Effect of patches of woody vegetation on the role of fire in tropical grasslands and savannas
| Autor: | Thomas A. Groen, Ian Gaigher, Ignas M. A. Heitkönig, F. van Langevelde, C.P.G.M. de Groot |
|---|---|
| Přispěvatelé: | Department of Natural Resources, UT-I-ITC-FORAGES, Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation |
| Rok vydání: | 2014 |
| Předmět: |
national-park
Biome Poison control Tropical and subtropical grasslands savannas and shrublands METIS-303438 semiarid woodland Grassland tree cover medicine geography.geographical_feature_category Ecology Fire regime plants south-africa neotropical savanna Forestry dynamics PE&RC Spatial heterogeneity Geography Boreal Wildlife Ecology and Conservation frequency medicine.symptom ecosystems intensity Vegetation (pathology) |
| Zdroj: | International Journal of Wildland Fire 23 (2014) 3 International Journal of Wildland Fire, 23(3), 410-416 International journal of wildland fire, 23(3), 410-416. CSIRO |
| ISSN: | 1049-8001 |
| DOI: | 10.1071/wf13119 |
| Popis: | In tropical grasslands and savannas, fire is used to reduce woody vegetation expansion. Woody vegetation in these biomes is often patchily distributed, and micro-climatic conditions can largely vary locally with unknown consequences for fire effects. We hypothesised that (1) fire has higher temperature and maintains high temperatures for a longer period at the windward side than at the leeward side of wooded patches, (2) this difference increases with patch size, (3) fire has a larger effect on woody vegetation at the windward side than at the leeward side of wooded patches and (4) this effect increases with patch size. We planted tree seedlings around wooded patches in a grassland and burnt these plots. We found that fire had a lower temperature and had an elevated temperature for a shorter time period at the leeward side of wooded patches than at the windward side. Also, we found smaller effect of fire on the seedlings at the leeward side. We conclude that patches of woody vegetation can have a large effect on the role of fire in tropical grasslands and savannas. This effect suggests a ‘safe zone’ for seedlings at the leeward side, which consequently promotes woody vegetation expansion. This paper contributes to understanding of the effect of patchiness of woody vegetation on the role of fire in tropical grasslands and savannas in reducing woody vegetation expansion. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|