Prescribed Burning

Duff, Thomas J.; Cawson, Jane G.; Penman, Trent D.

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-52090-2_120

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 84 publications

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“…Prescribed burning is also commonly used for the promotion of ecological values and maintenance of ecological processes (e.g., for promoting pyrodiversity [Parr & Andersen, 2006]). Other uses include enhancing agricultural and silvicultural production, flushing game animals for hunting, and cultural burning (Bliege Bird et al., 2013; Duff et al., 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimentally testing animal responses to prescribed fire size and severity

Doherty,

Bohórquez Fandiño,

Watchorn

et al. 2024

Conservation Biology

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Deserts are often highly biodiverse and provide important habitats for many threatened species. Fire is a dominant disturbance in deserts, and prescribed burning is increasingly being used by conservation managers and Indigenous peoples to mitigate the damaging effects of climate change, invasive plants, and land‐use change. The size, severity, and patchiness of fires can affect how animals respond to fire. However, there are almost no studies examining such burn characteristics in desert environments, which precludes the use of such information in conservation planning. Using a before‐after control‐impact approach with 20 sampling sites, we studied the outcomes of 10 prescribed burns of varying in size (5–267 ha), severity, and patchiness to identify which variables best predicted changes in small mammal and reptile species richness and abundance. Three of 13 species showed a clear response to fire. Captures increased for 2 species (1 mammal, 1 reptile) and decreased for 1 species (a reptile) as the proportional area burned around traps increased. 2 other mammal species showed weaker positive responses to fire. Total burn size and burn patchiness were not influential predictors for any species. Changes in capture rates occurred only at sites with the largest and most severe burns. No fire‐related changes in capture rates were observed where fires were small and very patchy. Our results suggest there may be thresholds of fire size or fire severity that trigger responses to fire, which has consequences for management programs underpinned by the patch mosaic burning paradigm. The prescribed burns we studied, which are typical in scale and intensity across many desert regions, facilitated the presence of some taxa and were unlikely to have widespread or persistent negative impacts on small mammal or reptile communities in this ecosystem provided that long unburned habitat harboring threatened species is protected.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimentally testing animal responses to prescribed fire size and severity

Doherty,

Bohórquez Fandiño,

Watchorn

et al. 2024

Conservation Biology

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“…Methods for modifying vegetative fuel focus on reducing the total amount or altering its structure and arrangement, with the purpose of modifying potential fire behaviour [3]. Prescribed burning is the most widely applied treatment globally [4], however there are challenges with prescribed burning such as fire escapes [5], smoke impact on human health [6] and limited windows for safe application [7]. These challenges have led people to seek alternatives, particularly at the urban-wildland interface.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-Term Response of Fuel to Mechanical Mastication in South-Eastern Australia

Pickering

Burton

Penman

et al. 2022

Fire

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Mechanical mastication is a fuel management strategy that modifies vegetation structure to reduce the impact of wildfire. Although past research has quantified immediate changes to fuel post-mastication, few studies consider longer-term fuel trajectories and climatic drivers of this change. Our study sought to quantify changes to fuel loads and structure over time following mastication and as a function of landscape aridity. Measurements were made at 63 sites in Victoria, Australia. All sites had been masticated within the previous 9 years to remove over-abundant shrubs and small trees. We used generalised additive models to explore trends over time and along an aridity gradient. Surface fuel loads were highest immediately post-mastication and in the most arid sites. The surface fine fuel load declined over time, whereas the surface coarse fuel load remained high; these trends occurred irrespective of landscape aridity. Standing fuel (understorey and midstorey vegetation) regenerated consistently, but shrub cover was still substantially low at 9 years post-mastication. Fire managers need to consider the trade-off between a persistently higher surface coarse fuel load and reduced shrub cover to evaluate the efficacy of mastication for fuel management. Coarse fuel may increase soil heating and smoke emissions, but less shrub cover will likely moderate fire behaviour.

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Multi‐year responses of reptiles to prescribed burning in a eucalypt forest ecosystem

Doherty,

Johnson,

Friend

et al. 2024

Austral Ecology

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Prescribed burning is the primary method used to reduce wildfire risk in a range of ecosystems globally. Knowledge of how animal populations respond to prescribed burns is essential for designing fuel management plans that are sensitive to ecological values. We conducted a before–after, control‐impact experiment in the temperate jarrah forest ecosystem of south‐western Australia to examine how reptiles respond to season of burning (spring or autumn) and time since burning (0–5 years). Through pitfall trapping at 10 survey grids over 7 years, we captured 1808 reptiles from 22 species. Bayesian mixed effects models revealed that six of the eight species analysed showed either a decrease or increase in capture rate at burnt compared to unburnt sites, and most of these effects only occurred within the first 2 years post fire. Species richness showed a weak negative response to one autumn burn and no relationship with time since fire. Fire effects were more common in autumn compared to spring burns, which is likely a reflection of differing fire severities. These results suggest that prescribed burning can temporarily reduce habitat suitability and abundance for some species, particularly those that rely on leaf litter for shelter and foraging. Our findings emphasise the dynamic nature of reptile responses to prescribed burns and underscore the importance of considering both fire seasonality and recency of burning in wildlife management plans.

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Prescribed Burning

Cited by 3 publications

References 84 publications

Experimentally testing animal responses to prescribed fire size and severity

Experimentally testing animal responses to prescribed fire size and severity

Long-Term Response of Fuel to Mechanical Mastication in South-Eastern Australia

Multi‐year responses of reptiles to prescribed burning in a eucalypt forest ecosystem

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