Response to fire by a forest specialist in isolated montane forest
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Final Accepted Manuscript
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Univ Arizona, Sch Nat Resources & Environm, Environm & Nat Resources 2Issue Date
2020-04-15
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Mazzella, M. N., & Koprowski, J. L. (2020). Response to fire by a forest specialist in isolated montane forest. Forest Ecology and Management, 462, 117996. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2020.117996Journal
FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENTRights
© 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Collection Information
This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at repository@u.library.arizona.edu.Abstract
Fire events have increased in scale and severity due to hotter, drier conditions brought on by climate change and fire suppression. Extreme fire events can be detrimental to forest specialists, especially populations at the edge of the species range, where conditions can vary from those within the core of the range. The San Bernardino flying squirrel (Glaucomys oregonensis californicus) is the southernmost subspecies of Humboldt's flying squirrel and occurs only in the San Bernardino Mountains of southern California after apparent extirpation from the nearby San Jacinto Mountains. We used non-invasive methods to assess how fire affects flying squirrel occupancy. We surveyed for flying squirrels in burned and unburned areas of the San Bernardino Mountains, and measured habitat features to construct occupancy models. Our top models indicated that flying squirrels occupy lower burn severities but could still occur at higher burn severities if canopy cover remained intact, forest duff remained deep, and tree mortality remained low, especially on steeper slopes. Our study illustrates the ability of San Bernardino flying squirrels, and the potential for other flying squirrels, to survive major fire events and maintain their role in the forest ecosystem. Such results are especially important for species management and understanding how parts of an ecosystem can react as fire frequency and severity increases.Note
24 month embargo; published online: 21 February 2020ISSN
0378-1127Version
Final accepted manuscriptae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1016/j.foreco.2020.117996