Rescue Brazil’s burning Pantanal wetlands

Libonati, Renata; DaCamara, Carlos C.; Peres, Leonardo F.; Carvalho, Lino Augusto Sander de; Garcia, L. C.

doi:10.1038/d41586-020-03464-1

Cited by 129 publications

(120 citation statements)

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“…Survey protocol and data analysis -We conducted post re line transects to count vertebrates, using the distance sampling technique 41 to estimate the number of deaths in the 39,030 km 2 burned region of the Pantanal wetland during 2020 wild res 17 (Fig. 1).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recently, among the most dramatic wild re events, stands out the recorded widespread burning that hit the 170,000 km 2 Pantanal wetland, in the center of South America, which may be characterized as an extreme wild re event (EWE) 15 . While res burned 16,210 km 2 of the Brazilian portion of the Pantanal in 2019, astonishing 39,030 km 2 burned in 2020 16 .The large quantities of organic matter accumulated in lower, long-lasting ood areas covered by dense aquatic plant communities and oating mats, as well as in the open grasslands subjected to vegetation encroachment, created the scenario for the catastrophic 2020 wild re in the Pantanal 17,18 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Counting the Dead: 17 Million Vertebrates Directly Killed by the 2020’s Wildfires in the Pantanal Wetland, Brazil

Tomás

Berlinck

Chiaravalloti

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Anthropogenic factors have significantly influenced the frequency, duration, and intensity of meteorological drought in many regions of the globe, and the increased frequency of wildfires is among the most visible consequences of human-induced climate change. Despite its role in determining biodiversity outcomes in different ecosystems, wildfires can cause negative impacts on wildlife. We conducted ground surveys along line transects to estimate the first-order impact of the 2020 wildfires on vertebrates in the Pantanal wetland, Brazil. We adopted the distance sampling technique to estimate the densities and the number of dead vertebrates in the 39,030 square kilometers affected by fire. Our estimates indicate that at least 16.952 million vertebrates were killed immediately by the fires in the Pantanal, demonstrating the impact of such an event in wet savanna ecosystems. The Pantanal case also reminds us that the cumulative impact of widespread burning would be catastrophic, as fire recurrence may lead to the impoverishment of ecosystems and the disruption of their functioning. To overcome this unsustainable scenario, it is necessary to establish proper biomass fuel management to avoid cumulative impacts caused by fire over biodiversity and ecosystem services.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Counting the Dead: 17 Million Vertebrates Directly Killed by the 2020’s Wildfires in the Pantanal Wetland, Brazil

Tomás

Berlinck

Chiaravalloti

et al. 2021

Preprint

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“…In the region, fire can occur naturally, or exceptionally can have anthropogenic origin. Small fire foci caused accidentally or intentionally in the surroundings of the Kadiwéu Indigenous Land may get out of control, due to climatic factors, biomass accumulation or lack of firefighters (Libonati et al, 2020). The total burnt area per year in the Kadiwéu Indigenous Land ranged from 4 to 61% and has been 24% on average over the 17 last years (Oliveira et al, 2019).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fire damage on seeds ofCalliandra parvifloraBenth. (Fabaceae), a facultative seeder in aBrazilianflooding savanna

Ferreira

Guerra

Oliveira

et al. 2021

Plant Species Biology

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Optimal sexual reproduction in relation to fire effects varies in Fabaceae species. Calliandra species have a large investment in reproduction. We investigated the consequences of fire during the fruiting period of Calliandra parviflora Benth., by checking fruit exposure to fire, pre‐dispersal seed predator infestation, and the effect of fruit burning on germination. We conducted this study in a floodable savanna in central Brazil, where we collected burnt and unburnt fruits. We measured the fruit and seed mass, and counted the number of damaged and undamaged seeds and live larvae per fruit. We analyzed the seed germination percentage from burnt and unburnt fruits. The burnt fruits presented greater mass than the unburnt fruits, despite their seed mass being similar. The number of damaged seeds per fruit was only slightly higher in burnt compared to unburnt fruits (p = 0.047). The number of larvae on pre‐dispersal seeds per fruit varied from 0 to 4 and did not differ between burnt and unburnt fruits. The germination percentage of unburnt fruit seeds (mean = 22 ± 17%), was significantly higher than that of burnt fruit (mean = 3.0 ± 2.0%, p < 0.001). Fire during fruiting or pre‐dispersion decreases seed germination from 22 to 3%, but it does not hurt vegetative regeneration or resprout capacity of C. parviflora, which is a facultative seeder. Hence, we suggest that C. parviflora has potential for post‐fire restoration in floodable open grassy savannas, in the ecotone between Cerrado and Pantanal, because this species may sprout quickly after first post‐fire rains.

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“…These wildfires have impacted almost one-third of the Pantanal area exceeding 40,000 km 2 (Libonati et al 2020), causing several species of this biodiversity hotspot to struggle for survival (Lemos 2020) and mobilizing volunteers to rescue injured animals (Langlois 2020). Consequently, smoke from the Pantanal´s fires covered neighbor countries and the largest and most populated city of Brazil, São Paulo (1,200 km distant from the Pantanal) in mid-September (Pinheiro 2020).…”

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2020 Pantanal’s widespread fire: short- and long-term implications for biodiversity and conservation

et al. 2021

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The Pantanal faced an unprecedented drought event in 2020. The hydrological year ended in July, 2020 had an annual average rainfall 26 % lower than the average from 1982 to 2020. Consequently, catastrophic wildfires burned out of control. Active fires during this year have also increased, and were 123 % higher than the 2002-2020 Pantanal's average. Approximately 95 % of these active fires occurred in natural land covers with 28 % of them occurring in areas classified as wetlands that likely dried out due to the drought. Therefore, the development of a special policy is needed to minimize the impact of this crisis on the biodiversity, conservation, and traditional people of the Pantanal.

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Rescue Brazil’s burning Pantanal wetlands

Cited by 129 publications

References 7 publications

Counting the Dead: 17 Million Vertebrates Directly Killed by the 2020’s Wildfires in the Pantanal Wetland, Brazil

Counting the Dead: 17 Million Vertebrates Directly Killed by the 2020’s Wildfires in the Pantanal Wetland, Brazil

Fire damage on seeds ofCalliandra parvifloraBenth. (Fabaceae), a facultative seeder in aBrazilianflooding savanna

2020 Pantanal’s widespread fire: short- and long-term implications for biodiversity and conservation

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