Historic Quaking Aspen Fire Regimes in Utah (USA) Forests
Location
USU Eccles Conference
Event Website
http://www.restoringthewest.org/
Abstract
Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) is the most widely distributed tree species in North America. In the Intermountain West, aspen occurs across a broad range in elevation and is found in relatively pure stands and in association with various conifer species. Reproduction is primarily asexual (root suckering) resulting in longlived, spatially-stable clones that benefit from periodic disturbance. Our objective was to characterize historic aspen fire regimes in Utah, a state with abundant aspen across a broad range of forest types. We extracted fire-scar and tree-recruitment data for 122 plots (aspen present) from 11 sites in which plot grids were designed to span a broad range in elevation and vegetation type (299 total plots). Aspen plot elevation ranged from 2340 to 3204 m for southern sites and from 2255 to 3172 m for northern sites. Based upon pre-EuroAmerican (1860) reconstructions, the proportions of study plots that were aspen- (≥ 50 percent stem density) versus conifer-dominated were approximately equal across all sites. Plot evidence of non-lethal, surface fires in the form of annually-dated fire scars (on conifers) was sufficient to estimate mean fire intervals for 19 plots. Estimates ranged from 7 to 109 years with a mean of 32.4 years (1650-1900). We inferred fire severity using criteria that took into account the presence (or absence) of fire scars and recruitment cohorts and tree mortality patterns. Plots were classified as 10 percent low-, 25 percent mixed- and 20 percent high-severity, with 45 percent unclassified. Results suggest that historically, aspen in Utah persisted in both aspen- and conifer-dominated stands, the composition and dynamics of which varied in response to temporal and spatial variation in fire regime parameters.
Historic Quaking Aspen Fire Regimes in Utah (USA) Forests
USU Eccles Conference
Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) is the most widely distributed tree species in North America. In the Intermountain West, aspen occurs across a broad range in elevation and is found in relatively pure stands and in association with various conifer species. Reproduction is primarily asexual (root suckering) resulting in longlived, spatially-stable clones that benefit from periodic disturbance. Our objective was to characterize historic aspen fire regimes in Utah, a state with abundant aspen across a broad range of forest types. We extracted fire-scar and tree-recruitment data for 122 plots (aspen present) from 11 sites in which plot grids were designed to span a broad range in elevation and vegetation type (299 total plots). Aspen plot elevation ranged from 2340 to 3204 m for southern sites and from 2255 to 3172 m for northern sites. Based upon pre-EuroAmerican (1860) reconstructions, the proportions of study plots that were aspen- (≥ 50 percent stem density) versus conifer-dominated were approximately equal across all sites. Plot evidence of non-lethal, surface fires in the form of annually-dated fire scars (on conifers) was sufficient to estimate mean fire intervals for 19 plots. Estimates ranged from 7 to 109 years with a mean of 32.4 years (1650-1900). We inferred fire severity using criteria that took into account the presence (or absence) of fire scars and recruitment cohorts and tree mortality patterns. Plots were classified as 10 percent low-, 25 percent mixed- and 20 percent high-severity, with 45 percent unclassified. Results suggest that historically, aspen in Utah persisted in both aspen- and conifer-dominated stands, the composition and dynamics of which varied in response to temporal and spatial variation in fire regime parameters.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/rtw/2015/Posters/10
Comments
Stanley Kitchen is with the US Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station