Comprehensive Study of Fire Regimes and Their Impact on Ecosystems

This report comprehensively examines fire regimes across various types of vegetation, exploring their historical context, causes (including lightning, dry conditions, and human activities), and characteristics. It details different fire types like ground, surface, and crown fires, and discusses the impact of climatic changes and invasive species on fire regimes. The study highlights risks to humans, animals, and other organisms, incorporating pyrogeography and its applications. It concludes with recommendations for detection, prevention, and suppression of wildfires, emphasizing the need for understanding fire regimes in the face of global warming and its adverse effects. The report emphasizes the need for effective management and control to mitigate the risks associated with uncontrolled wildfires and protect valuable resources, flora, and fauna.

Running Head: FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
Name of the Student
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Author Note

1FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
Executive Summary
This paper aims to understand the fire regimes practiced and observed in the various forms of
wildlife and ecology. It assess the nature of the different forms of fire and regimes that can
look into the adverse effects of these situations, such that they are under control and do not
pose dangerous risks to humans and animals. Such fires could lead to wide-scale loss of
valuable resources and cause an extinction of many rare species of flora and fauna. The study
further, recommends methods to control such instances through the different fire regimes in a
situation of climate and topography that is intensely threatened by the growing negative
effects of global warming and accumulation of greenhouse gases, soaring high the
temperature and pollution levels across the globe.

2FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Discussion..................................................................................................................................4
History....................................................................................................................................4
Causes....................................................................................................................................5
Characteristics........................................................................................................................7
Mapping.................................................................................................................................9
Climatic Changes.................................................................................................................10
Invasive Species...................................................................................................................10
Risks to Humans, Animals and other Organisms.................................................................11
Pyrogeography and its applications.....................................................................................12
Recommendations....................................................................................................................13
Detection, Prevention & Suppression..................................................................................13
Conclusion................................................................................................................................14
References................................................................................................................................16

3FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
Introduction
This paper aims to study the concept of fire regimes and the various types of fire
regimes across the globe. Fire regime is a form, frequency and strength of the wildfires and
bushfires, which prevails in a region for a long time. Wildfires occur in areas of vegetation
that are of combustible nature, mostly occurring in the rural regions. While bushfires,
common in Australia, occur during the months that are comparatively warmer, due to the hot
and dry climatic conditions. Similarly, brush fire, desert fire, hill fire, forest fire, peat fire,
grass fire, vegetation fire or veld fire are the different kinds of fires that classifies under the
broad name of wildfire, wild land fire, or rural fire. For millions of years, the indigenous
people have used the fire to enhance the grasslands for the purposes of hunting or clear out
the tracks amidst dense vegetation. However, these fires have also resulted into firestorms,
leading to a huge loss of life, comprising of the flora and fauna. The deposition of huge
amounts of methane gas in swampy interiors of the forests or dry and dead remains of
vegetation adds to the intensity of such fires in the wild. Besides these, conditions of drought
and heat waves add to the situation of fire. The rise in global warming is also increasing the
frequency and adding to the strength of these fires. Names such as Ash Wednesday (1983),
Black Saturday (2009) or Eastern Victorian Alpine bushfire (2006) are popular in Australia
for the bushfires that started on these days, as named, killing a large number of people
besides the animas in these grasslands (Cattau, Husson & Cheyne, 2015). Fire regimes
change, based on spatial and temporal variations like climate, topography, and fuel.
Preventions and care can be taken to effectively prevent such uncontrolled outburst of forest
fires by understanding the historic regimes of fire and their interactions with the climatic
changes. The study further, looks into the study to understand the severity of the fire regimes
besides the classifications that incorporate the various fire types like ground, surface or crown
fires, depending on the size, intensity, seasonality as well as the degree of variability in these

4FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
fire regimes. However, fossil charcoal presents the fact that wildfires are not something new
but their appearance started nearly after the germination of terrestrial vegetation, about 420
million years ago. Being rich in carbon, the earth features to be a flammable planet,
intrinsically with its volcanic eruptions, carbon-rich vegetation and life forms, seasonally
prevalent dry climatic conditions, widespread lightning and the presence of atmospheric
oxygen.
Discussion
History
The increase in the fire regimes across the continents primarily attributes to
the climatic changes as the prime reason for such increase in their number,
overshadowing the human activities that remain as potential threat to the ecology. It
has been noticed that there has been a pronounced scale of land use from the primitive
times that doubled the increase in the forest fires in the Southern Europe at the
commencement of the Neolithic Age (8000-6000 years) to the Bronze Age (5000-
4000 years) to the medieval period (1000 years); in comparison to the Holocene
average that records for the last 115000 years (Vannière et al., 2016). However, it has
been noted that there has been a considerable decline in the emissions of fire-carbon
in the Southern Europe since the last 7000 years (Vannière et al., 2016). This was
primarily due to the cooling off the earth and increased use of the land, thereby
reducing the availability of biomass. In New Zealand and Australia, the collective
effects of the Maori as well as the European fires have reduced the forest cover from
85 – 90 percent to only 25 percent of the terrestrial ecosystem of the New Zealand
(Perry, Wilmshurst & McGlone, 2014). This has reduced the biodiversity as well as
the rate of pollination and dispersal of seeds.

5FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
Causes
The wildfires comprise of the various kinds of fire regimes as mentioned
earlier. Fire is a complicated physical as well as ecological process that dramatically
affects the landscapes, organisms, ecosystems, climate and the biodiversity in the era
of post-settlement. Recurrent fires and their persistence threatens the indigenous
species of plant as well as the ecosystems, which are highly-valued. The primary
causes of such ignitions are:
 Lightning — In the West, the frequency of fires owes more to the
lightning than other reasons. Vale (2013) states that forest fires
originate due to the availability of two substances: a source of ignition
and a fuel. In case of natural fires, the source of ignition is lightning if
not any form of human activity. However, the fuel here acts as the
combustible substances found in the forests like the dried leaves and/
or twigs, marshy or swampy lands with an accumulation of fuels or
marsh gas, chemically known as methane.
 Dry climatic conditions — The increase in the heat and rising
temperatures often lead to situations of drought where the heat from
the Sun also has the potentiality to char dried leaves. In these
situations, any form of ignitions takes no time to spread the fire,
making it difficult to control the spread of such fires.
 Accumulation of inflammable gases like methane in the forest
wetlands — Accumulation of gases in the dense marshlands of the
forests or the wetlands, leads to deposition of fuels which can catch
fire very easily and lead to the spread of the same in no time, owing to
the dense nature of such forests.

6FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
 Volcanic Eruptions — Natural sources of ignitions like volcanic
activities also add to fires besides lightning, gas emissions and
landslides (where large rocks, flint, fall upon each other and experience
a high frequency of friction, leading to fires) (Ganteaume et al., 2013).
It is prevalent in the west for its increase in the number of volcanic
belts. Eruptions at El Chicón, Mexico (1982) and Mount Pinatubo are
other situations of pyroclastic flows of hot lava (200 - 700 degree
Celsius) that resulted in rapid destructions due to forest fires
(American Geosciences Institute, 2019). Such instances are more
common in the regions of Mediterranean, Hawaii and America.
Gennaretti et al., (2014) states that the volcanic eruptions have led to
the increase in the temperatures in Eastern Canada during the past
millennium. It has not only increased the temperatures on a decadal
scale but also lead to a strong influence of temperature variability as
observed on the century- scale in NENA (North-eastern North
America), shown by the Bayesian analysis of the shifts in regime in
STREC (Summer Temperature Reconstruction for Eastern Canada).
 Global Warming — Gases like methane, carbon dioxide, water vapor,
ozone, chlorofluorocarbons, hydroflurocarbons, nitrous oxide, sulfur
dioxide and others, liberated from the greenhouse effect, are circling
the earth’s environment. This blanket prevents the long wavelength of
the Sun’s rays to reflect back and escape the earth’s atmosphere,
thereby raising the atmospheric temperature and disrupting the climatic
balance.

7FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
 Human Activities — Human beings often dispose-off discarded
cigarettes, which leads to outburst of huge fires from such small
sparks. Use of arson, a criminal activity to purposefully set a forest,
vegetation or building on fire besides arc mappings, a method to detect
electrical power-lines that can lead to a situation of fire are common
instances.
Characteristics
The general spatial and temporal patterns of behavior of fire besides its effects
in the boundaries of a definite type of vegetation or ecosystem across a long time
span, comprising of multiple cycles of fire over tens and hundreds of years determines
the fire regimes for a particular period for a particular or any other given ecosystem
(Firescience.gov, 2019). These regimes are useful as they help to study the various
fire regimes, their role in relative understanding of the ecosystem. It helps to describe
the level of departure, as analyzed from a historical condition to project the potential
results of the activities put forth by the management. It also studies the climatic
changes and the changing patterns of ignition from the historic times to the modern
days. There are different regimes of fire, classified as follows:
 Ground Fire — Ground Fires are those that burn out of the organic
materials, collected on the surface like peat or deep duff layers and/ or
the subterranean roots. The ground fires tend to undergo a huge
amount of combustion of the smoldering type with less active flaming,
as compared to the other types of fires. They may destroy and kill the
roots of the over-storied species due to the soaring high temperatures
and prolonged heat in the zone of rooting. It is very susceptible to
ignition from any kind of spotting. These kind of peat fires are very

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predominant in Eastern Sumatra, Kalimantan and Indonesia, borne out
of projects aimed at creating rice-land projects like The Mega Rice
Project (1996), draining and drying the peat unintentionally (Moore et
al., 2013).
 Surface Fire — These fires only burn thee lower most regions of the
layer of vegetation, composed of grasses, mosses, low shrubs, herbs
and/ or lichens. In the savannas, forests and woodlands, these fires
occur from a low to moderate level, where they do not lead to cause
any extensive mortality to the over-storied vegetation. These are
fuelled by the debris, occasionally lying on the forest floor like timber
litter, twigs, and leaves and so on. They spread at a very low rate,
however, fast moving winds can accelerate their speed and peak them
high easily.
 Crown Fire — These kinds of fires are suspended, that is, they burn
through the upper part of the trees or a shrub canopy. However, in
most of the cases, the heat generated spreads and destroys the under-
storied vegetation as well. However, a crown fire depends on the
species to interpret its dominance in terms of its lethalness. A typical
example of the same shall be a lot of shrubs and broad leaved trees,
which sprout right from their roots, stem bases or root crowns, once
their top parts are destroyed in the fire. It is also observed that a fire of
this type occurs in small or large patches with a burn of low-severity,
however, it may continue for a long time. This kind of file is also
known as the Canopy Fire and is dependent on the material suspended,
the height of the canopy, the continuity of the canopy, vegetation

9FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
moisture, ladder fires and sufficient space for the surface besides the
weather conditions. This is the same kind of fire that is burning the
Amazon Rainforest, caused by human activities, also known as the
‘Stand-lit Fires’, which is not suited or helpful, considering the present
climatic situations (Watts, 2019).
 Understory or Sub-Canopy Fire — This is a kind of fire that burns the
tall trees or shrubs lying under the larger canopies. However, based on
the structure, it can also be named as the Surface Fire.
 Stand Replacement Fire — A Stand Replacement Fire as mentioned
above is a kind of fire that is very lethal to most of the vegetation
above the ground. It has serious implications and can change the
structure of the vegetation as well. The can occur anywhere in the
savannas, woodlands, shrublands, forests and the annual grasslands
(Firescience.gov, 2019). They can be of any of the above types like,
crown fires, ground fires or high – severity fires.
 Mixed Severity Fire — The severity of fires in the various types of
vegetation depends on anything between the Non-Lethal Under-storied
Fire to the Lethal Stand Replacement Fire, varying in space and time.
The fuel condition, vegetation type and the weather determines the
severity of such fires. It is also dependent on the spatial function of the
landscape, depending on the complexity and pattern of the vegetation.
Mapping
Present day studies on fire histories and occurrences records and maps these
regions to understand and analyze such situations using remote sensing technology.
Using databases of such fires can calculate and estimate the loss to the ecology in

10FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
terms of biodiversity and resources. Currently, the death and destruction in the
Amazon Rainforest that originated due to human activities but left the global climate
and topography in a threatening place. The Amazon Rainforests impart to almost 20
percent of the oxygen used by the animals and humans of this earth after the large
scale depletion of the green cover (Kettley, 2019). The Canadian National Fire
Database has been, by far, the richest recorder of such statistics and database,
recording events since 1980s with data of fires since 1959. The Monitoring Trends in
Burn Severity (MTBS) Project by the United States uses data from satellite to map
fires since 1984 (Hamilton & Hann, 2015). The Landscape Fire and Resource
Management Planning Tools (LANDFIRE) is also a similar example of a tool that
maps and models the systems used in the United States by collecting data and
analyzing the vegetation, fuel, fire regimes across the various landscapes. LANDFIRE
is a program of collaborative nature between the Department of Agriculture and
Department of Interior, which provides geo-spatial data to study fire regimes based on
habitat, vegetation, types of fires and the carbon sources or sinks besides others (Ryan
& Opperman, 2013).
Climatic Changes
The models in controlled used of fire regimes have failed subsequently and
lead to a situation where the frequency of fires have gone up higher in number while
the growth of plants is lower. There is a huge gap in between these that has resulted in
the increase of global temperatures. In addition to these, pollution levels and rising
global warming has resulted in the melting of glaciers and making the climate drier
and hotter. It has also led to the melting of permafrost layers, activating germs and
bacteria that are not only harmful for human existence but affect animals also
considerably (Su et al., 2014). With the increase in the population there is not only a

11FIRE REGIMES IN VARIOUS TYPES OF VEGETATION
rising demand for land and food but also of oxygen. Thus, there is a huge gap created
in between the supplies and demands, disrupting the natural ecosystem and the
organic cycles for restoring the abiotic components required for a sustainable survival
(Stephens et al., 2013).
Invasive Species
The invasive species that remains in a threatening situation, primarily due to
the Fire Regimes are — Cheatgrass and Brazilian pepper tree. These are two very
common and popular examples. Cheatgrass is an invasive species that changed the
fire regime in Western North America. This plant, is scientifically named Bromus
tectorum. The forest fires in the Snake River Plain sagebrush returns at an interval of
60-110 years in this region (Priyanka, & Joshi, 2013). However, due to the presence
of Cheatgrass, it has increased the fires causing it at an interval of 5 years, as it serves
as an excellent fuel (Hulme et al., 2013). This makes it difficult for the indigenous
and native vegetation to recover itself completely after a fire.
The Brazilian pepper tree is another such example, found in Argentina, Brazil,
and Paraguay. Its scientific name is, Schinus terebinthifolia (Priyanka, & Joshi, 2013).
The plant is now found in Australia, South Asia, South Africa, Mediterranean regions,
the United States as well as in South Florida. The plant outcompetes other native
plants to create its own monoculture community. It is fire-adapted and produces
sprouts that germinate and grow very fast and very easily.
Risks to Humans, Animals and other Organisms
The various risks that the fire regimes pose to human and animal lives are as
follows —