Fire Ecology and ARFO Burn Program

1. Fire Ecology and ARFO Burn Program

2. Goals of the Talk • History of fire • Effects of fire on AR ecosystems • Ecosystem fire regimes • Fire adapted species and effects of fire exclusion • Factors controlling effects of fires • Fire as a management tool

3. The Natural State • Arkansas is Great! • Four major ecoregions • 105 G1-G2 species • 117 Endemic species • Large intact landscapes and ecological processes

4. The role of fire in ecosystems • Fire-maintained ecosystems • Fire-influenced ecosystems • Fire-independent ecosystems

5. Fire-maintained Ecosystems • Ecosystems where fire is essential. If fire is removed, or if the fire regime is altered beyond its normal range of variability, the ecosystem changes to something else; habitats and species are lost. • Fire is not a disturbance • Fire is not a succession initiating process

6. Fire-influenced Ecosystems • Ecosystems where fire can influence structure, relative abundance of species, and/or limit extent. • Fire may create habitats by initiating or affecting succession. • If fires are too frequent or too large, they can be damaging and cause ecosystem shifts and promote invasive species. • Other disturbances may be of equal or greater importance.

7. Fire-independent Ecosystems • Ecosystems where fire plays little or no role • Too cold, too dry, or too wet to burn.

8. There is a relationship between fire-maintained and fire-influenced ecosystems. Mangrove Saltmarsh

9. Fire Regime Components of Prescribed Fire Regime A set of recurring conditions of fire that characterize a given ecosystem Fire type (crown, surface, ground) Fire return interval (frequency) Fire behavior (intensity) Burn severity (effects on vegetation) Timing (seasonality) Size and pattern (shape and patchiness)

10. Prescribed fire regime Fire History • Derived from fire scars and charcoal on rings • Temporal chauvinism • Be careful of averages • A repeated pattern of burning that produces a (somewhat) predictable result • Design broad goals and measurable objectives

11. General effects of prescribed fire in Arkansas • Specifically within natural communities, the seasonality, frequency, and the intensity have effects in the flora and fauna for: • Prairies • Oak woodlands • Pine woodlands • Bottomlands, swamps, cane • Ecotones

12. Rare and declining species • Fire dependent: 42% - increases with fire • Fire independent: 42% increases with fire, but could be maintained without fire • Fire sensetive: 16% decreases with fire or not enough information

13. In many cases, animals in fire-maintained ecosystems, have behavioral adaptations to fire. • Underground hiding places = refugia • Will re-nest • Hide in unburn areas • Re-populate from unburned areas • Habitat requirements are created or maintained by fire • Food sources are stimulated by fire.

14. Many organisms depend on fire: How do the following?

15. Practices on the property include • Riparian fencing • Riparian buffer reforestation • Alternative watering sources for cattle • Rotational grazing utilizing native grass pastures