Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF WILDLAND FIRE
Volume 24, Issue 8, Pages 1045-1061Publisher
CSIRO PUBLISHING
DOI: 10.1071/WF14167
Keywords
climate change; fire regime; wildfire
Categories
Funding
- NASA Terrestrial Ecology Program [NNX10AF41G]
- University of Maryland
- NASA [134771, NNX10AF41G] Funding Source: Federal RePORTER
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A multidecadal analysis of fire in Alaskan Arctic tundra was completed using records from the Alaska Large Fire Database. Tundra vegetation fires are defined by the Circumpolar Arctic Vegetation Map and divided into five tundra ecoregions of Alaska. A detailed review of fire records in these regions is presented, and an analysis of future fire potential was performed based on future climate scenarios. The average size of tundra fire based on the data record is 22km(2) (5454 acres). Fires show a mean size of 10km(2) (2452 acres) and median of 0.064km(2) (16 acres), indicating small fires are common. Although uncommon, 16 fires larger than 300km(2) (74132 acres) have been recorded across four ecoregions and all five decades. Warmer summers with extended periods of drying are expected to increase fire activity as indicated by fire weather index. The implications of the current fire regime and potential changes in fire regime are discussed in the context of land management and ecosystem services. Current fire management practices and land-use planning in Alaska should be specifically tailored to the tundra region based on the current fire regime and in anticipation of the expected change in fire regime projected with climate change.
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