Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Fall rate of burnt pines across an elevational gradient in a Mediterranean mountain

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
European Journal of Forest Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Burnt wood remaining after a wildfire is a biological legacy with important implications for habitat structure, ecosystem regeneration, and post-fire management. Knowledge of the time required for snags to fall is thus a key aspect for planning forest restoration. In this study, we analyze the fall rate of burnt trees in a Mediterranean pine reforestation. Three plots of 18–32 ha were established after a fire across an elevational gradient spanning from 1400 to 2100 m a.s.l., and snag fall rate was measured on a yearly basis using an experimental setup that considered two levels of a thinning treatment: unthinned (where no post-fire management was conducted and all the snags were left standing after the fire) and thinned (where 90% of the trees were cut after the fire and left on the ground). All the snags remained standing during the first and second winter, and thereafter, they collapsed quickly until reaching 100% after 5.5 years. Snags in low-density stands resulting from thinning fell faster than in unthinned stands, but the differences were minor. There was a negative effect of tree diameter on the rate of collapse, especially in the unthinned treatment, but the effect of diameter was minor too. There was no effect of the elevational gradient on fall rate despite patent differences in climatic conditions and pine species across plots. The results support the contention that post-fire fall rate in dense pine plantations in Mediterranean mountains can occur quickly after the second winter and may show little variation across environmental gradients.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aakala T, Kuuluvainen T, Gauthier S, De Grandpré L (2008) Standing dead trees and their decay-class dynamics in the northeastern boreal old-growth forests of Quebec. For Ecol Manag 255:410–420

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Acker SA, Kertis J, Bruner H et al (2013) Dynamics of coarse woody debris following wildfire in a mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana) forest. For Ecol Manag 302:231–239

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Angers VA, Gauthier S, Drapeau P et al (2011) Tree mortality and snag dynamics in North American boreal tree species after a wildfire: a long-term study. Int J Wildland Fire 20:751–763

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boulanger Y, Sirois L (2006) Postfire dynamics of black spruce coarse woody debris in northern boreal forest of Quebec. Can J For Res 36:1770–1780

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bradbury SM (2006) Response of the post-fire bryophyte community to salvage logging in boreal mixedwood forests of northeastern Alberta, Canada. For Ecol Manag 234:313–322

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bull EL, Parks CG, Torgersen TR (1997) Trees and logs important to wildlife in the interior Columbia River basin. General Technical Report PNW-GTR-391. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, Portland

  • Castro J (2013) Postfire burnt-wood management affects plant damage by ungulate herbivores. Int J For Res 2013:6

    Google Scholar 

  • Castro J, Allen CD, Molina-Morales M et al (2011) Salvage logging versus the use of burnt wood as a nurse object to promote post-fire tree seedling establishment. Restor Ecol 19:537–544

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castro J, Puerta-Piñero C, Leverkus AB et al (2012) Post-fire salvage logging alters a key plant-animal interaction for forest regeneration. Ecosphere 3:1–12

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cavallero L, Raffaele E, Aizen MA (2013) Birds as mediators of passive restoration during early post-fire recovery. Biol Conserv 158:342–350

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chambers CL, Mast JN (2005) Ponderosa pine snag dynamics and cavity excavation following wildfire in northern Arizona. For Ecol Manag 216:227–240

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crawley MJ (2013) The R book, 2nd ed. Wiley, New Delhi

    Google Scholar 

  • Dahms WG (1949) How long do ponderosa pine snags stand?. USDA, Forest Service, Research Note PNW-RN-57

  • De Aza CH, Turrión MB, Pando V, Bravo F (2011) Carbon in heartwood, sapwood and bark along the stem profile in three Mediterranean Pinus species. Ann For Sci 68:1067–1076

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeLong SC, Sutherland GD, Daniels LD et al (2008) Temporal dynamics of snags and development of snag habitats in wet spruce–fir stands in east-central British Columbia. For Ecol Manag 255:3613–3620

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edworthy AB, Wiebe KL, Martin K (2012) Survival analysis of a critical resource for cavity-nesting communities: patterns of tree cavity longevity. Ecol Appl 22:1733–1742

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Everett R, Lehmkuhl J, Schellhaas R et al (1999) Snag dynamics in a chronosequence of 26 wildfires on the east slope of the Cascade Range in Washington State, USA. Int J Wildland Fire 9:223–234

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Franklin JF, MacMahon JA (2000) Messages from a mountain. Science 288:1183–1184

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Garber SM, Brown JP, Wilson DS et al (2005) Snag longevity under alternative silvicultural regimes in mixed-species forests of central Maine. Can J For Res 35:787–796

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gómez-Aparicio L, Zavala MA, Bonet FJ, Zamora R (2009) Are pine plantations valid tools for restoring Mediterranean forests? An assessment along abiotic and biotic gradients. Ecol Appl 19:2124–2141

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Harrington MG (1996) Fall rates of prescribed fire-killed ponderosa pine. USDA Forest Service Research Paper INT-RP-489

  • Hebblewhite M, Munro RH, Merrill EH (2009) Trophic consequences of postfire logging in a wolf-ungulate system. For Ecol Manag 257:1053–1062

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heikkala O, Suominen M, Junninen K et al (2014) Effects of retention level and fire on retention tree dynamics in boreal forests. For Ecol Manag 328:193–201

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huggard DJ (1999) Static life-table analysis of fall rates of subalpine fir snags. Ecol Appl 9:1009–1016

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hutto RL (2006) Toward meaningful snag-management guidelines for postfire salvage logging in North American conifer forests. Conserv Biol 20:984–993

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Keeley JE, Bond WJ, Bradstock RA et al (2012) Fire in Mediterranean ecosystems: ecology, evolution and management. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Kirby KJ, Reid CM, Thomas RC, Goldsmith FB (1998) Preliminary estimates of fallen dead wood and standing dead trees in managed and unmanaged forests in Britain. J Appl Ecol 35:148–155

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Landram FM, Laudenslayer Jr WF, Atzet T (2002) Demography of snags in eastside pine forests of California. In: Laudenslayer WF, Shea PJ, Valentine BE, Weatherspoon CP, Lisle TE (Tech. Coord.) (eds) Proceedings of the symposium on the ecology and management of dead wood in western forests’, 2–4 September 1999, Reno, NV. USDA Forest Service General Technical Report PSW-GTR-181, Albany

  • Leverkus AB, Puerta-Piñero C, Guzmán-Álvarez J et al (2012) Post-fire salvage logging increases restoration costs in a Mediterranean mountain ecosystem. New For 43:601–613

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leverkus AB, Castro J, Puerta-Piñero C, Rey Benayas JM (2013) Suitability of the management of habitat complexity, acorn burial depth, and a chemical repellent for post-fire reforestation of oaks. Ecol Eng 53:15–22

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leverkus AB, Lorite J, Navarro FB et al (2014) Post-fire salvage logging alters species composition and reduces cover, richness, and diversity in Mediterranean plant communities. J Environ Manag 133:323–331

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leverkus AB, Rey Benayas JM, Castro J (2016) Shifting demographic conflicts across recruitment cohorts in a dynamic post-disturbance landscape. Ecology 97:2628–2639

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindenmayer DB, Burton PJ, Franklin JF (2008) Salvage logging and its ecological consequences. Island Press, Washington

    Google Scholar 

  • Macdonald SE (2007) Effects of partial post-fire salvage harvesting on vegetation communities in the boreal mixedwood forest region of northeastern Alberta, Canada. For Ecol Manag 239:21–31

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marañón-Jiménez S, Castro J (2013) Effect of decomposing post-fire coarse woody debris on soil fertility and nutrient availability in a Mediterranean ecosystem. Biogeochemistry 112:519–535

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marañón-Jiménez S, Castro J, Fernández-Ondoño E, Zamora R (2013) Charred wood remaining after a wildfire as a reservoir of macro- and micronutrients in a Mediterranean pine forest. Int J Wildland Fire 22:681–695

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marzano R, Garbarino M, Marcolin E et al (2013) Deadwood anisotropic facilitation on seedling establishment after a stand-replacing wildfire in Aosta Valley (NW Italy). Ecol Eng 51:117–122

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maser C, Trappe J (1984) The seen and unseen world of the fallen tree. USDA Forest Service. General Technical Report PNW-164. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station, Portland

  • Mitchell RG, Preisler HK (1998) Fall Rate of lodgepole pine killed by the mountain pine beetle in central Oregon. West J Appl For 13:23–26

    Google Scholar 

  • Morrison ML, Raphael MG (1993) Modeling the dynamics of snags. Ecol Appl 3:322–330

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Moya D, de las Heras J, López-Serrano FR, Ferrandis P (2015) Post-fire seedling recruitment and morpho-ecophysiological responses to induced drought and salvage logging in Pinus halepensis mill. stands. Forests 6:1858–1877

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parish R, Antos JA, Ott PK, Di Lucca CM (2010) Snag longevity of Douglas-fir, western hemlock, and western redcedar from permanent sample plots in coastal British Columbia. For Ecol Manag 259:633–640

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Passovoy MD, Fulé PZ (2006) Snag and woody debris dynamics following severe wildfires in northern Arizona ponderosa pine forests. For Ecol Manag 223:237–246

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pausas JG, Bladé C, Valdecantos A et al (2004) Pines and oaks in the restoration of Mediterranean landscapes of Spain: new perspectives for an old practice—a review. Plant Ecol 171:209–220

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pinheiro JC, Bates DM (2000) Mixed effects models in S and S-Plus. Springer, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Pinheiro J, Bates D, DebRoy S, Sarkar D, R Core Team (2014) nlme: linear and nonlinear mixed effects models. R package version 3.1- 118. http://CRAN.R-project.org/package=nlme

  • Quinn GP, Keough MJ (2002) Experimental design and data analysis for biologists. Cambridge University Press, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • R Core Team (2014) R: a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing Vienna. http://www.R-project.org/

  • Ritchie MW, Knapp EE, Skinner CN (2013) Snag longevity and surface fuel accumulation following post-fire logging in a ponderosa pine dominated forest. For Ecol Manag 287:113–122

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rost J, Pons P (2017) The challenge of conserving biodiversity in harvested burned forests. Conserv Biol 31:226–228

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rost J, Pons P, Bas JM (2009) Can salvage logging affect seed dispersal by birds into burned forests? Acta Oecol 35:763–768

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rowell A, Moore PF (2000) Global review of forest fires. WWF/IUCN, Gland

    Google Scholar 

  • Russell MB, Weiskittel AR (2012) Assessing and modeling snag survival and decay dynamics for the primary species in the Acadian forest of Maine, USA. For Ecol Manag 284:230–240

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Russell RE, Saab VA, Dudley JG, Rotella JJ (2006) Snag longevity in relation to wildfire and postfire salvage logging. For Ecol Manag 232:179–187

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith CY, Moroni MT, Warkentin IG (2009) Snag dynamics in post-harvest landscapes of western Newfoundland balsam fir-dominated boreal forests. For Ecol Manag 258:832–839

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Swanson ME, Franklin JF, Beschta RL et al (2011) The forgotten stage of forest succession: early-successional ecosystems on forest sites. Front Ecol Environ 9:117–125

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Therneau T (2014) A package for survival analysis in S. R package version 2.37-7. http://CRAN.R-project.org/package=survival

  • Thorn S, Bässler C, Bernhardt-Römermann M et al (2016) Changes in the dominant assembly mechanism drives species loss caused by declining resources. Ecol Lett 19:163–170

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vanderwel MC, Caspersen JP, Woods ME (2006) Snag dynamics in partially harvested and unmanaged northern hardwood forests. Can J For Res 36:2769–2779

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wagener WW (1963) Judging hazard from native trees in California recreational areas: a guide for professional foresters. USDA Forest Service Research Paper PSW-P1

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank the Consejería de Medio Ambiente, Junta de Andalucía, and the Direction of the Natural and National Park of Sierra Nevada, for fieldwork permission, constant support, and facilities. This study was supported by Project 10/2005 from the Organismo Autónomo de Parques Nacionales (Spanish Government), CGL2008-01671 from the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, and P12-RNM-2705 from Junta de Andalucía. AL acknowledges postdoctoral funding from the Spanish Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (FJCI-2015-23687) and project GEISpain (CGL2014-52838-C2-1-R; funded by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, incl. European Union ERDF funds). S.M.J. acknowledges postdoctoral funding from Andalucía Talent Hub Program, co-funded by the European Union’s Seventh Framework Program, Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions (COFUND - Grant Agreement 291780) and the Ministry of Economy, Innovation, Science and Employment of the Junta de Andalucía. CRM had a Ph.D. grant from the National University of Asunción (Paraguay) and Carolina Foundation (Spain).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Ecología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, 18071, Granada, Spain

    Carlos R. Molinas-González, Alexandro B. Leverkus & Jorge Castro

  2. Departamento de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad de Alcalá, Campus Universitario, Alcalá de Henares, Spain

    Alexandro B. Leverkus

  3. Departamento de Física Aplicada, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, 18071, Granada, Spain

    Sara Marañón-Jiménez

Authors
  1. Carlos R. Molinas-González
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Alexandro B. Leverkus
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Sara Marañón-Jiménez
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jorge Castro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Carlos R. Molinas-González.

Additional information

Communicated by Arne Nothdurft.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOCX 5265 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Molinas-González, C.R., Leverkus, A.B., Marañón-Jiménez, S. et al. Fall rate of burnt pines across an elevational gradient in a Mediterranean mountain. Eur J Forest Res 136, 401–409 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-017-1040-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-017-1040-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation