scholarly journals Spatially explicit fire-climate history of the boreal forest-tundra (Eastern Canada) over the last 2000 years

2007 ◽  
Vol 363 (1501) ◽  
pp. 2299-2314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Serge Payette ◽  
Louise Filion ◽  
Ann Delwaide
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Fire History ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Tree Regeneration ◽  
Spatially Explicit ◽  
Fire Event ◽  
Climate History ◽  
Forest Tundra ◽  
Disturbance Factor ◽  
History Of

Across the boreal forest, fire is the main disturbance factor and driver of ecosystem changes. In this study, we reconstructed a long-term, spatially explicit fire history of a forest-tundra region in northeastern Canada. We hypothesized that current occupation of similar topographic and edaphic sites by tundra and forest was the consequence of cumulative regression with time of forest cover due to compounding fire and climate disturbances. All fires were mapped and dated per 100 year intervals over the last 2000 years using several fire dating techniques. Past fire occurrences and post-fire regeneration at the northern forest limit indicate 70% reduction of forest cover since 1800 yr BP and nearly complete cessation of forest regeneration since 900 yr BP. Regression of forest cover was particularly important between 1500s–1700s and possibly since 900 yr BP. Although fire frequency was very low over the last 100 years, each fire event was followed by drastic removal of spruce cover. Contrary to widespread belief of northward boreal forest expansion due to recent warming, lack of post-fire recovery during the last centuries, in comparison with active tree regeneration more than 1000 years ago, indicates that the current climate does not favour such expansion.

Fire history of the central boreal forest in eastern North America reveals stability since the mid-Holocene

The Holocene ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 25 (12) ◽  
pp. 1912-1922 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathieu Frégeau ◽  
Serge Payette ◽  
Pierre Grondin
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Fire History ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
History Of

scholarly journals Vegetation dynamics and Fire History in Färnebofjärden National Park, Central Sweden

The Holocene ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-37
Author(s):  
Gina E Hannon ◽  
Karen Halsall ◽  
Chiara Molinari ◽  
Erin Stoll ◽  
Diana Lilley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
National Park ◽  
Fire History ◽  
Plant Macrofossils ◽  
Natural Fire ◽  
Disturbance Factor ◽  
Long Time ◽  
History Of ◽  
Flooding Events

Palaeoecological studies can identify past trends in vegetation communities and processes over long time scales. Pollen, plant macrofossils and charcoal analyses are used to reconstruct vegetation over the last 6400 years and provide information about former human impact and disturbance regimes in Färnebofjärden National Park, Central Sweden. Three specific conservation planning topics were addressed: (1) the changing ratio of conifers to broadleaved trees; (2) the origin and history of the river meadows and the biodiverse Populus tremula meadows; (3) the role of fire in the maintenance of biological values. Early diverse mixed broadleaved forest assemblages with pine were followed by significant declines of the more thermophilic forest elements prior to the expansion of spruce in the Iron Age. The rise to dominance of spruce was a ‘natural’ process that has been exaggerated by anthropogenic disturbance to artificially high levels today. The initial river meadow communities were facilitated by fire and frequent flooding events, but subsequent dynamics have more definitely been supported by human activities. Rural abandonment during the last 100 years has led to woody successions. Fire has been a continual disturbance factor with an influence on conservation issues such as Picea abies dominance and the maintenance of diverse, non-forest communities. Present occurrence of fire is unusually low, but natural fire frequencies are increasing in the region.

352 years long fire history of a Siberian boreal forest and its primary driving factor

2021 ◽  
Vol 207 ◽  
pp. 103653
Author(s):  
Zhou Wang ◽  
Jian-Guo Huang ◽  
Nina Ryzhkova ◽  
Jingye Li ◽  
Alexander Kryshen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Fire History ◽  
Driving Factor ◽  
History Of

scholarly journals Integrating fire-scar, charcoal and fungal spore data to study fire events in the boreal forest of northern Europe

The Holocene ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (9) ◽  
pp. 1480-1490 ◽  
Author(s):  
Normunds Stivrins ◽  
Tuomas Aakala ◽  
Liisa Ilvonen ◽  
Leena Pasanen ◽  
Timo Kuuluvainen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Tree Rings ◽  
Fire History ◽  
Statistical Tests ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Fungal Spores ◽  
Fire Dynamics ◽  
Fire Scars ◽  
Fire Event ◽  
Fire Scar

Fire is a major disturbance agent in the boreal forest, influencing many current and future ecosystem conditions and services. Surprisingly few studies have attempted to improve the accuracy of fire-event reconstructions even though the estimates of the occurrence of past fires may be biased, influencing the reliability of the models employing those data (e.g. C stock, cycle). This study aimed to demonstrate how three types of fire proxies – fire scars from tree rings, sedimentary charcoal and, for the first time in this context, fungal spores of Neurospora – can be integrated to achieve a better understanding of past fire dynamics. By studying charcoal and Neurospora from sediment cores from forest hollows, and the fire scars from tree rings in their surroundings in the southern Fennoscandian and western Russian boreal forest, we produced composite fire-event data sets and fire-event frequencies, and estimated fire return intervals. Our estimates show that the fire return interval varied between 126 and 237 years during the last 11,000 years. The highest fire frequency during the 18th–19th century can be associated with the anthropogenic influence. Importantly, statistical tests revealed a positive relationship between other fire event indicators and Neurospora occurrence allowing us to pinpoint past fire events at times when the sedimentary charcoal was absent, but Neurospora were abundant. We demonstrated how fire proxies with different temporal resolution can be linked, providing potential improvements in the reliability of fire history reconstructions from multiple proxies.

The history and pattern of fire in the boreal forest of southeastern Labrador

1983 ◽  
Vol 61 (9) ◽  
pp. 2459-2471 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Foster
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Fire History ◽  
Fire Regimes ◽  
Strongly Correlated ◽  
History Of ◽  
Large Fires ◽  
Modern Landscape ◽  
Fire Incidence ◽  
Topographic Relief ◽  
Birch Forests

The fire history of the wilderness of southeastern Labrador is marked by a patchy distribution of large fires in time and space. During the 110-year period encompassed by this study, major fires occurred in four decades, 1870–1879, 1890–1899, 1950–1959, 1970–1979. From 1900 to 1951 only 1125 km2 burned; this represents approximately 10% of the total area consumed from 1870 to 1980. Fire records indicate an asynchroneity of the important fire years in southeastern Labrador and adjacent provinces and within Labrador itself. This observation suggests that the meteorological conditions controlling fire occurrence in this portion of the eastern boreal forest are local in nature and extent. The fire rotation for southeastern Labrador is calculated at approximately 500 years, significantly longer than that estimated for other regions of boreal forest. The rare occurrence of large fires is explained by high levels of precipitation and by the preponderance of fire breaks, primarily lakes and peatlands. On the basis of physiographic criteria the region is subdivided into two types of landscape displaying contrasting fire regimes. The large interior plateau, which is covered by extensive peatlands and numerous lakes, has a low fire incidence and extremely long fire rotation. In contrast, large fires are common in the watersheds of the Alexis, Paradise, and St. Augustin rivers where the topographic relief is quite varied and peatlands are scarce. The regional pattern of fire activity has important phytogeographical implications. The lichen woodlands and birch forests are fire-dependent vegetation types; their distribution in the modern landscape is strongly correlated with the historical occurrence of fire during the past 110 years. In addition it is postulated that the historical absence of fire across the large plains in southeastern Labrador has contributed to the development of extensive peatlands in these areas.

scholarly journals Long-term fire history of maple (Acer) forest sites in the central St. Lawrence Lowland, Quebec

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 822-831 ◽  
Author(s):  
Serge Payette ◽  
Vanessa Pilon ◽  
Pierre-Luc Couillard ◽  
Mathieu Frégeau
Keyword(s):  
Sugar Maple ◽  
Fire History ◽  
Mixed Forest ◽  
Acer Rubrum ◽  
Quebec City ◽  
Red Maple ◽  
Conifer Forest ◽  
Disturbance Factor ◽  
History Of

In the St-Lawrence lowlands, sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) is considered the dominant species of old-growth deciduous forests, whereas red maple (Acer rubrum L.) tends to dominate sites recently disturbed by logging and agricultural practices. Considering that the long-term influence of fire is not documented for such stands, we reconstructed the postglacial tree composition (as deduced from charcoal species) and fire history of a sugar maple stand (Ste-Françoise area) and a red maple stand (Villeroy area) located southwest of Québec City, Canada. The sites are 10 km apart and show contrasting soil and landform features. Using botanical identification and 14C dating of soil macrocharcoal, we found that fire struck both maple stands 14–20 times since deglaciation. Most fires occurred in the early Holocene and during the last 2000 years, with the mid Holocene being a period with low fire frequency or no fires. During the last 1600 years, the Villeroy stand shifted from a Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carrière – conifer forest to a mixed forest and, most recently, to a red maple stand as fire became more frequent, possibly due to human activities of the last 400 years. This study confirms the influence of fire on the development of maple forests. Fire should be considered as an important disturbance factor in the dynamics of temperate deciduous and mixed forests.

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