Research Database
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7
High‐severity wildfire leads to multi‐decadal impacts on soil biogeochemistry in mixed‐conifer forests
Year: 2020
During the past century, systematic wildfire suppression has decreased fire frequency and increased fire severity in the western United States of America. While this has resulted in large ecological changes aboveground such as altered tree species composition and increased forest density, little is known about the long‐term, belowground implications of altered, ecologically novel, fire regimes, especially on soil biological processes. To better understand the long‐term implications of ecologically novel, high‐severity fire, we used a 44‐yr high‐severity fire chronosequence in the Sierra…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Changing wildfire, changing forests: the effects of climate change on fire regimes and vegetation in the Pacific Northwest, USA
Year: 2020
Wildfires in the Pacific Northwest (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and western Montana, USA) have been immense in recent years, capturing the attention of resource managers, fire scientists, and the general public. This paper synthesizes understanding of the potential effects of changing climate and fire regimes on Pacific Northwest forests, including effects on disturbance and stress interactions, forest structure and composition, and post-fire ecological processes. We frame this information in a risk assessment context, and conclude with management implications and future research needs.
Publication Type: Journal Article
Tamm review: The effects of prescribed fire on wildfire regimes and impacts: A framework for comparison
Year: 2020
Prescribed fire can result in significant benefits to ecosystems and society. Examples include improved wildlifehabitat, enhanced biodiversity, reduced threat of destructive wildfire, and enhanced ecosystem resilience.Prescribed fire can also come with costs, such as reduced air quality and impacts to fire sensitive species. To planfor appropriate use of prescribed fire, managers need information on the tradeoffs between prescribed fire andwildfire regimes. In this study, we argue that information on tradeoffs should be presented at spatial andtemporal scales commensurate with the scales at…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Wildfire, Wildlands, and People: Understanding and preparing for wildfire in the wildland-urban interface
Year: 2013
Fire has historically played a fundamental ecological role in many of America’s wildland areas. However, the rising number of homes in the wildland-urban interface (WUI), associated impacts on lives and property from wildfire, and escalating costs of wildfire management have led to an urgent need for communities to become "fire-adapted." We present maps of the conterminous United States that illustrate historical natural fire regimes, the wildland-urban interface, and the number and location of structures burned since 1999. We outline a sampler of actions, programs, and community planning and…
Publication Type: Report
Fire regimes of quaking aspen in the Mountain West
Year: 2013
Quaking aspen, the most widespread tree species in North America, reproduces primarily by resprouting from roots. In some stands, mortality from fire encourages sprouting and prevents conifers from eventually replacing aspen. In other areas, aspen can form stable communities that do not require fire to regenerate or persist. USGS fire ecologist Doug Shinneman and colleagues reviewed literature about aspen populations and fire, summarized research findings, and suggested a classification system for aspen across the western mountainous United States. The scientists proposed five aspen “fire…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Fire-mediated pathways of stand development in Douglas-fir/ western hemlock forests of the Pacific Northwest, USA
Year: 2013
Forests dominated by Douglas-fir and western hemlock in the Pacific Northwest of the United States have strongly influenced concepts and policy concerning old-growth forest conservation. Despite the attention to their old-growth characteristics, a tendency remains to view their disturbance ecology in relatively simple terms, emphasizing infrequent, stand-replacing (SR) fire and an associated linear pathway toward development of those old-growth characteristics. This study uses forest stand- and age-structure data from 124 stands in the central western Cascades of Oregon to construct a…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Interactions of insects, fire and climate on fuel loads and fire behavior in mixed conifer forest
Year: 2013
Mixed-conifer forests in the interior Pacific Northwest are subject to sporadic outbreaks of the western spruce budworm, the most destructive defoliator in western North America. Such outbreaks usually occur synchronously over broad regions and lead to widespread decreases in growth rates and low to moderate levels of mortality. In the last century, changing land use and fire suppression have led to an increase in the amount and density of host tree species, and changed fire regimes. This has altered the severity and frequency of both fire and western spruce budworm. In spite of the…
Publication Type: Report