Madrean pine-oak forest in Arizona: altered fire regimes, altered communities

Abstract

In Madrean pine-oak forests in the Chiricahua Mountains, surface fire favors pines, which exhibit high top-survival, but resprouting allows oaks to rebound during inter-fire periods. These patterns plus age structure and radial growth data suggest that frequent presettlement surface fire maintained open stands, promoted a high pine:oak ratio, and excluded less fire resistant species—patterns reversed by a century of reduced fire. Recent anomalous stand-replacing crown fires have further transformed some stands: most oaks resprouted but pine establishment was sparse, exacerbated by a protracted drought. This synthesis argues for the careful and flexible use of fire to restore more open pine-oak stands.

Parent Publication

• Connecting mountain islands and desert seas: Biodiversity and management of the Madrean Archipelago II

Citation

Barton, Andrew M. 2005. Madrean pine-oak forest in Arizona: altered fire regimes, altered communities. Gottfried, Gerald J.; Gebow, Brooke S.; Eskew, Lane G.; Edminster, Carleton B., comps. Connecting mountain islands and desert seas: biodiversity and management of the Madrean Archipelago II. Proc. RMRS-P-36. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station: 455-459