The impacts of fire on birds in Australia's tropical savannas

Abstract

Abstract. The ecology of Australia's tropical savannas is shaped by the near-pervasive influence of fire. Constituting 20% of Australia's land area, tropical savannas contribute >75% of the area burnt in Australia each year. Across most of Australia's tropical savannas, components of biodiversity are declining, including many species of birds. This review seeks to assess whether that decline is linked to current fire regimes. However, relevant studies are few, short-term and opportunistic, and indicate rather than demonstrate the effects of fire. There is no set of agreed paradigms for contextualising the relationship between birds and fire regimes in this region or for any management consequences. We conclude that the current fire regime is suboptimal for many species of birds, particularly for granivores, frugivores, hollow-dependent species and those that nest on or near the ground. For conservation reserves, we recommend that fire management protocols include the explicit targets that: (1) at least 25% of the savanna landscape is at least 3 years unburnt; (2) at least 5% is at least 10 years unburnt; (3) fire-sensitive non-savanna vegetation types are increasing or stable and (4) populations of selected hollownesting, ground-nesting, frugivorous and granivorous birds are increasing or stable. We also identify key knowledge gaps that currently inhibit conservation management.

Collaborative Research on the Ecology and Management of the ‘Wulo’ Monsoon Rainforest in Wunambal Gaambera Country, North Kimberley, Australia

“…The fragmentary distribution of rainforests (including those on offshore islands) has facilitated speciation of low-dispersal taxa such as landsnails (a value which has been recognized on the National Heritage Listing of the West Kimberley) [69,86]. Conversely, volant taxa like fruit-eating birds and bats are dependent on the network of rainforest patches (patches are typically small and embedded in a flammable savanna matrix) [87][88][89]. In this context, there is a need to manage the entire network of rainforest patches to prevent individual patches from contracting below the minimum size needed to support the animal species that currently inhabit them [90], with particular attention to small, isolated rainforests.…”

Potential role of ignition management in reducing unplanned burning in Arnhem Land, Australia

“…Many plant, mammal and bird species are in decline in the savannas, and Accepted for publication March 2015. unsuitable fire regimes are considered to be one of the main threats (Andersen et al 2012;Woinarski & Legge 2013). There are two principle aspects of contemporary savanna fire regimes that reinforce this conclusion.…”

“…If the overall objective is to reduce the overall fire frequency or to increase the proportion of longunburnt land, as is argued by some ecologists (Andersen et al 2012;Woinarski & Legge 2013), then preventing or suppressing large Human Late Dry Season fires should be the main fire management strategy. Early Dry Season burning may not meet that objective.…”

Fauna and vegetation responses to fire and invasion by toxic cane toads (Rhinella marina) in an obligate seeder-dominated tropical savanna in the Kimberley, northern Australia

“…Despite this, some savanna groups are more fire-sensitive than others, for instance, small mammals (Andersen et al 2005;Woinarski et al 2010Woinarski et al , 2011 and granivorous finches in northern Australia (Woinarski and Legge 2013). The few known fauna records from fire-sensitive savanna vegetation in northern Australia suggest that they contain typical savanna fauna, rather than specialised assemblages characterised by rainforest or firesensitive taxa Fisher 1995a, 1995b;Radford et al 2013).…”