Red‐backed fairywrens adjust habitat use in response to dry season fires

Sommer, Nathalie R.; Moody, Nicole M.; Lantz, Samantha M.; Leu, Matthias; Karubian, Jordan; Swaddle, John P.

doi:10.1111/aec.12629

Cited by 11 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 50 publications

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“…In only five species (16%) were the direct impacts of fire on mortality assessed in multiple studies (Figure 5). Across all studies, there was an enormous range in the body sizes of the animal species studied, from 7.9 g red‐backed fairy‐wrens ( Malurus melanocephalus ) (Murphy et al, 2010; Sommer et al, 2018) to the world's largest terrestrial animal—the 4400 kg African bush elephant ( Loxodonta africana ) (Woolley et al, 2008). Most studies investigated the direct effects of fire on the mortality of animals that are currently listed as Least Concern according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (74% of species; see Supporting Information).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal mortality during fire

Jolly

Dickman

Doherty

et al. 2022

Global Change Biology

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal mortality during fire

Jolly

Dickman

Doherty

et al. 2022

Global Change Biology

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“…For example, sampling immediately before and after the first early-season fires at the Territory Wildlife Park revealed no change in the abundance or composition of skink species (Figure 3), and early-season fires caused no direct mortality of frill-necked lizards (Chlamydosaurus kingii) at Kapalga (Griffiths & Christian, 1996). Even high-intensity fires may cause no direct mortality, such is the case for red-backed fairy wrens (Malurus melanocephalus) (Murphy et al, 2010;Sommer et al, 2018) and small rodents (Leahy et al, 2015) in the Kimberley. However, late-season fires at Kapalga caused 30% mortality in frill-necked lizards (Griffiths & Christian, 1996), and my unpublished observations of insects climbing up trees in response to smoke from experimental fires at the Territory Wildlife Park (cf.…”

Section: Insight 2 the Main Effects Of Fire On Fauna Are Indirect mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Such effects can occur after individual fires due to loss of ground-layer vegetation and associated resources. For example, although fire causes no direct mortality of red-backed fairy wrens, it leads to changes in habitat use (Sommer et al, 2018) and reproductive success (Murphy et al, 2010). Experimental fires at the Territory Wildlife Park led to higher rates of myrmecochorous seed collection and dispersal by ants in the months after burning due to increased foraging distances following simplification of ground-layer habitat (Parr et al, 2007).…”

Section: Insight 2 the Main Effects Of Fire On Fauna Are Indirect mentioning

confidence: 99%

Faunal responses to fire in Australian tropical savannas: Insights from field experiments and their lessons for conservation management

Andersen

2020

Diversity and Distributions

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Aim: Fire is particularly frequent, complex and contentious in the vast tropical savannas of northern Australia, where declines in many threatened species are associated with fire, and substantial areas are under fire management for greenhouse gas abatement. Controlled field experiments are crucial for understanding biodiversity responses, and here I present key insights into faunal responses to fire that have been revealed by them, along with their lessons for fire management. Location: Australian monsoonal tropics.Methods: Results are synthesized from six replicated fire experiments that have been conducted in Australian savannas and include multispecies assessments of fauna.The synthesis also draws on other fire studies and is presented in the form of five key insights into faunal responses. Results:The key insights are as follows: (a) most faunal groups are extremely resilient to fire, with highly contrasting fire regimes often having little or no detectable impact on species abundances, at least in the medium term; (b) the most important effects of fire are typically indirect through habitat modification, even when there is substantial direct mortality; (c) fire intensity is not as important a factor as is widely thought; rather, fire frequency is particularly important; (d) there will always be winners and losers with any fire; and (e) fire is required for the maintenance of diversity.Main conclusions: These insights have important implications for conservation management in Australian savannas: management needs to focus on fire-induced changes to habitat suitability, and to consider faunal outcomes at the landscape scale; a combination of frequently (every 2-3 years) and less frequently (every ≥5 years) burned habitat may adequately conserve the great majority of animal species without a need for complex fire mosaics; special management attention is required for frequent-fire losers because of an extremely low representation of longer-unburnt habitat; and fire needs to be actively managed to promote diversity, not excluded. The insights are widely applicable to tropical grassy ecosystems more generally, and some appear to be universal to fire-prone biomes.

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“…Australian tropical savannas are characterized by a history of frequent wildfires, but many species inhabiting these areas are in decline and are negatively-affected by fire (Franklin et al 2005, Woinarski andLegge 2013). Previous studies of red-backed fairywrens in this context have shown that wildfires lead to decreased reproductive output (Murphy et al 2010), increased social connectivity and shifting habitat use (Sommer et al 2018) in this species. Although our study did not focus on these characteristics, our observations of red-backed fairywrens support these findings as wildfires forced individuals to leave breeding territories and flock in unusual numbers in the few remaining unburned areas at both study sites (Boersma, pers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Wildfire affects expression of male sexual plumage through suppressed testosterone circulation in a tropical songbird

Boersma

Barron

Baldassarre

et al. 2021

Journal of Avian Biology

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Natural disturbances like drought and wildfires are expected to increase in prevalence, so understanding how organisms are affected is a key goal for conservationists and biologists alike. While many studies have illustrated long-term effects of perturbations on survival and reproduction, little is known of short-term effects to physiology and sexual signal expression. Ornamental traits have been proposed as reliable indicators of environmental health, yet studies are lacking in the context of natural disturbances. Here we present short-term (7-65 days) responses of male red-backed fairywrens Malurus melanocephalus to wildfire near the onset of the typical breeding season. Young males of this species are characterized by plastic expression of sexual plumage phenotypes depending on circulating testosterone and body condition. Using two populations with fairywren captures before and after separate wildfires we illustrate that wildfire suppressed molt into ornamented plumage. Neither baseline plasma corticosterone or furcular fat stores were affected by fire. However, fire seemed to interfere with the termporal increase in plasma testosterone during the pre-breeding season, leading to a lower proportion of males molting into ornamented plumage. Collectively, these findings suggest that wildfires inhibit or greatly delay acquisition of ornamentation in males through enduring suppression of testosterone circulation.

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Red‐backed fairywrens adjust habitat use in response to dry season fires

Abstract: This is the author manuscript accepted for publication and has undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as

Cited by 11 publications

References 50 publications

Animal mortality during fire

Animal mortality during fire

Faunal responses to fire in Australian tropical savannas: Insights from field experiments and their lessons for conservation management

Wildfire affects expression of male sexual plumage through suppressed testosterone circulation in a tropical songbird

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