition to a new state will occur. We document trade‐offs between drought survival and fire survival, as embolism resistance is negatively correlated with fire tolerance in conifers and leaf shedding or drought deciduousness, a process that decreases water consumption at the peak of the dry season, temporally increases crown flammability. Propagule availability and establishment control resilience after mortality, but different hypotheses make contrasting predictions on the drivers of post‐fire establishment. Mycorrhizae play an additional role in modulating the response by favoring recovery through amelioration of the nutritional and water status of resprouts and new germinants. So far, resprouter species such as oaks have provided a buffer against deforestation in forests dominated by obligate seeder trees, when present in high enough density in the understory. While diversifying stands with resprouters is often reported as advantageous for building resilience, important knowledge gaps exist on how floristic composition interacts with stand flammability and on the “resprouter exhaustion syndrome,” a condition where pre‐fire drought stress, or short fire return intervals, seriously restrict post‐fire resprouting. Additional attention should be paid to the onset of novel fire environments in previously fire‐free environments, such as high altitude forests, and management actions need to accommodate this complexity to sustain Mediterranean forests under a changing climate.

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“…Although resprouting is advantageous in certain conditions, there are costs to resprouting including lower seed production, higher allocation of biomass to roots, longer time to sexual maturity and thicker bark (Clarke & Knox, ; Clarke et al ., ). Species that resprout from aboveground tissue (apical or epicormic resprouters) either require thick bark (Midgley et al ., ) or some other morphological adaptation to protect the meristem from disturbance (Lawes et al ., ,b). In general, resprouting species also have a higher allocation to roots than shoots (see Knox & Clarke, ) and increased nonstructural carbohydrate stores in order to support resprouting (Paula & Ojeda, ; Clarke et al ., ).…”

Section: Resproutingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Drought and resprouting plants

et al. 2014

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SummaryMany species have the ability to resprout vegetatively after a substantial loss of biomass induced by environmental stress, including drought. Many of the regions characterised by ecosystems where resprouting is common are projected to experience more frequent and intense drought during the 21st Century. However, in assessments of ecosystem response to drought disturbance there has been scant consideration of the resilience and post-drought recovery of resprouting species. Systematic differences in hydraulic and allocation traits suggest that resprouting species are more resilient to drought-stress than nonresprouting species. Evidence suggests that ecosystems dominated by resprouters recover from disturbance more quickly than ecosystems dominated by nonresprouters. The ability of resprouters to avoid mortality and withstand drought, coupled with their ability to recover rapidly, suggests that the impact of increased drought stress in ecosystems dominated by these species may be small. The strategy of resprouting needs to be modelled explicitly to improve estimates of future climate-change impacts on the carbon cycle, but this will require several important knowledge gaps to be filled before resprouting can be properly implemented.

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How do fires kill plants? The hydraulic death hypothesis and Cape Proteaceae “fire-resisters”

Cited by 63 publications

References 7 publications

Fire intensity impacts on post-fire temperate coniferous forest net primary productivity

Fire intensity impacts on post-fire temperate coniferous forest net primary productivity

Fire‐induced deforestation in drought‐prone Mediterranean forests: drivers and unknowns from leaves to communities

Drought and resprouting plants

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