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Applied Sciences
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Fires and Modelling for Succession in Forests
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Fires and Modelling for Succession in Forests

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 December 2021) | Viewed by 5840

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Rubén Díaz-Sierra

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Mathematical and Fluid Physics Department, National Distance Education University, Madrid, Spain
Interests: population dynamics; population biology; vegetation ecology; community ecology; ecological restoration; environmental impact assessment; population ecology; artificial neural networks; differential equations; vegetation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fire regimes are recurrent extreme perturbations that play a major role in determining the composition and function of forests. Post-fire vegetation dynamics are highly complex and encompass multiple processes that interact at different scales. Alternative successional trajectories may result in sharp vegetation shifts, including deforestation, and produce major losses in ecosystem service supplies. Importantly, different plant traits affect the intensity of wildfires and their ability to regenerate. Trade-offs among fire resistance, post-fire regeneration, resilience to other stressors and plant competition for resources play different roles depending on related history (e.g., previous fires or droughts) and environmental conditions. Although much experimental information is already available, many potential effects, scenarios and factor combinations remain untested. In addition, general frameworks and more detailed models (process-based, stochastic, space explicit, etc.) for successional dynamic forecast and forest management need to be further developed. Furthermore, understanding the interaction between global change drivers and successional dynamics is crucial in order to anticipate the vulnerability and the fate of endangered forests.

This Special Issue of Applied Sciences is focused on compiling and presenting experimental data or models on the processes affecting state transitions and community change following forest wildfires. Original articles and reviews related to this topic are welcome. Specific topics of interest include but are not limited to: potential effects of the changing climate; the role of erosion processes; shifts in ecosystem services; fire-induced deforestation; management strategies (prescribed fires and restoration); competition models; non-linear models; exotic species invasions.

Prof. Dr. Rubén Díaz-Sierra
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1688 KiB  
Article
Tree Growth Response to Low-Intensity Prescribed Burning in Pinus nigra Stands: Effects of Burn Season and Fire Severity
by Juncal Espinosa, Dario Martin-Benito, Óscar Rodríguez de Rivera, Carmen Hernando, Mercedes Guijarro and Javier Madrigal
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(16), 7462; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11167462 - 13 Aug 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2264
Abstract
The study of the short-term post-burn tree growth in a mixed stand of Pinus nigra and Pinus pinaster and in a pure stand of P. nigra in the Cuenca Mountains (Spain) will enable us to determine the disturbance of prescribed burning conducted in [...] Read more.
The study of the short-term post-burn tree growth in a mixed stand of Pinus nigra and Pinus pinaster and in a pure stand of P. nigra in the Cuenca Mountains (Spain) will enable us to determine the disturbance of prescribed burning conducted in two seasons. Dendrochronological methods and mixed modelling were used to investigate whether tree growth responses are influenced by stand and tree characteristics, fire season and fire severity variables. The findings revealed that prescribed burning scarcely affected tree growth. The type of stand (mixed or pure) was not critical for tree growth. The individual tree characteristics were significant factors in all the scenarios studied. The inclusion of some fire severity variables for the first time in tree growth models showed that the maximum scorch height determined a main part of the variability of tree growth. The time during which the temperature was above 60 °C in the cambium region and temperature was above 300 °C in the bark surface were only significant factors after spring burnings. The litterfall one year after the prescribed burning was not a significant factor in any of the models. Overall, the findings confirm the characteristic resistance of P. nigra to surface fires and favor the potential application of prescribed burning programs for this species in the Mediterranean Basin. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fires and Modelling for Succession in Forests)
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17 pages, 3163 KiB  
Article
The Long-Term Consequences of Forest Fires on the Carbon Fluxes of a Tropical Forest in Africa
by Rico Fischer
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(10), 4696; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11104696 - 20 May 2021
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3095
Abstract
Tropical forests are an important component of the global carbon cycle, as they store large amounts of carbon. In some tropical regions, the forests are increasingly influenced by disturbances such as fires, which lead to structural changes but also alter species composition, forest [...] Read more.
Tropical forests are an important component of the global carbon cycle, as they store large amounts of carbon. In some tropical regions, the forests are increasingly influenced by disturbances such as fires, which lead to structural changes but also alter species composition, forest succession, and carbon balance. However, the long-term consequences on forest functioning are difficult to assess. The majority of all global forest fires are found in Africa. In this study, a forest model was extended by a fire model to investigate the long-term effects of forest fires on biomass, carbon fluxes, and species composition of tropical forests at Mt. Kilimanjaro (Tanzania). According to this modeling study, forest biomass was reduced by 46% by fires and even by 80% when fires reoccur. Forest regeneration lasted more than 100 years to recover to pre-fire state. Productivity and respiration were up to 4 times higher after the fire than before the fire, which was mainly due to pioneer species in the regeneration phase. Considering the full carbon balance of the regrowing forest, it takes more than 150 years to compensate for the carbon emissions caused by the forest fire. However, functional diversity increases after a fire, as fire-tolerant tree species and pioneer species dominate a fire-affected forest area and thus alter the forest succession. This study shows that forest models can be suitable tools to simulate the dynamics of tropical forests and to assess the long-term consequences of fires. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fires and Modelling for Succession in Forests)
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