Dendrochronology, Fire Regimes

Definition

Use of tree-ring data and methods to reconstruct past fire timing, fire regimes, and fire effects on individuals, communities, and ecosystems.

Introduction

Fire directly or indirectly affects woody plants in many ways, some of which will leave evidence in age or growth patterns in individual trees or community structure that can be cross-dated using dendrochronological methods. This evidence can be used to reconstruct past fire dates, fire regimes, and fire effects on individuals, communities, and ecosystems (“pyrodendroecology”). Fire regimes are defined as the combination of fire frequency, severity, size, seasonality, and relationships with forcing factors such as climate or changes in human land use.

Fire evidence in trees and community structure

A common type of fire evidence is from severe fire that kills all or most trees in an area which opens up space for new trees to establish. Even-aged forest structure is often used as evidence of past lethal fire, also referred...