Skip to Main Content
-
Forest fire and climate change in western North America: insights from sediment charcoal records.
Author(s): Daniel G Gavin; Douglas J Hallett; Feng Sheng Hu; Kenneth P Lertzman; Susan J Prichard; Kendrick J Brown; Jason A Lynch; Patrick Bartlein; David L. Peterson
Date: 2007
Source: Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 5(9): 499-506
Publication Series: Scientific Journal (JRNL)
PDF: Download Publication (1.79 MB)Description
Millennial-scale records of forest fire provide important baseline information for ecosystem management, especially in regions with too few recent fires to describe the historical range of variability. Charcoal records from lake sediments and soil profiles are well suited for reconstructing the incidence of past fire and its relationship to changing climate and vegetation. We highlight several records from western North America and their relevance in reconstructing historical forest dynamics, fire-climate relationships, and feedbacks between vegetation and fire under climate change. Climatic effects on fire regimes are evident in many regions, but comparisons of paleo-fire records sometimes show a lack of synchrony, indicating that local factors substantially affect fire occurrence, even over long periods. Furthermore, the specific impacts of vegetation change on fire regimes differ among regions with different vegetation histories. By documenting the effects on fire patterns of major changes in climate and vegetation, paleo-fire records can be used to test the mechanistic models required for the prediction of future variations in fire.Publication Notes
- Visit PNW's Publication Request Page to request a hard copy of this publication.
- We recommend that you also print this page and attach it to the printout of the article, to retain the full citation information.
- This article was written and prepared by U.S. Government employees on official time, and is therefore in the public domain.
Citation
Gavin, Daniel G,; Hallett, Douglas J,; Hu, Feng Sheng,; Lertzman, Kenneth P; Prichard, Susan J,; Brown, Kendrick J,; Lynch, Jason A,; Bartlein, Patrick,; Peterson, David L. 2007. Forest fire and climate change in western North America: insights from sediment charcoal records. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 5(9): 499-506Keywords
Paleo-fire, fire history, climate change, fire regimesRelated Search
- Unsupported inferences of high-severity fire in historical dry forests of the western United States: Response to Williams and Baker
- Severe wind and fire regimes in northern forests: historical variability at the regional scale
- Fire patterns of South Eastern Queensland in a global context: A review
XML: View XML
Show More
Show Fewer
https://www.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/pubs/29317