1
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Russo NJ, Davies AB, Blakey RV, Ordway EM, Smith TB. Feedback loops between 3D vegetation structure and ecological functions of animals. Ecol Lett 2023; 26:1597-1613. [PMID: 37419868 DOI: 10.1111/ele.14272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2022] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 07/09/2023]
Abstract
Ecosystems function in a series of feedback loops that can change or maintain vegetation structure. Vegetation structure influences the ecological niche space available to animals, shaping many aspects of behaviour and reproduction. In turn, animals perform ecological functions that shape vegetation structure. However, most studies concerning three-dimensional vegetation structure and animal ecology consider only a single direction of this relationship. Here, we review these separate lines of research and integrate them into a unified concept that describes a feedback mechanism. We also show how remote sensing and animal tracking technologies are now available at the global scale to describe feedback loops and their consequences for ecosystem functioning. An improved understanding of how animals interact with vegetation structure in feedback loops is needed to conserve ecosystems that face major disruptions in response to climate and land-use change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas J Russo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Andrew B Davies
- Department of Organismic & Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Rachel V Blakey
- La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
- Biological Sciences Department, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, California, USA
| | - Elsa M Ordway
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
- La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Thomas B Smith
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
- La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
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2
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Stillman AN, Wilkerson RL, Kaschube DR, Siegel RB, Sawyer SC, Tingley MW. Incorporating pyrodiversity into wildlife habitat assessments for rapid post-fire management: A woodpecker case study. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2023; 33:e2853. [PMID: 36995347 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2853] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2022] [Revised: 03/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Spatial and temporal variation in fire characteristics-termed pyrodiversity-are increasingly recognized as important factors that structure wildlife communities in fire-prone ecosystems, yet there have been few attempts to incorporate pyrodiversity or post-fire habitat dynamics into predictive models of animal distributions and abundance to support post-fire management. We use the black-backed woodpecker-a species associated with burned forests-as a case study to demonstrate a pathway for incorporating pyrodiversity into wildlife habitat assessments for adaptive management. Employing monitoring data (2009-2019) from post-fire forests in California, we developed three competing occupancy models describing different hypotheses for habitat associations: (1) a static model representing an existing management tool, (2) a temporal model accounting for years since fire, and (3) a temporal-landscape model which additionally incorporates emerging evidence from field studies about the influence of pyrodiversity. Evaluating predictive ability, we found superior support for the temporal-landscape model, which showed a positive relationship between occupancy and pyrodiversity and interactions between habitat associations and years since fire. We incorporated the new temporal-landscape model into an RShiny application to make this decision-support tool accessible to decision-makers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew N Stillman
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
- Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | | | | | - Rodney B Siegel
- The Institute for Bird Populations, Petaluma, California, USA
| | | | - Morgan W Tingley
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
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3
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Steel ZL, Jones GM, Collins BM, Green R, Koltunov A, Purcell KL, Sawyer SC, Slaton MR, Stephens SL, Stine P, Thompson C. Mega-disturbances cause rapid decline of mature conifer forest habitat in California. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2023; 33:e2763. [PMID: 36264047 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2022] [Revised: 08/25/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Mature forests provide important wildlife habitat and support critical ecosystem functions globally. Within the dry conifer forests of the western United States, past management and fire exclusion have contributed to forest conditions that are susceptible to increasingly severe wildfire and drought. We evaluated declines in conifer forest cover in the southern Sierra Nevada of California during a decade of record disturbance by using spatially comprehensive forest structure estimates, wildfire perimeter data, and the eDaRT forest disturbance tracking algorithm. Primarily due to the combination of wildfires, drought, and drought-associated beetle epidemics, 30% of the region's conifer forest extent transitioned to nonforest vegetation during 2011-2020. In total, 50% of mature forest habitat and 85% of high density mature forests either transitioned to lower density forest or nonforest vegetation types. California spotted owl protected activity centers (PAC) experienced greater canopy cover decline (49% of 2011 cover) than non-PAC areas (42% decline). Areas with high initial canopy cover and without tall trees were most vulnerable to canopy cover declines, likely explaining the disproportionate declines of mature forest habitat and within PACs. Drought and beetle attack caused greater cumulative declines than areas where drought and wildfire mortality overlapped, and both types of natural disturbance far outpaced declines attributable to mechanical activities. Drought mortality that disproportionately affects large conifers is particularly problematic to mature forest specialist species reliant on large trees. However, patches of degraded forests within wildfire perimeters were larger with greater core area than those outside burned areas, and remnant forest habitats were more fragmented within burned perimeters than those affected by drought and beetle mortality alone. The percentage of mature forest that survived and potentially benefited from lower severity wildfire increased over time as the total extent of mature forest declined. These areas provide some opportunity for improved resilience to future disturbances, but strategic management interventions are likely also necessary to mitigate worsening mega-disturbances. Remaining dry mature forest habitat in California may be susceptible to complete loss in the coming decades without a rapid transition from a conservation paradigm that attempts to maintain static conditions to one that manages for sustainable disturbance dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gavin M Jones
- USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
- University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
| | - Brandon M Collins
- University of California, Berkeley, California, USA
- USFS Pacific Southwest Research Station, Davis, California, USA
| | - Rebecca Green
- Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park, Three Rivers, California, USA
| | - Alexander Koltunov
- USFS Pacific Southwest Region, McClellan, California, USA
- University of California, Davis, California, USA
| | - Kathryn L Purcell
- USFS Pacific Southwest Research Station, Coarsegold, California, USA
| | | | | | | | - Peter Stine
- Stine Wildland Resources Science, Sacramento, California, USA
| | - Craig Thompson
- USFS Pacific Southwest Research Station, Fresno, California, USA
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4
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Fortunato JA, Earley RL. Age-dependent genetic variation in aggression. Biol Lett 2023; 19:20220456. [PMID: 36693426 PMCID: PMC9873472 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2022.0456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the extent to which behavioural variance is underlain by genotypic, environmental and genotype-by-environment effects is important for predicting how behavioural traits might respond to selection and evolve. How behaviour varies both within and among individuals can change across ontogeny, leading to differences in the relative contribution of genetic and environmental effects to phenotypic variation across ages. We investigated among-individual and among-genotype variation in aggression across ontogeny by measuring, twice as juveniles and twice as adults, both approaches and attacks against a three-dimensional-printed model opponent in eight individuals from each of eight genotypes (N = 64). Aggression was only significantly repeatable and heritabile in juveniles. Additionally, how aggression changed between juvenile and adult life-history stages varied significantly among individuals and genotypes. These results suggest that juvenile aggression is likely to evolve more rapidly via natural selection than adult aggression and that the trajectory of behavioural change across the lifespan has the potential to evolve. Determining when genetic variation explains (or does not explain) behavioural variation can further our understanding of key life-history stages during which selection might drive the strongest or swiftest evolutionary response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer A. Fortunato
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, 1325 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
| | - Ryan L. Earley
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, 1325 Hackberry Lane, Box 870344, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
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5
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Parker NJ, Sullins DS, Haukos DA, Fricke KA, Hagen CA, Ahlers AA. Demographic effects of a megafire on a declining prairie grouse in the mixed‐grass prairie. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9544. [PMCID: PMC9712810 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2022] [Revised: 10/29/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas J. Parker
- Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources Kansas State University Manhattan Kansas USA
| | - Daniel S. Sullins
- Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources Kansas State University Manhattan Kansas USA
| | - David A. Haukos
- U.S. Geological Survey, Kansas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Division of Biology Kansas State University Manhattan Kansas USA
| | - Kent A. Fricke
- Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Emporia Kansas USA
| | - Christian A. Hagen
- Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences Oregon State University Corvallis Oregon USA
| | - Adam A. Ahlers
- Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources Kansas State University Manhattan Kansas USA
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6
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Lorrain-Soligon L, Robin F, Brischoux F. Hydric status influences salinity-dependent water selection in frogs from coastal wetlands. Physiol Behav 2022; 249:113775. [PMID: 35259400 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2022.113775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Revised: 03/04/2022] [Accepted: 03/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The environment is heterogeneous across spatial and temporal scales, and the behavioural responses required to adjust individuals' needs to resource availability across such variable environments should be under selective pressure. Coastal wetlands are characterized by a diversity of habitats ranging from fresh- to salt water; and individuals occurring in such complex habitats need to adjust their habitat use based on their osmotic status. In this study, we experimentally tested whether an amphibian species (Pelophylax sp.) occurring in coastal wetlands was able to discriminate and select between different salinity concentrations (0, 4, 8 and 12 g.l-1) and whether hydric status (hydrated versus dehydrated) influenced salinity-dependent water selection. We found that frogs selected water based on salinity differentially between hydrated and dehydrated individuals, with the later favoring lower salinities likely to improve their osmotic status. Interestingly, we highlighted the ability of frogs to select lower salinity before having access to water, suggesting that frogs can assess water salinity without actual contact. In coastal wetlands where salinity of water bodies can dynamically vary through space and time, such behavioural osmoregulation process is potentially a key factor affecting individual movements, habitat choice and thus species distribution. Our study further highlights the importance of salinity-dependent habitat heterogeneity and especially the presence of freshwater environments as structuring factors for the amphibian community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Léa Lorrain-Soligon
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CEBC UMR 7372 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France.
| | - Frédéric Robin
- LPO France, Fonderies Royales, 17300 Rochefort, France; Réserve naturelle de Moëze-Oléron, LPO, Plaisance, 17 780 Saint-Froult, France
| | - François Brischoux
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CEBC UMR 7372 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
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7
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Hoecker TJ, Turner MG. Combined effects of climate and fire‐driven vegetation change constrain the distributions of forest vertebrates during the 21st century. DIVERS DISTRIB 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.13470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Tyler J. Hoecker
- Department of Integrative Biology University of Wisconsin‐Madison Madison Wisconsin USA
- Department of Forest Management Franke College of Forestry and Conservation University of Montana Missoula Montana USA
| | - Monica G. Turner
- Department of Integrative Biology University of Wisconsin‐Madison Madison Wisconsin USA
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8
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Stillman AN, Lorenz TJ, Siegel RB, Wilkerson RL, Johnson M, Tingley MW. Conditional natal dispersal provides a mechanism for populations tracking resource pulses after fire. Behav Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arab106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Animals that persist in spatially structured populations face the challenge of tracking the rise and fall of resources across space and time. To combat these challenges, theory predicts that species should use conditional dispersal strategies that allow them to emigrate from patches with declining resources and colonize new resource patches as they appear. We studied natal dispersal movements in the black-backed woodpecker (Picoides arcticus), a species known for its strong association with recent post-fire forests in western North America. We radio-tracked juveniles originating from seven burned areas and tested hypotheses that environmental and individual factors influence dispersal distance and emigration rates—investigating emigration while additionally accounting for imperfect detection with a novel Bayesian model. We found that juveniles were more likely to leave natal areas and disperse longer distances if they were heavier or hatched in older burned areas where resources are increasingly scarce. Juveniles were also more likely to leave their natal burn if they hatched in a nest closer to the fire perimeter. While dispersing across the landscape, black-backed woodpeckers selected for burned forest relative to unburned available habitat. Together, these results strongly support the hypothesis that black-backed woodpecker populations track resource pulses across fire-prone landscapes, with conditional natal dispersal acting as a mechanism for locating and colonizing newly burned areas. Lending empirical support to theoretical predictions, our findings suggest that changes in resource distribution may shape dispersal patterns and, consequently, the distribution and persistence of spatially structured populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew N Stillman
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, 75 N. Eagleville Road, Unit 3043, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
| | - Teresa J Lorenz
- USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, 3625 93rd Ave. SW, Olympia, WA 98512, USA
| | - Rodney B Siegel
- The Institute for Bird Populations, P.O. Box 518, Petaluma, CA 94953, USA
| | - Robert L Wilkerson
- The Institute for Bird Populations, P.O. Box 518, Petaluma, CA 94953, USA
| | - Matthew Johnson
- U.S. National Park Service, Southern Colorado Plateau Network - Inventory & Monitoring Division, 2255 N Gemini Dr, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA
| | - Morgan W Tingley
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California – Los Angeles, 621 Charles E Young Dr S #951606, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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9
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Jager HI, Long JW, Malison RL, Murphy BP, Rust A, Silva LGM, Sollmann R, Steel ZL, Bowen MD, Dunham JB, Ebersole JL, Flitcroft RL. Resilience of terrestrial and aquatic fauna to historical and future wildfire regimes in western North America. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:12259-12284. [PMID: 34594498 PMCID: PMC8462151 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2021] [Revised: 07/12/2021] [Accepted: 07/24/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Wildfires in many western North American forests are becoming more frequent, larger, and severe, with changed seasonal patterns. In response, coniferous forest ecosystems will transition toward dominance by fire-adapted hardwoods, shrubs, meadows, and grasslands, which may benefit some faunal communities, but not others. We describe factors that limit and promote faunal resilience to shifting wildfire regimes for terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. We highlight the potential value of interspersed nonforest patches to terrestrial wildlife. Similarly, we review watershed thresholds and factors that control the resilience of aquatic ecosystems to wildfire, mediated by thermal changes and chemical, debris, and sediment loadings. We present a 2-dimensional life history framework to describe temporal and spatial life history traits that species use to resist wildfire effects or to recover after wildfire disturbance at a metapopulation scale. The role of fire refuge is explored for metapopulations of species. In aquatic systems, recovery of assemblages postfire may be faster for smaller fires where unburned tributary basins or instream structures provide refuge from debris and sediment flows. We envision that more-frequent, lower-severity fires will favor opportunistic species and that less-frequent high-severity fires will favor better competitors. Along the spatial dimension, we hypothesize that fire regimes that are predictable and generate burned patches in close proximity to refuge will favor species that move to refuges and later recolonize, whereas fire regimes that tend to generate less-severely burned patches may favor species that shelter in place. Looking beyond the trees to forest fauna, we consider mitigation options to enhance resilience and buy time for species facing a no-analog future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henriette I. Jager
- Environmental Sciences DivisionOak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)Oak RidgeTNUSA
| | - Jonathan W. Long
- U.S. Department of AgriculturePacific Southwest Research StationDavisCAUSA
| | - Rachel L. Malison
- Flathead Lake Biological StationThe University of MontanaPolsonMTUSA
| | - Brendan P. Murphy
- School of Environmental ScienceSimon Fraser UniversityBurnabyBCCanada
| | - Ashley Rust
- Civil and Environmental Engineering DepartmentColorado School of MinesGoldenCOUSA
| | - Luiz G. M. Silva
- Institute for Land, Water and SocietyCharles Sturt UniversityAlburyNSWAustralia
- Department of CivilEnvironmental and Geomatic EngineeringStocker LabInstitute of Environmental EngineeringETH ZurichZürichSwitzerland
| | - Rahel Sollmann
- Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation BiologyUniversity of California DavisDavisCAUSA
| | - Zachary L. Steel
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy and ManagementUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCAUSA
| | - Mark D. Bowen
- Thomas Gast & Associates Environmental ConsultantsArcataCAUSA
| | - Jason B. Dunham
- U.S. Geological Survey, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science CenterCorvallisORUSA
| | - Joseph L. Ebersole
- Center for Public Health and Environmental AssessmentPacific Ecological Systems DivisionU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyCorvallisORUSA
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10
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Wood CM. Optimizing landscape‐scale monitoring programmes to detect the effects of megafires. DIVERS DISTRIB 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.13308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Connor M. Wood
- Center for Conservation Bioacoustics Cornell Lab of Ornithology Cornell University Ithaca NY USA
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11
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Jones GM, Tingley MW. Pyrodiversity and biodiversity: A history, synthesis, and outlook. DIVERS DISTRIB 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.13280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Gavin M. Jones
- USDA Forest ServiceRocky Mountain Research Station Albuquerque NM USA
| | - Morgan W. Tingley
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California Los Angeles CA USA
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12
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Steel ZL, Fogg AM, Burnett R, Roberts LJ, Safford HD. When bigger isn’t better—Implications of large high‐severity wildfire patches for avian diversity and community composition. DIVERS DISTRIB 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.13281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Zachary L. Steel
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy University of California Davis CA USA
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management University of California–Berkeley Berkeley CA USA
| | | | | | | | - Hugh D. Safford
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy University of California Davis CA USA
- United States Department of Agriculture Forest ServicePacific Southwest Region Vallejo CA USA
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13
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Shaw RE, James AI, Tuft K, Legge S, Cary GJ, Peakall R, Banks SC. Unburnt habitat patches are critical for survival and in situ population recovery in a small mammal after fire. J Appl Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Robyn E. Shaw
- Research School of Biology The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| | - Alex I. James
- Australian Wildlife ConservancyMornington Sanctuary Derby WA Australia
| | | | - Sarah Legge
- Threatened Species Recovery Hub National Environmental Science Program Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science The University of Queensland St Lucia Qld Australia
- The Fenner School of Environment & Society The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| | - Geoffrey J. Cary
- The Fenner School of Environment & Society The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| | - Rod Peakall
- Research School of Biology The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
| | - Sam C. Banks
- The Fenner School of Environment & Society The Australian National University Canberra ACT Australia
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14
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Stillman AN, Lorenz TJ, Fischer PC, Siegel RB, Wilkerson RL, Johnson M, Tingley MW. Juvenile survival of a burned forest specialist in response to variation in fire characteristics. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:1317-1327. [PMID: 33638165 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2020] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Pyrodiversity, defined as variation in fire history and characteristics, has been shown to catalyse post-fire biodiversity in a variety of systems. However, the demographic and behavioural mechanisms driving the responses of individual species to pyrodiversity remain largely unexplored. We used a model post-fire specialist, the black-backed woodpecker (Picoides arcticus), to examine the relationship between fire characteristics and juvenile survival while controlling for confounding factors. We radio-tracked fledgling black-backed woodpeckers in burned forests of California and Washington, USA, and derived information on habitat characteristics using ground surveys and satellite data. We used hierarchical Bayesian mixed-effects models to determine the factors that influence both fledgling and annual juvenile survival, and we tested for effects of fledgling age on movement rates. Burn severity strongly affected fledgling survival, with lower survival in patches created by high-severity fire compared to patches burned at medium to low severity or left unburned. Time since leaving the nest was also a strong predictor of fledgling survival, annual juvenile survival and fledgling movement rates. Our results support the role of habitat complementation in generating species-specific benefits from variation in spatial fire characteristics-one axis of pyrodiversity-and highlight the importance of this variation under shifting fire regimes. High-severity fire provides foraging and nesting sites that support the needs of adult black-backed woodpeckers, but fledgling survival is greater in areas burned at lower severity. By linking breeding and foraging habitat with neighbouring areas of reduced predation risk, pyrodiversity may enhance the survival and persistence of animals that thrive in post-fire habitat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew N Stillman
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Teresa J Lorenz
- USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, Olympia, WA, USA
| | - Philip C Fischer
- USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, Olympia, WA, USA
| | | | | | - Matthew Johnson
- U.S. National Park Service, Southern Colorado Plateau Network - Inventory & Monitoring Division, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
| | - Morgan W Tingley
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA.,Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California - Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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15
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Bateman BL, Taylor L, Wilsey C, Wu J, LeBaron GS, Langham G. Risk to North American birds from climate change‐related threats. CONSERVATION SCIENCE AND PRACTICE 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/csp2.243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - Lotem Taylor
- Science DivisionNational Audubon Society New York New York USA
| | - Chad Wilsey
- Science DivisionNational Audubon Society New York New York USA
| | - Joanna Wu
- Science DivisionNational Audubon Society New York New York USA
| | | | - Gary Langham
- American Association of Geographers Washington District of Columbia USA
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16
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Steel ZL, Campos B, Frick WF, Burnett R, Safford HD. The effects of wildfire severity and pyrodiversity on bat occupancy and diversity in fire-suppressed forests. Sci Rep 2019; 9:16300. [PMID: 31806868 PMCID: PMC6895131 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-52875-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 10/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Wildfire is an important ecological process that influences species’ occurrence and biodiversity generally. Its effect on bats is understudied, creating challenges for habitat management and species conservation as threats to the taxa worsen globally and within fire-prone ecosystems. We conducted acoustic surveys of wildfire areas during 2014–2017 in conifer forests of California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains. We tested effects of burn severity and its variation, or pyrodiversity, on occupancy and diversity for the 17-species bat community while accounting for imperfect detection. Occupancy rates increased with severity for at least 6 species and with pyrodiversity for at least 3. Two other species responded negatively to pyrodiversity. Individual species models predicted maximum occupancy rates across burn severity levels but only one species occurred most often in undisturbed areas. Species richness increased from approximately 8 species in unburned forests to 11 in pyrodiverse areas with moderate- to high-severity. Greater accessibility of foraging habitats, as well as increased habitat heterogeneity may explain positive responses to wildfire. Many bat species appear well adapted to wildfire, while a century of fire suppression and forest densification likely reduced habitat quality for the community generally. Relative to other taxa, bats may be somewhat resilient to increases in fire severity and size; trends which are expected to continue with accelerating climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Z L Steel
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, 95616, USA.
| | - B Campos
- Point Blue Conservation Science, Petaluma, CA, 94954, USA
| | - W F Frick
- Bat Conservation International, Austin, Texas, 78746, USA.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, California, 95060, USA
| | - R Burnett
- Point Blue Conservation Science, Petaluma, CA, 94954, USA
| | - H D Safford
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, 95616, USA.,United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region, Vallejo, CA, 94592, USA
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