Short-term response of the long-nosed bandicoot, Perameles nasuta, and the southern brown bandicoot, Isoodon obesulus obesulus, to low-intensity prescribed fire in heathland vegetation

2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (8) ◽  
pp. 731 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben Hope
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Hazard Reduction ◽  
Low Intensity ◽  
The Impact

Context Prescribed burning is routinely performed within the Sydney Basin as a method of fire-hazard mitigation. Despite the widespread use of prescribed fire, knowledge of the impact of prescribed fire on most fauna species remains unclear. This is particularly the case for bandicoot species. Aims To determine the impact of a low-intensity prescribed fire on the survival of the long-nosed bandicoot, Perameles nasuta, and the southern brown bandicoot, Isoodon obesulus obesulus (hereafter abbreviated to I. obesulus), immediately after the fire and at 5 weeks, 5 months and 13 months following the fire. To document the spatial ecology and nesting requirements of I. obesulus and P. nasuta before and after fire. Methods One I. obesulus and seven P. nasuta (five female and two male) individuals were radio-tracked. Animals were tracked before, during and following a hazard-reduction burn to assess the impact of fire on home range, survival and nesting behaviour. Key results Post-fire survival of P. nasuta and I. obesulus was high and the population remained stable up to 5 months following the fire. All animals tracked within the burn area (three female P. nasuta) survived the passage of fire. The home range for one male I. obesulus was found to be 2.35 ha 50% kernel-density estimate (KDE) and 12.35 ha 95% KDE. Female P. nasuta (n = 5) had a home range of 1.3 ha ± 0.2 s.e. 50% KDE and 7.5 ha ± 1.7 s.e. 95% KDE. Male P. nasuta (n = 1) had a home range of 1.1 ha 50% KDE and 6.5ha 95% KDE. Nesting for both species tended to occur in dense vegetation, with a slight shift to non-combustible refuge sites post-fire. Animals tended to maintain exclusive and relatively stable core home ranges, although overlap of non-core home ranges was common. Conclusions The survival of bandicoots following a low-intensity hazard-reduction fire was high in the short term; however, further research is required to determine how the components of a fire regime affect native species, in particular peramelids. Implications Hazard-reduction fires should be used with caution to manage the isolated and endangered northern Sydney population of I. obesulus, so as to ensure the persistence of this species.

A review of prescribed burning effectiveness in fire hazard reduction

2003 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo M. Fernandes ◽  
Hermínio S. Botelho
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Accumulation Rate ◽  
Fire Suppression ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Adequate Treatment ◽  
Hazard Reduction

Wildfire hazard abatement is one of the major reasons to use prescribed burning. Computer simulation, case studies, and analysis of the fire regime in the presence of active prescribed burning programs in forest and shrubland generally indicate that this fuel management tool facilitates fire suppression efforts by reducing the intensity, size and damage of wildfires. However, the conclusions that can be drawn from the above approaches are limited, highlighting the need for more properly designed experiments addressing this question. Fuel accumulation rate frequently limits prescribed fire effectiveness to a short post-treatment period (2–4 years). Optimisation of the spatial pattern of fire application is critical but has been poorly addressed by research, and practical management guidelines are lacking to initiate this. Furthermore, adequate treatment efforts in terms of fire protection are constrained by operational, social and ecological issues. The best results of prescribed fire application are likely to be attained in heterogeneous landscapes and in climates where the likelihood of extreme weather conditions is low. Conclusive statements concerning the hazard-reduction potential of prescribed fire are not easily generalised, and will ultimately depend on the overall efficiency of the entire fire management process.

scholarly journals Prescribed burning in a mediterranean-climate region mitigates the disturbance by bushfire to a critical food resource for an endangered bird, the Carnaby’s cockatoo

Fire Ecology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Valerie S. Densmore ◽  
Emma S. Clingan
Keyword(s):  
Seed Production ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Fire Intensity ◽  
Prescribed Burns ◽  
Low Intensity ◽  
Percentage Survival

Abstract Background Prescribed burning is used to reduce fire hazard in highly flammable vegetation types, including Banksia L.f. woodland that occurs on the Swan Coastal Plain (SCP), Western Australia, Australia. The 2016 census recorded well over 1.9 million people living on the SCP, which also encompasses Perth, the fourth largest city in Australia. Banksia woodland is prone to frequent ignitions that can cause extensive bushfires that consume canopy-stored banksia seeds, a critical food resource for an endangered bird, the Carnaby’s cockatoo (Calyptorynchus latirostris, Carnaby 1948). The time needed for banksias to reach maturity and maximum seed production is several years longer than the typical interval between prescribed burns. We compared prescribed burns to bushfires and unburned sites at three locations in banksia woodland to determine whether low-intensity prescribed burns affect the number of adult banksias and their seed production. Study sites were matched to the same vegetation complex, fire regime, and time-since-fire to isolate fire intensity as a variable. Results Headfire rates of spread and differenced normalized burn ratios indicated that prescribed burning was generally of a much lower intensity than bushfire. The percentage survival of adult banksias and their production of cones and follicles (seeds) did not decrease during the first three years following a prescribed burn. However, survival and seed production were significantly diminished followed high-intensity bushfire. Thus, carrying capacity for Carnaby’s cockatoo was unchanged by prescribed burning but decreased markedly following bushfire in banksia woodland. Conclusions These results suggest that prescribed burning is markedly different from bushfire when considering appropriate fire intervals to conserve canopy habitats in fire-resilient vegetation communities. Therefore, low-intensity prescribed burning represents a viable management tool to reduce the frequency and extent of bushfire impacts on banksia woodland and Carnaby’s cockatoo.

scholarly journals Prescribed Fire — Its Place in Reforestation

1970 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 448-451
Author(s):  
A. D. Kiil ◽  
Z. Chrosciewicz
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Forest Ecosystems ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Close Association ◽  
The Public ◽  
Hazard Reduction ◽  
Resource Managers

Forest fires have played an important role in determining the type and composition of forest ecosystems in the temperate region of North America. The close association between fires and forest ecosystems has helped the resource manager to interpret the significance of fire in reforestation, which in turn has induced him to use burning for this specific purpose. Until very recently, however, most of the burns in Canada have been carried out primarily for slash-fire-hazard reduction. Considerations in the planning and use of prescribed fire for hazard reduction and reforestation are inextricably linked and sometimes complementary. In addition to protection and reforestation objectives, prescribed burning should find wide application in the management of wildlife habitats and watersheds. Recommendations are made to assist resource managers and the public in appreciating more fully the present and potential role of fire in the forest ecosystems.

Burning the Bush: The Development of Australia’s Southwest Botanical Province

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fiona Kost
Keyword(s):  
Land Management ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Aboriginal People ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Historical Records ◽  
The Past ◽  
Environmental Narratives ◽  
European Colonization ◽  
The Impact

Though early historical records frequently mention Aboriginal, or Noongar, firing in south-western Australia, little is known about how the Noongar people managed the vegetation with fire, or the impact this has had on the environment. This study uses interdisciplinary archaeology, with information from ethnographic data, historical records, and pollen records from the last 6,000 years to determine the actions of the Noongar people and demonstrate how the Southwest Botanical Province can be viewed as an artefact of Noongar land management. It is widely accepted that Aboriginal people have had an effect on some of Australia’s vegetation types through fire (Bowman 1998; Hallam 1975; Kershaw et al. 2002) although the extent of the influence of Aboriginal firing is debated (Mooney et al. 2007). However, pollen data and the study of fire indicators in Xanthorrhoea and Eucalyptus trunks have been used to demonstrate that the frequency of fire events in the south-west has decreased since European colonization (Atahan et al. 2004; Ward et al. 2001), resulting in the loss of fire-dependent vegetation species and changes in vegetation distribution patterns. This disruption of the vegetation communities has been compounded by the extensive clearing of land for farming and the displacement of the Noongar people (Dodson 2001). The impact that European colonization had on vegetation becomes more apparent as an understanding of the Noongar fire management practices is gained. There is increasing acknowledgement by researchers of the need to understand the influence of the past fire regime on vegetation patterns and to acknowledge traditional land management practices (Hopper and Gioia 2004), as well as the changes caused by European attempts to create a ‘natural’ regime, so that land management groups can take them into account when determining modern-day prescribed burning timetables. Archaeological studies such as this one can provide a unique insight into the past actions of people such as the Noongar, allowing us to determine how they shaped the landscape prior to European colonization (see Balée, Chapter 3 this volume for a more direct discussion of the ‘indigenous’ nature of pre-colonial landscapes; see Stump, Chapter 10 this volume for similar discussions of colonial and postcolonial environmental narratives).

Conifer Plantation Grazing and Fire Hazard Implications

1979 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 114-118
Author(s):  
Carl C. Wilson ◽  
Edwin H. Collins
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Cattle Grazing ◽  
Reduction Technique ◽  
Pine Plantations ◽  
Southern United States ◽  
Hazard Reduction ◽  
Conifer Plantation ◽  
Conifer Plantations

Abstract Fire losses occur in young conifer plantations in the southern United States each year primarily because of the hazardous grass and weeds surrounding the trees. Yet, the usual hazard-reduction technique of prescribed fire can't be used safely until the pine plantations reach at least six to eight feet in height. Cattle grazing will not only lessen the fuel hazard, but will also provide desirable forage without damaging the young trees if the livestock are well-managed.

scholarly journals The origins of prescribed burning in Scandinavian forestry: the seminal role of Joel Wretlind in the management of fire-dependent forests

2019 ◽  
Vol 139 (3) ◽  
pp. 393-406
Author(s):  
Sarah Cogos ◽  
Samuel Roturier ◽  
Lars Östlund
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Fire Suppression ◽  
Fire Regimes ◽  
The State ◽  
Natural Processes ◽  
Forest Manager ◽  
Forest District

AbstractIn Sweden, prescribed burning was trialed as early as the 1890s for forest regeneration purposes. However, the origins of prescribed burning in Sweden are commonly attributed to Joel Efraim Wretlind, forest manager in the State Forest district of Malå, Västerbotten County, from 1920 to 1952. To more fully understand the role he played in the development of prescribed burning and the extent of his burning, we examined historical records from the State Forest Company’s archive and Wretlind’s personal archive. The data showed that at least 11,208 ha was burned through prescribed burning between 1921 and 1970, representing 18.7% of the Malå state-owned forest area. Wretlind thus created a new forestry-driven fire regime, reaching, during peak years, extents close to historical fire regimes before the fire suppression era, and much higher than present-day burning. His use of prescribed fire to regenerate forests served as a guide for many other forest managers, spreading to all of northern Sweden during the 1950–1960s. Our analysis of Wretlind’s latest accounts also shows how he stood against the evolutions of modern forestry to defend a forestry system based on the reproduction of natural processes, such as fire.

Aversive behaviour by koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) during the course of a music festival in northern New South Wales, Australia

2016 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
New South ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Specific Stimulus ◽  
Phascolarctos Cinereus ◽  
Music Festival ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Core Areas

The effects of short-term disturbances that result in changes to movement patterns and/or behaviour of wildlife are poorly understood. In this study the movements of seven koalas were monitored before, during and after a five-day music festival. During the monitoring program koalas occupied home-range areas of 0.6–13 ha with one or more core areas of activity. Aversive behaviour in the form of evacuation of known ranging areas was demonstrated by three koalas that had core areas within 525 m of the approximate centre of the festival area, the associated responses comprising movements that were perpendicular to and away from staging areas where music was played. Responses contained within known ranging areas were observed in three other koalas whose core areas were located up to 600 m away. The type of response appeared related to the proximity of koala home ranges to music-staging areas, while the maximum distance associated with an aversive response was 725 m. Six of the radio-tracked koalas returned to their home-range areas following the conclusion of festival activities. While the specific stimulus eliciting aversive behaviour was not identified, responses in all instances were initiated during the musical phase of the festival event. The potential for short-term disturbances such as music festivals to significantly influence the ranging patterns of koalas warrants recognition of possible longer-term ecological consequences for planning and management purposes.

scholarly journals Soil Quality of Abandoned Agricultural Terraces Managed with Prescribed Fires and Livestock in the Municipality of Capafonts, Catalonia, Spain (2000–2017)

Agronomy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xavier Úbeda ◽  
Meritxell Alcañiz ◽  
Gonzalo Borges ◽  
Luis Outeiro ◽  
Marcos Francos
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Soil Conditions ◽  
Prescribed Fires ◽  
Agricultural Terraces ◽  
Prescribed Burns ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Village

The abandonment of the economic activities of agriculture, livestock, and forestry since the second half of the 20th century, in conjunction with the exodus of inhabitants from rural areas, has resulted in an increase in the forest mass as well as an expansion of forest areas. This, in turn, has led to a greater risk of forest fires and an increase in the intensity and severity of these fires. Moreover, these forest masses represent a fire hazard to adjacent urban areas, which is a problem illustrated here by the village of Capafonts, whose former agricultural terraces have been invaded by shrubs, and which in the event of fire runs the risk of aiding the propagation of the flames from the forest to the village’s homes. One of the tools available to reduce the amount of fuel in zones adjoining inhabited areas is prescribed burns. The local authorities have also promoted measures to convert these terraces into pasture; in this way, the grazing of livestock (in this particular instance, goats) aims to keep fuel levels low and thus reduce the risk of fire. The use of prescribed fires is controversial, as they are believed to be highly aggressive for the soil, and little is known about their long-term effects. The alternation of the two strategies is more acceptable—that is, the use of prescribed burning followed by the grazing of livestock. Yet, similarly little is known about the effects of this management sequence on the soil. As such, this study seeks to examine the impact of the management of the abandoned terraces of Capafonts by means of two prescribed fires (2000 and 2002), which were designed specifically to prevent forest fires from reaching the village. Following these two prescribed burns, a herd of goats began to graze these terraces in 2005. Here, we report the results of soil analyses conducted during this period of years up to and including 2017. A plot comprising 30 sampling points was established on one of the terraces and used to monitor its main soil quality properties. The data were subject to statistical tests to determine whether the recorded changes were significant. The results show modifications to the concentration of soil elements, and since the first prescribed burn, these changes have all been statistically significant. We compare our results with those reported in other studies that evaluate optimum soil concentrations for the adequate growth of grazing to feed goats, and conclude that the soil conditions on the terrace after 17 years are optimum for livestock use.

scholarly journals Annual vs. Multiple-Year Home Range Sizes of Individual Blanding's Turtles, Emydoidea blandingii, in Central Wisconsin

2008 ◽  
Vol 122 (1) ◽  
pp. 61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Schuler ◽  
Richard P. Thiel
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Space Use ◽  
Home Range Size ◽  
Range Size ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Convex Polygons ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Emydoidea Blandingii ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Short Time

Most studies of home ranges occur over short time periods and may not represent the spacial requirements of long-lived organisms such as turtles. Home ranges of 18 individual Blanding’s Turtles (Emydoidea blandingii) were measured using minimum convex polygons. Annual space use was compared to multi-year space use by individual turtles. We found a significant difference between annual home range size (25.5 hectares) and multi-year (two to six years) home range size (65.7 hectares; n = 18, P = 0.016). Caution should be employed when making management decisions based on short-term studies of long lived species.

Social Structure and Patterns of Movement of the Western Pebble-mound Mouse, Pseudomys chapmani, at Marandoo, Western Australia

1997 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 295 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. D. Anstee ◽  
J. D. Roberts ◽  
J. E. O'Shea
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Home Range Size ◽  
Ore Deposits ◽  
Core Area ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Economic Significance ◽  
Iron Ore Deposits ◽  
The Individual ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Impact

Mounds of the western pebble-mound mouse, Pseudomys chapmani, are found throughout the species’ Pilbara range in areas with iron-ore deposits of economic significance. Translocation techniques are being examined as a means of minimising the impact of mining on this species. In the absence of detailed information on the biology of Pseudomys chapmani, translocation is inadvisable. To provide such basic information, animal densities, mound demographics and population sizes, and home-range and core-area sizes were obtained by a combination of trapping and radio-tracking. Mounds of Pseudomys chapmani were found to be inhabited by social groups of up to 12 animals. Estimates of home-range size gave mean ( s.e.) values of 14·4 6·7 ha and 4·6 2·7 ha for males and females, respectively; core areas were recorded at 0·93 0·29 ha for males and 0·29 0·16 ha for females. Considerable overlap of home ranges was recorded between individuals from the same and different mounds. Overlap at the core-area level occurred only between individuals from the same mound. The high level of social complexity and mound fidelity indicates that translocations should be directed at the level of the social group rather than at the level of the individual.

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