Effects of desert wildfires on desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) and other small vertebrates
Esque TC, Schwalbe CR, Defalco LA, Duncan RB, Hughes TJ. 2003. Effects of desert wildfires on desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) and other small vertebrates. The Southwestern Naturalist. 48(1):103-111
To determine the effects of wildfires on desert tortoises and their habitats, the authors surveyed 6 burned areas in northeastern Mojave and Sonoran Deserts. The direct effects of the fire include loss of vegetation cover and small vertebrate and desert tortoise mortality. Indirect effects of the vegetation loss might result in changes in vertebrate communities, dietary composition, and an increase in predation.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Esque, Todd; Schwalbe, Cecil; Defalco, Lesley; Duncan, Russell; Hughes, Timothy
- Units
- JOTR , MOJA , SAGU
- Keywords
- Absence (Biodiversity), alien grasses, Fire Management, Gopherus agassizii (Desert Tortoise), Mojave Desert, Presence (Biodiversity), Reptile, Reptilia (Reptiles), small vertebrate, Sonoran Desert, Taxa Links To References, Testudines, Testudinidae (Tortoises), Vegetation Communities, wildlife mortality