Ecology of Wildfire Residuals in Boreal Forests

About this book

Large and intense wildfires are integral to the globally important boreal forest biome. While much is known about boreal wildfires, the focus on forest remnants that either escape or survive these intense fires is a recent phenomenon: academics now study ecological processes of wildfire residuals, forest policymakers use their patterns to design harvest strategies, forest managers consider their economic value, and conservationists recognize their intrinsic ecological importance.

Ecology of Wildfire Residuals in Boreal Forests is the first book to explore ecological patterns and processes of what does not burn within boreal wildfires. Following a brief introduction to the boreal forest biome, it discusses the processes that form wildfire residuals; how they are studied, with various approaches and methods; the types, extent, and ecological functions of wildfire residuals; and their role in forest management applications, all in the context of ecological scale.

Ecology of Wildfire Residuals in Boreal Forests is a reference for researchers and graduate students studying boreal forest ecology, as well as for policymakers and forest managers. It adopts a non-reductionist perspective that will be of interest to scientists from conservation science, forest ecology, forest management, and timber production.

Contents

Concise table of contents:

Acknowledgments xi
About the companion website xiii

1 Introduction 1
2 Formation of wildfire residuals 18
3 Types of wildfire residuals and their extent 65
4 Ecological roles of wildfire residuals 119
5 Role of wildfire residuals in forest management applications 184
6 Ecology of boreal wildfire residuals – a summary and synthesis 227

Index 247


Detailed table of contents:

Acknowledgments xi

About the companion website xiii

1 Introduction 1

The boreal forest biome 2

Geographical distribution 4

Distinguishing features 6

Boreal wildfires 9

Major characteristics 9

Ecological significance 11

Goals and scope of the book 12

References 14

2 Formation of wildfire residuals 18

Factors that affect the formation of residuals 19

Boreal forest communities 20

Boreal wildfires 31

Residual formation and distribution 40

Spatial heterogeneity in fire behavior 41

Process of residual formation 44

Summary 59

References 61

3 Types of wildfire residuals and their extent 65

Types of wildfire residuals 66

A post-wildfire scene 66

Past descriptions of wildfire residuals 71

Abundance and extent of wildfire residuals 79

Snag residuals 80

Live tree residuals 81

Residual patches 84

Changes in residuals after wildfires 88

Snag residuals 88

Live tree residuals 89

Residual patches 92

Toward improved definitions and assessment 93

Reasons for improvement 93

Definitions of wildfire residuals 95

Improved study approaches 103

Summary 107

References 113

4 Ecological roles of wildfire residuals 119

Ecological processes involving snag residuals 121

Invasion by beetles 121

Colonization by woodpeckers 132

Occupation by other bird species 140

Forest regeneration 142

Roles of the residual patches 148

Providing temporary shelter 149

Supplementing the recovery 151

Creating heterogeneity 161

Ecological significance 161

Wildfire residuals and the carbon cycle 162

Wildfire residuals and nutrient and hydrological cycles 165

Summary 168

References 173

5 Role of wildfire residuals in forest management applications 184

Restoring wildfire residuals 185

Ecological expectations 186

Considerations for application 187

Challenges and uncertainties 190

Emulating wildfire disturbance 191

Background 191

Emulating wildfire residuals by forest harvest 193

Expectations and uncertainties 197

Salvage logging 202

Background 202

Ecological consequences 204

Practical considerations 212

Uncertainties 217

Summary 220

References 222

6 Ecology of boreal wildfire residuals – a summary and synthesis 227

Wildfire residuals and their occurrence 227

Residual vegetation types 228

Spatial patterns of residuals 231

Ecological roles of wildfire residuals 235

Snag residuals 235

Residual patches 236

A conceptual view 237

Knowledge uncertainties 239

Management applications and wildfire residuals 240

Salvage logging 240

Emulating wildfire disturbances 240

Restoring wildfire residuals 242

Suppressing fire 243

Research needs on wildfire residuals 243

Advancing research methods 243

Expanding research topics 244

Conclusion 245

Index 247

Customer Reviews

Biography

Ajith H. Perera is a senior research scientist and leads the Forest Landscape Ecology Program at the Ontario Forest Research Institute in Ontario, Canada. He has over twenty-five years of research experience in landscape ecology, much of it focused on understanding patterns and processes of boreal forest fire regimes. He has authored many scientific publications, including several books.

Lisa J. Buse is a forest biologist who specializes in knowledge transfer at the Ontario Forest Research Institute. She has over twenty years of experience in communicating forestry sciences to practitioners, especially on forest landscape ecology including wildfire disturbances in boreal Ontario. She has also published many scientific publications and co-edited three books.