Differential impacts of fire and inundation on a wetland plant community after wildfire

K. D. Mackay; B. Vincent; M. Southwell; I. Growns; S. Mika

doi:10.1071/MF24040

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

Previous Next Contents Vol 75(15)

Differential impacts of fire and inundation on a wetland plant community after wildfire

K. D. Mackay

^A ^B ^* , B. Vincent ^B ^C , M. Southwell ^B ^D , I. Growns ^B and S. Mika ^B

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A Ecosystem Management, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia.

^B University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia.

^C Present address: Biodiversity Conservation Trust, NSW Department of Environment and Planning, Armidale, NSW, Australia.

^D Present address: 2roj Consulting, Armidale, NSW, Australia.

^* Correspondence to: kmackay5@une.edu.au

Handling Editor: Paul Frazier

Marine and Freshwater Research 75, MF24040 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF24040

Submitted: 20 February 2024 Accepted: 15 September 2024 Published: 16 October 2024

© 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Context

Understanding fire and inundation impacts on wetland vegetation communities is crucial for effective post-fire wetland management.

Aims

We aimed to determine the impact of post-fire inundation on plant community structure and seedling germination and establishment after a large wildfire. We asked two questions, namely (1) did fire, drought or inundation affect plant communities the most; and (2) did fire or inundation affect seedling germination and establishment?

Methods

Using a before–after–control–impact (BACI) design, we monitored vegetation changes in water-couch wetland communities before and after a wildfire. Also, soil samples were collected from burnt and unburnt sites and assessed for impacts of fire and post-fire inundation regimes on seed germination and seedling establishment.

Key results

Inundation variables had more pronounced and more consistent impacts on vegetation measures than did fire or drought variables. Fire impacts were mainly short-term, with impact thresholds at 72 and 143 days after fire. Low germination levels and zero seedling survival were observed without inundation.

Conclusions

Fire was a major but short-term contributor to wetland vegetation change, whereas drought had longer-term impacts, and inundation regimes had the greatest impacts.

Implications

Providing a range of inundation conditions post-fire may enhance wetland vegetation recovery and have modifying effects on invasive species.

Keywords: conditional inference tree analysis, managed wetland inundation, post-fire community change, seedling germination, vegetation recovery, wetland fire, wetland flooding following wildfire, wetland seedbank.

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