Five models for the moisture content of fine dead fuels were evaluated using empirical datasets. Simple functions of the difference between air temperature and relative humidity were shown to perform as well as, if not better than exponential models based on vapour pressure deficit.

Global change is pushing fire activity and impact beyond known trajectories. We reviewed the literature to bring forward five themes of attention for governance systems. The initial framing was then applied to the case of Cyprus, to exemplify the potential and urgency for change in wildfire thinking and action globally.

Remote sensing is frequently used in fire ecology and management, but its applications for prescribed burning are not well established. We review studies that use remote sensing for prescribed burn research, finding that wildfire remote sensing approaches are not optimised for small, short-duration and low-severity burns typical of prescribed fire.

We propose a method to identify the climate window when prescribed burning in Tasmania, Australia is unlikely to lead to organic soil combustion, using observations of when organic soil fires occurred, and vegetation is dry enough to burn.

Reptile responses to fire are poorly understood in urban remnants. We examined reptile responses in the first 15 years post-fire and compared them to studies in contiguous vegetation. There were no long-term impacts of fire on reptiles after 3 years post-fire.

Fire regimes can have a significant bearing on terrestrial carbon stocks, with carbon markets potentially providing a mechanism to support land management activities. We quantify the effect of time-since-fire and prior fire interval on biomass carbon in the world’s largest extant Mediterranean-climate woodland, located in south-western Australia. Photographs by C. Gosper.