Has canopy height and biomass recovered 78 years after an intense fire in south-western Australia’s red tingle (Eucalyptus jacksonii) forests?
Grant Wardell-Johnson A B , Liam Crellin A , Casey Napier A , Garrett Meigs B , Alyssa Stevenson A and Su Ing Wong A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Department of Environment and Agriculture, School of Science, Curtin University, GPO Box U1987, Perth, WA 6845, Australia.
B Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, Gund Institute for Ecological Economics, 308 Aiken Center, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405, USA.
C Corresponding author. Email: g.wardell-johnson@curtin.edu.au
International Journal of Wildland Fire 26(2) 148-155 https://doi.org/10.1071/WF16143
Submitted: 12 June 2016 Accepted: 2 December 2016 Published: 23 January 2017
Abstract
Tall eucalypt old-growth forests are notable for their large, old (i.e. venerable) trees and have both significant conservation value and high carbon stores. We investigated whether canopy height and biomass had recovered in an old-growth red tingle (Eucalyptus jacksonii) forest 78 years after a high-intensity fire. We recorded species, diameter, hollow butting and height of all 596 trees >10-cm diameter at breast height, as well as fine and coarse woody debris, in a 3.55-ha plot near Nornalup, south-western Australia. Pre-fire canopy height was estimated by allometrics derived from tree height and diameter, and diameter and length of recently fallen branches. Of the basal area (75.0 m2 ha–1), 92.7% was eucalypt (chiefly E. jacksonii), with regeneration accounting for only 8.5% of the total. Although canopy species composition apparently did not change following fire, stand height and biomass had not recovered to pre-1937 levels by 2015. Canopy height remained 5.06 m (11%) less and biomass 25% less, 78 years after the fire. The combination of intense fire and a warmer, drier climate appears to have prevented recovery of forest height and structure at this site. These findings indicate that ecologically important, venerable trees are increasingly vulnerable to canopy fire and climate change.
Additional keywords: basal area, carbon, climate disruption, eucalypt, global biodiversity hotspot
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