Impacts of different prescribed fire frequencies on selected soil chemical properties in a semi-arid savannah thornveld

Parwada, Cosmas; Magomani, M. I.; Tol, Johan van; Parrales, Isidoro Gómez

doi:10.1080/23311843.2020.1868171

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Additionally, we recommend additional studies on the frequency of low-severity burns, as most in the study area are annual. These studies will be essential to discern their impacts, considering that repeated annual burns, including low-severity ones, may reduce soil carbon compared to less frequent burns (biannual, triennial, and quadrennial) [ 92 ]. However, we advocate for the integration of traditional knowledge to enhance our understanding of the benefits of low-severity fire on human well-being [ 30 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the other hand, we propose the need to implement alternatives in the studied areas to reduce the annual use of fire, avoiding possible negative impacts, as indicated by recent studies [ 92 ]. Among the main strategies and alternatives to the use of fire are the adoption of conservation agricultural practices, the implementation of agroforestry and silvopastoral systems, productive diversification and the production of organic fertilizers using crop residues and productive processes, such as those developed in some areas of Ecuador [ 93 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exploring the ethnobiological practices of fire in three natural regions of Ecuador, through the integration of traditional knowledge and scientific approaches

Carrión-Paladines,

Correa-Quezada,

Valdiviezo Malo

et al. 2024

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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This study examines the convergence between traditional and scientific knowledge regarding the use of fire and its potential to trigger wildfires, with possible impacts on ecosystems and human well-being. The research encompasses three distinct natural regions of Ecuador: the coast, the highlands, and the Amazon. Data on traditional fire use were collected through semi-structured interviews with 791 members from five local communities. These data were compared with climatic variables (rainfall (mm), relative humidity (%), wind speed (km/h), and wind direction) to understand the climatic conditions conducive to wildfires and their relationship with human perceptions. Furthermore, the severity of fires over the past 4 years (2019–2022) was assessed using remote sensing methods, employing the Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR) and the difference between pre-fire and post-fire conditions (NBR Pre-fire–NBR Post-fire). The results revealed a significant alignment between traditional knowledge, climatic data, and many fires, which were of low severity, suggesting potential benefits for ecosystems. These findings not only enable the identification of optimal techniques and timing for traditional burns but also contribute to human well-being by maintaining a harmonious balance between communities and their environment. Additionally, they provide valuable insights for the development of more inclusive and effective integrated fire management strategies in these natural areas of Ecuador.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the ethnobiological practices of fire in three natural regions of Ecuador, through the integration of traditional knowledge and scientific approaches

Carrión-Paladines,

Correa-Quezada,

Valdiviezo Malo

et al. 2024

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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“…Due to their size, the large field plots such as the current trial are difficult to replicate. Several articles have since been published using the improved sampling design and strategy (Materechera et al, 1998;Magomani and van Tol, 2019;Parwada et al, 2020) and this indicates the reproducibility of the experiment. The current trial sampling was completed prior to the initiation of the 42nd year of treatments in the experiment.…”

Section: Site Description Experimental Design and Samplingmentioning

confidence: 96%

Responses of fungal diversity and community composition after 42 years of prescribed fire frequencies in semi-arid savanna rangelands

Poswa,

Manyevere,

Mashamaite

2024

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Prescribed fire frequencies have been widely used to reduce the risk of severe wildfire occurrences. In addition, several studies have been conducted to assess the impact of fire frequencies on vegetation, vertebrate, and invertebrate species, as well as soil physical and chemical properties. However, there is a lack of empirically based knowledge concerning the impact of fire frequency on soil microorganisms. This study assessed the effect of different fire frequencies on the diversity and composition of soil fungal communities in a semi-arid savanna rangeland. Soil samples were collected from an ongoing long-term trial at the University of Fort Hare (South Africa) on the following treatments: (i) no burning; (ii) annual burning (burned once every year); (iii) biennial burning (burned once every 2 years); (iv) triennial burning (burned once every 3 years); (v) quadrennial burning (burned once every 4 years); and (vi) sexennial burning (burned once every 6 years). Fungi were identified using high-throughput sequencing, with Shannon-Wiener and Inverse Simpson diversity indexes being used for diversity and network analysis. Principal coordinate analysis was used for Bray-Curtis distance matrices to visualise the relationships between treatments. The highest diversity was found in biennial burning, which was significantly different (p < 0.05) from the sexennial, quadrennial, and no burning treatments but was not different from the triennial and annual burning treatments. Regarding the taxa, Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were the phyla with the highest relative abundance, followed by Mortierellomycota, Chytridiomycota, and Rozellomycota. The different fire frequencies had an influence on soil fungi diversity and taxonomic composition in semi-arid savanna rangelands.

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“…The main rainy season commences around October and ends around March, with 70% of rainfall being distributed across this period [18]. The vegetation type of the study area is Bisho thornveld, found in a semi-arid savanna biome, with Vachelia karoo dominating a mixed woody landscape [20]. The herbaceous vegetation is dominated by the following C4 perennial bunchgrasses: Themeda triandra, Digitaria eriantha, Sporobolus fimbriatus, Cymbopogon plurinodis, and Eragrostis species.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Functional Trait Responses of C4 Bunchgrasses to Fire Return Intervals in the Semi-Arid Savanna of South Africa

Mndela,

Moss,

Gusha

et al. 2023

Diversity

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C4 grasses coevolved with fires, employing specialized adaptive traits to recover from recurrent fires of varying regimes, thereby maintaining plant diversity and plant population stability. However, the knowledge of how C4 bunchgrasses recover from varying fire return intervals (FRIs) is limited. Biomass, tillering, flowering, and growth-related traits of Digitaria eriantha, Themeda triandra, Sporobolus fimbriatus, and Cymbopogon plurinodis were assessed in 0- (unburned), 1-, 2-, and 4-year FRIs, each applied in two 0.5 ± 0.01 ha plots from 1980–2022 at the University of Fort Hare research farm, South Africa. FRIs and grass species interacted significantly on biomass production, crown size, tiller production, and reproductive tillers, with responses varying interspecifically depending on the FRI. Cymbopogon plurinodis attained higher total biomass in 1-year FRI, whereas T. triandra produced relatively low biomass in all FRIs compared to 0-year FRI. Nonetheless, T. triandra attained nearly two to three-fold more tillers per plant and three to five-fold more reproductive tillers in 2- and 4-year FRIs compared to other FRIs. Similarly, S. fimbriatus had two-fold more reproductive tillers in 2-year FRIs compared to 0- and 1-year FRIs. We deduce that C4 bunchgrasses respond differentially under recurrent fires depending on the fire return interval, with 2- and 4-year FRIs promoting vegetative and sexual regeneration by enhancing tillering and flowering.

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Impacts of different prescribed fire frequencies on selected soil chemical properties in a semi-arid savannah thornveld

Abstract: Citation informationCite this article as: Impacts of different prescribed fire frequencies on selected soil chemical properties in a semi-arid savannah thornveld, C.

Cited by 5 publications

References 34 publications

Exploring the ethnobiological practices of fire in three natural regions of Ecuador, through the integration of traditional knowledge and scientific approaches

Exploring the ethnobiological practices of fire in three natural regions of Ecuador, through the integration of traditional knowledge and scientific approaches

Responses of fungal diversity and community composition after 42 years of prescribed fire frequencies in semi-arid savanna rangelands

Functional Trait Responses of C4 Bunchgrasses to Fire Return Intervals in the Semi-Arid Savanna of South Africa

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