Melissa McMaster1, Andrea Thode1, Ethan Aumack2, and Dave Mertz3

1Northern Arizona University, 2Grand Canyon Trust, 3 Kaibab National Forest

Changes in Vegetation and Fuels on the Warm Fire

Warm Fire

• June 8, 2006, Wildland Fire Use Fire

• Conversion to Wildland Fire

• Burned a total of 24,000 hectares

Warm Fire Vegetation Study

!(!(

#*!(

!(")!(

")!(

!(

!(#*

")")

")

#* #*!( ")#*")

#*")

#* #*

")

#*#* #*

") #*

")")")

")

")#*

")") ")

")

!(

#*

!(

!(#* #*#*#*

#*

!(

!(

!(

")

#*#*

!(!(

!(!(

#*")

")

#*

!(!(

!(

!(!( !(

!(")

#*!(!(

!(

!(!(!(

!(!(

!(!(!( ")

#* !(

!(!(!(

")

!(#*#*

!(!(!(!(!(

!(

!(!(

Jacob Lake

Ü

Legend

Plots

!( Unburned

") High severity-not seeded

!( High severity-seeded

#* Low severity

WFU or WFS

WFS

WFU

Fire severity

Low severity

Moderate Severity

High severity

0 1,800 3,600 5,400 7,200900Meters

Stratification of plots by:

1. Vegetation type

2. Soils

3. Fire severity

4. Elevation

5. Proximity to burn border for

controls

6. 25 per treatment

Plot Selection

Warm Fire Vegetation Study

!(!(

#*!(

!(")!(

")!(

!(

!(#*

")")

")

#* #*!( ")#*")

#*")

#* #*

")

#*#* #*

") #*

")")")

")

")#*

")") ")

")

!(

#*

!(

!(#* #*#*#*

#*

!(

!(

!(

")

#*#*

!(!(

!(!(

#*")

")

#*

!(!(

!(

!(!( !(

!(")

#*!(!(

!(

!(!(!(

!(!(

!(!(!( ")

#* !(

!(!(!(

")

!(#*#*

!(!(!(!(!(

!(

!(!(

Jacob Lake

Ü

Legend

Plots

!( Unburned

") High severity-not seeded

!( High severity-seeded

#* Low severity

WFU or WFS

WFS

WFU

Fire severity

Low severity

Moderate Severity

High severity

0 1,800 3,600 5,400 7,200900Meters

Management

• What does the Kaibab National Forest want to know?

– WFU vs. Wildfire

– Planting project post-fire

– BAER treatments• Seeding of Lolium

multiflorum

What are the results?

Lolium multiflorumAnnual-perennial-hybirdizes

Controversial-effectiveness at erosion control

Competitive advantages over native vegetation

Decreases native cover, richness and diversity

Correlation between ryegrass and lower conifer regeneration

Beyers et al. 1999, Barclay et al. 2004, Keeley et al 2006

2005: 16 GCT (4 seeded, 3 high not seeded, 4 low)

2007: 49 total– 14 plots high severity– 13 plots moderate severity

– 12 plots low severity– 10 control plots

2008: 100 total plots– 25 high fire severity seeded

– 25 high severity not seeded– 25 low severity not seeded– 25 controls

Sampling in 2007 & 2008:

Understory data

– % cover per species

– % cover forbs– % cover total

vegetation– % cover grasses– % cover

substrates (rock, soil, litter, duff, lichen, moss)

– Average height per species

Biomass : 4 1x.25m SpeciesDensity

• Shrub count Fuels-3transects

• Species search

• Canopy cover measurements

• Conifer seedling search

2007: Live ponderosa only for regression analysis

– Tree height– Bole scorch height and severity– DBH to the nearest cm– Height to live crown

• pre and post fire– Percent scorch (black/gone) and torch (brown) of the pre-fire crown

Overstory measurements on all plots for all trees for stand characteristics/analysistree height, DBH, species and live or dead

2008:

• Recorded Live/Dead for all tagged ponderosa pine: 410

• Continued recording stand characteristics for plots– Density/species, tree height, crown base height, DBH

Overstory sampling

Research Questions

• Determine the effects of treatments (seeding and burn intensity) on plant community, native species cover, diversity and richness

• Assess the influence of seeding on conifer regeneration and survivorship

• Determine the effects of treatments (seeding and burn intensity) on exotic plant cover and presence.

Research Questions cont.

• Ponderosa pine mortality

– McHugh and Kolb (2003)

– Predictors of ponderosa pine mortality-

post fire

• Fuels

– What differences do we see in 1, 10, 100 and 1,000 hour fuels in different severities?

– How does litter and duff depth vary by fire severity?

High burn severitySeeded vs. Not seeded

Plant Community Analysis PC-ORD

PerMANOVA: distance based MANOVA

Significant difference in plant community composition

p=.016

68% variation

explained by

seeding

Analysis with environmental variables

H10038

H40508

H40708

H42808H44208H70108

H70508H73208

H73708

H78908

H79908

H85308

H85608

H85708

H86308

H87008

H87108

H87508

H87608

H88108

H98008

H98308

S42108

S44108

S44508

S75608

S76008

S76108

S76408

S76608

S77208

S77308

S77708

S77908

S78408

S78608

S79008

S79208

S79608

S79708

S79808

S97508

S97908

S98108

duff

lichen

litter

poop

rock

soil

nms33_31_09

Axis 1

Axis

3

H or S

1

2

SoilRock

LitterDuff

MossLichenScat

Non-seeded

Seeded

NMS Ordination

Indicator Species Analysis

*** Ponderosa pine and aspen reported as strong indicators for non seeded areas.

Table 1.

Seeded Non-seeded

Lolium multiflorum- Italian ryegrass Pinus ponderosa- Ponderosa pin

Astragalus subcinereus- Sliver's milkvetch Populus tremuloides- Aspen

Linum puberulum- Plain's flax Verbascum thapsus- Wooly mullein

Lotus wrightii- Wright's deervetch Pseudognaphalium macounii- Cotton cudweed

Antennaria parvifolia- Small leaf pussytoes

Androsace septentrionalis- Rock jasmine

Muhlenbergia montana- Mountain Muhly

Indicator species analysis results for significant indicators only (p<.o5)

Table 1.

Seeded Non-seeded

Lolium multiflorum- Italian Ryegrass Pinus ponderosa- Ponderosa pine

Astragalus subcinereus- Silver's milkvetch Populus tremuloides- Aspen

Linum puberulum- Plain's flax Verbascum thalapsum- Wooly mullein

Lotus wrightii- Wright's deervetch Pseudognaphalium stramineu- Cotton cudweed

Antennarria parvifolia- Small leaf pussytoes

Androsace septentrionales- Rock jasmine

Muhlenbergia montana- Mountain Muhly

Indicator species analysis results for significant indicators only

Seeding effects on conifer regeneration and survivorship

• ANOVA

Not statistically significant, BUT so close

p= .053

*Run with community data~ p=.002

Exotic vs. Native cover

• Is Lolium keeping exotic cover low?

• No significant difference between exotic (p=.1743) and

native (p=.4425) cover between seeded vs. not seeded

• Without ryegrass?

Analysis on Bromus spp.

• Is there a difference in presence of Bromus spp. between seeded and not seeded????

Yes! But not what was expected.

Results:

Bromus spp. was present in twice as many non-seeded plots as seeded.

Early conclusions

1. Observed a significant difference in community

composition

2. Competition from the Lolium multiflorum may

be effecting tree seedling recruitment

3. Seeding has various

effects on the presence or cover of exotics

4. The Lolium multiflorum is effecting the plant

community composition now, but what about next

year?

Future Analysis

• Continue with vegetation data

– analysis by severity

– multiple seasons

– functional groups

• Legumes, C3 and C4 grasses, life traits

– annuals vs. perennials

• Regression Analysis of ponderosa pine mortality

• Fuels Analysis-Matt Flying

• Chapter 1: Introduction

• Chapter 2: Effects on plant community composition after a post-fire reseeding.

• Chapter 3: (maybe combined with 2) Understory vegetation community response to high and low severity fires.

• Chapter 4: Conclusions and Management Implications

Potential thesis chapters

Acknowledgements

• Joint Fire Science Program

• Field Crews

• Grand Canyon Trust Volunteers

• PAPAZ program volunteers

• North Kaibab Folks

– Paul Calloway and John Riling

• Grand Canyon Trust

Thank you.

© 2002 Christopher L. Christie

© 2008 Lynn Watson