Young jack pine and high severity fire combine to create potentially expansive areas of understocked forest

Pinno, Bradley D.; Errington, Ruth C.; Thompson, Dan K.

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2013.08.055

Cited by 48 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 25 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Large fires are expected to become more common in northern boreal forests in the future with a changing climate [1], and these fire events are often characterized by highly variable burn severity [2][3][4]. Many studies have examined tree regeneration after variable severity burns in the boreal forest [5,6], but in terms of overall plant diversity, understory species are most important, especially in the tree species-poor, xeric jack pine (Pinus banksiana) forests of the northern boreal [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Burn Severity Dominates Understory Plant Community Response to Fire in Xeric Jack Pine Forests

Pinno

Errington

2016

Forests

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract:Fire is the most common disturbance in northern boreal forests, and large fires are often associated with highly variable burn severities across the burnt area. We studied the understory plant community response to a range of burn severities and pre-fire stand age four growing seasons after the 2011 Richardson Fire in xeric jack pine forests of northern Alberta, Canada. Burn severity had the greatest impact on post-fire plant communities, while pre-fire stand age did not have a significant impact. Total plant species richness and cover decreased with disturbance severity, such that the greatest richness was in low severity burns (average 28 species per 1-m 2 quadrat) and plant cover was lowest in the high severity burns (average 16%). However, the response of individual plant groups differed. Lichens and bryophytes were most common in low severity burns and were effectively eliminated from the regenerating plant community at higher burn severities. In contrast, graminoid cover and richness were positively related to burn severity, while forbs did not respond significantly to burn severity, but were impacted by changes in soil chemistry with increased cover at pH >4.9. Our results indicate the importance of non-vascular plants to the overall plant community in this harsh environment and that the plant community is environmentally limited rather than recruitment or competition limited, as is often the case in more mesic forest types. If fire frequency and severity increase as predicted, we may see a shift in plant communities from stress-tolerant species, such as lichens and ericaceous shrubs, to more colonizing species, such as certain graminoids.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Burn Severity Dominates Understory Plant Community Response to Fire in Xeric Jack Pine Forests

Pinno

Errington

2016

Forests

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Therefore we suggest that this tool be applied only to stands exhibiting 100% tree mortality and subjected to moderate to high severity fires. Extreme fire severity may greatly reduce seed viability, even in the well-protected cones of jack pine (Pinno et al 2013). Additionally, due to limited data on post-fire granivory rates, actual fire-wide values may differ from our expected values (including the fixed lethal proportion).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 69%

A stand-level tool for predicting the natural regeneration density of black spruce and jack pine following fire and salvage

Splawinski¹,

Greene

Gauthier

et al. 2015

The Forestry Chronicle

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A tool was developed to allow managers and foresters to quickly assess reforestation needs following forest fire and salvage logging at the stand level in both pure and mixed black spruce and jack pine stands. This on-site operational assessment tool was created using a forest regeneration model that simulates the natural regeneration densities of black spruce and jack pine following fire and salvage. Tree species basal areas used for simulations represent the natural range expected in the field. Additional parameters include the abscission schedule of the species, the percentage of optimal (exposed mineral soil or humus) post-fire seedbeds, and the timing of the salvage operation. The tool also allows for rapid planning of both salvage operations and planting. It has important advantages over conventional seedling surveys in that it can be employed immediately following fire, can guide management decisions about the planning of road construction and the harvest sequence, and takes into account the entire establishment phase. Using the tool to adjust the harvesting schedule to minimize replanting, the likely final cost of reforestation can be estimated for an entire burn. The tool shows that a higher percentage of optimal seedbeds are necessary following salvage: (1) for black spruce to regenerate adequately compared to jack pine (i.e., planting of black spruce will almost always be necessary); (2) as basal area of the species of interest decreases; and, (3) to adequately regenerate burned intact and salvaged stands in late-season fires compared with those from early-season fires.Keywords: fire, salvage, black spruce, jack pine, natural regeneration, model, planting, stand-level assessment. RESUMÉUn outil a été élaboré afin de permettre aux gestionnaires et aux forestiers d' évaluer rapidement les besoins en matière de régénération des peuplements ravagés par le feu et exploité peu après, tant dans le cas des pessières noires pures et mélan-gées que dans le cas des pinèdes grises. Cet outil d' évaluation utilisable sur place a été élaboré à partir d'un modèle de régé-nération forestière qui simule les densités de régénération naturelle des pessières noires et des pinèdes grises à la suite d'un feu et des travaux de récupération. Les surfaces terrières des arbres utilisées lors des simulations sont représentatives de la variation naturelle retrouvée dans la nature. Des paramètres supplémentaires comme le délai d'abscission des espèces, le pourcentage de lits propices à la germination (sol minéral exposé ou humus) et le calendrier des opérations de récupé-ration ont été ajoutés au modèle. L' outil permet également la planification rapide des opérations de récupération et de plantation. Il constitue un avantage important relativement aux inventaires conventionnels de semis du fait qu'il peut être utilisé immédiatement après un feu, qu'il permet de guider la gestion des décisions reliées à planification de la construction des chemins et à la séquence des opérations de récolte, en plus de prendre en considéra...

show abstract

“…was ∼ 0.3 m lower than the water table observed midJune 2011 (Fig. 5), a period without rainfall and with high burned area in the spring when the 2011 Richardson Fire reached a size similar to the Horse river wildfire (Pinno et al, 2013). Surprisingly, spring 2016 water tables were more comparable to levels measured in the spring of 2012 (Fig.…”

Section: Pre-fire Hydrologymentioning

confidence: 71%

“…During these fires large quantities of terrestrial carbon stock held within WBP peatlands are liberated to the atmosphere, estimated at 4700 Gg C released per year, from continental western Canada alone (Turetsky et al, 2002); the peat is vulnerable to combustion and deep smouldering (Benscoter et al, 2011;Turetsky et al, 2011). Over the past decade, there has been increasing concern over longer fire seasons in Alberta (Wotton and Flannigan, 1993;Flannigan et al, 2013;KirchmeierYoung et al, 2017) and an increase in large high-intensity wildfires (Tymstra et al, 2007) and total burned area each year (Podur and Wotton, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrometeorological conditions preceding wildfire, and the subsequent burning of a fen watershed in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada

Elmes

Thompson

Sherwood

et al. 2018

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. The destructive nature of the ∼ 590 000 ha Horse river wildfire in the Western Boreal Plain (WBP), northern Alberta, in May of 2016 motivated the investigation of the hydrometeorological conditions that preceded the fire. Historical climate and field hydrometeorological data from a moderate-rich fen watershed were used to (a) identify whether the spring 2016 conditions were outside the range of natural variability for WBP climate cycles, (b) explain the observed patterns in burn severity across the watershed, and (c) identify whether fall and winter moisture signals observed in peatlands and lowland forests in the region are indicative of wildfire. Field hydrometeorological data from the fen watershed confirmed the presence of cumulative moisture deficits prior to the fire. Hydrogeological investigations highlighted the susceptibility of fen and upland areas to water table and soil moisture decline over rain-free periods (including winter), due to the watershed's reliance on supply from localized flow systems originating in topographic highs. Subtle changes in topographic position led to large changes in groundwater connectivity, leading to greater organic soil consumption by fire in wetland margins and at high elevations. The 2016 spring moisture conditions measured prior to the ignition of the fen watershed were not illustrated well by the Drought Code (DC) when standard overwintering procedures were applied. However, close agreement was found when default assumptions were replaced with measured duff soil moisture recharge and incorporated into the overwintering DC procedure. We conclude that accumulated moisture deficits dating back to the summer of 2015 led to the dry conditions that preceded the fire. The infrequent coinciding of several hydrometeorological conditions, including low autumn soil moisture, a modest snowpack, lack of spring precipitation, and high spring air temperatures and winds, ultimately led to the Horse river wildfire spreading widely and causing the observed burn patterns. Monitoring soil moisture at different land classes and watersheds would aid management strategies in the production of more accurate overwintered DC calculations, providing fire management agencies early warning signals ahead of severe spring wildfire seasons.

show abstract

Young jack pine and high severity fire combine to create potentially expansive areas of understocked forest

Cited by 48 publications

References 25 publications

Burn Severity Dominates Understory Plant Community Response to Fire in Xeric Jack Pine Forests

Burn Severity Dominates Understory Plant Community Response to Fire in Xeric Jack Pine Forests

A stand-level tool for predicting the natural regeneration density of black spruce and jack pine following fire and salvage

Hydrometeorological conditions preceding wildfire, and the subsequent burning of a fen watershed in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About