Do high severity burns lead to conversion to new forest types or a shift from forests to shrublands or grasslands? How do wildlife respond to changing habitats? And, finally, what do these changes tell us about how these ecosystems will respond to climate change? We visited the sites of the 2000 Pumpkin Fire and 2003 Aspen Fire, and talked to researchers who have been studying how forests and wildlife respond to high severity burns. View the YouTube video here.
Oct 16, 2019: Contributions of fire refugia to resilient ponderosa pine and dry mixed-conifer forest landscapes
Presenter: Jonathan Coop, Western Colorado University Date: October 16, 2019 11am AZ/12pm MDT In western North America, ponderosa pine and dry mixed-conifer forest types appear increasingly vulnerable to wildfire-catalyzed conversion to alternate and non-forest vegetation types. However, unburned or only lightly impacted forest stands that persist within burn mosaics—termed fire refugia—may sustain a range critical …