Native peoples as ignition sources in coastal conifer forests of the Upper Great Lakes
Loope WL. 1993. Native peoples as ignition sources in coastal conifer forests of the Upper Great Lakes. Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America. 74(2):336
Frequency of fire before European settlement was determined by examining fire scarred stumps and fire scarred, living pines from pine forest patches along the shore of Lake Superior. Partial sections of trees were removed and tree rings were counted. Average time between ground fires was 22.9 yrs. Records of regional lightening strikes indicates that the fires were too frequent for all to have been caused by lightening. Historical documents, soil properties, and fuel loading patterns support the hypothesis that native peoples were involved in the ignition of fires at their summer camps near the mouths of rivers.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Loope, Walter
- Units
- PIRO
- Keywords
- Ecology, FIRE, History, Ignition, Native people