Early post-fire plant succession in slash-pile prescribed burns of a sub-Mediterranean managed forest

Castoldi, Elena

doi:10.5091/plecevo.2013.848

Cited by 16 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…Similar flushes of mosses early in succession have been observed after fire in former shrublands in the Northern Colorado Plateau (Bowker personal observation) and burnt forest stands (Hardman and McCune 2010). Also in temperate European habitats, the moss Funaria hygrometrica has been observed to be one of the first colonizers after fire (Castoldi et al 2013). Lichens of all growth forms tend to be much less abundant in burned plots, suggesting a later successional role (Hilty et al 2004;Johansen 2003).…”

Section: Successional Pathways After Firementioning

confidence: 70%

Natural Recovery of Biological Soil Crusts After Disturbance

et al. 2016

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Section: Successional Pathways After Firementioning

confidence: 70%

Natural Recovery of Biological Soil Crusts After Disturbance

et al. 2016

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“…Bryophytes are recurrent elements in the post-fire vegetation succession in Mediterranean forests (During, 1979;De las Heras et al, 1994;Esposito et al, 1999;Castoldi et al, 2013;Stinca et al, 2020). After wildfires, ruderal mosses rapidly colonize bare soils in a transient succession stage before vascular plant colonization.…”

Section: Biocrust-forming Mosses: Their Role In Soil Recoverymentioning

confidence: 99%

The Recovery of Mediterranean Soils After Post-Fire Management: The Role of Biocrusts and Soil Microbial Communities

García-Carmona¹,

García‐Orenes²,

Arcenegui³

et al. 2023

Span. J. Soil Sci.

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Although Mediterranean ecosystems are adapted to fire disturbances, soils are prone to degradation. Therefore, post-fire forest management is a critical step for ecosystem recovery: it can either reduce soil degradation or add a new disturbance. Post-fire management in Mediterranean burnt forests includes interventions with contrasting approaches, including the management of burnt trees, soil protection, or practices devoted to ecosystem restoration via the improvement of components or processes in the affected ecosystem. The consequences of forest management on soils are complex, thereby, in the context of the intensification of fire events and climate change, understanding the response of key soil components in managed ecosystems is critical for prioritizing soil conservation. One interesting component in the early post-fire stages is moss biocrust. The rapid colonization of biocrust-forming mosses in early successional stages post-disturbance stabilizes soils in their most vulnerable period. However, it is completely unknown further implications as active agents in the recovery and resilience of soils, in the transient stage before vascular vegetation regrowth. In combination with the biocrust, the response of soil microbial communities to forest management is crucial for evaluating the soil recovery progress, given their active role in fundamental ecosystem functions. The additive consequences of fires and forest management on biocrust emergence or microbial composition and functionality are usually neglected in the investigation of post-fire systems, although of major relevance to support strategies to preserve soils against functionality loss.

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“…Secondary succession also increases nitrogen availability in recently disturbed sites, followed by a decline during the later stages of succession (Vitousek et al 1989). Bryophyte colonization plays an important role in early secondary succession after a major disturbance such as fire (Castoldi et al 2013;Wills et al 2018), and enhances soil development and supports important ecological functions such as preventing erosion (Casermeiro et al 2004). Our study revealed higher bryophyte cover in late-stage grassland, where the role and relationships between soil and bryophytes would require further investigation.…”

Section: Ecological Changesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mediterranean grassland succession as an indicator of changes in ecosystem biodiversity and functionality

et al. 2022

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The abandonment of agricultural lands triggers a secondary succession of plant species which implies important changes in soil quality. Annual Mediterranean grasslands are known to be persistent on abandoned agriculture lands in the western Mediterranean. We used plant taxonomic and functional approaches to determine the role of Mediterranean grasslands as an indicator of changes in ecosystem biodiversity and functionality. We tested the hypothesis that Mediterranean grasslands are a suitable model for monitoring biodiversity and soil fertility in a secondary succession. Soil and vegetation features on 21 permanent plots were monitored in 2016 and 2020. Numerical classifications based on floristic composition showed two different plant communities independently of the sampling year: early-stage grasslands in the first post-abandonment decade and late-stage grasslands after the first post-abandonment decade. Generalized linear model and redundancy analysis also revealed differences in growth forms, functional traits and soil functionality between communities. Late-stage grasslands was characterized by enriched bryophyte coverage and an impoverishment in hemicryptophytes and plant latex segregators growing on soils with a higher hydrolase enzyme activity and TOC content compared to early-stage grassland. Our results suggest that annual Mediterranean grasslands growing on siliceous soils denoting a mature-stage succession, and floristically characterized by the symbiont plant with Ascomycota, Tuberaria guttata, and a high bryophyte cover, are worthy of recognition for conservation.

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Early post-fire plant succession in slash-pile prescribed burns of a sub-Mediterranean managed forest

Cited by 16 publications

References 0 publications

Natural Recovery of Biological Soil Crusts After Disturbance

Natural Recovery of Biological Soil Crusts After Disturbance

The Recovery of Mediterranean Soils After Post-Fire Management: The Role of Biocrusts and Soil Microbial Communities

Mediterranean grassland succession as an indicator of changes in ecosystem biodiversity and functionality

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