Fire influences in Abies-dominated forests
Furyaev V, Wein RW, MacLean DA. 1983. Fire influences in Abies-dominated forests. Pages 221-235. In Wein RW and MacLean DA. The role of fire in northern circumpolar ecosystems. John Wiley and Sons, Ltd. New York City. SCOPE 18
Abies-dominated forests have a relatively low fire hazard when compared with vegetation types dominated by Pinus or Picea species. When fire occurs after prolonged drought periods, fir can be essentially eliminated from an area because it is not resistant to fire. Abies spp. tend to be shade tolerant, late-successional species and only in the absence of fire do they compete successfully with species established early in the post-fire pattern. Abies-dominated forests are more susceptible to fire following disturbance which damages or removes tree crowns, and in turn permits solar energy to reduce the moisture content of forest floor fuels. Forest harvesting is one of the recent disturbances, but it is thought that defoliation and tree mortality caused by insects also increase fire hazard. This insect-wildfire hypothesis has been raised in a number of Abies-dominated areas around the world and seems intuitively plausible; yet there is little field evidence and very little experimental evidence to support the hypothesis.
- Type
- Book Chapter
- Authors
- Furyaev, VV; Wein, R; MacLean, D
- Units
- APIS , GRPO , ISRO , VOYA
- Keywords
- Balsam Fir, Disturbance, FIRE, Fire Ecology, fire hazard, Forestry, Plant Communities