Download or read book Fire in Tropical Savannas written by Alan N. Andersen and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2006-05-17 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fire is a major agent of disturbance in many biomes of the world but is a particularly important feature of tropical savannas. Up to 50% of the ext- sive tropical savanna landscapes of northern Australia are burnt each year. This includes prestigious conservation reserves such as World Heritage— listed Kakadu National Park, in the Top End of the Northern Territory. As in other savanna regions of the world, the responses of biota to different ?re regimes are poorly understood, such that ?re management represents one of the greatest challenges to conservation managers and researchers alike. This is the context within which a landscape-scale ?re experiment was established at Kapalga Research Station in Kakadu,which aimed to provide a sound scienti?c basis for conservation management in the region. The experiment was established by The Australian Commonwealth Scienti?c and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO),but involved collaborators from a range of universities and government agencies, including the m- agers of Kakadu,the Australian Nature Conservation Agency (ANCA:now Parks Australia North). This book summarizes the ?ndings from the Kapalga ?re experiment and explores the implications for conservation management. We believe that Kapalga has provided important insights into the ?re ecology of tropical savannas and has broad relevance for the conservation management of ?- prone landscapes in general. This book should be of interest to researchers, graduate students, and land management agencies. vii viii Preface We are extremely grateful to all our collaborators,both inside and outside CSIRO, for their involvement in the Kapalga experiment.
Download or read book Fire in Tropical Savannas written by Alan N. Andersen and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2003-06-24 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The ten-year research program and the Kapalga fire experiment at CSIRO in Australia has provided a wealth of knowledge about savanna ecosystems and the critical but poorly understood role of fire. The frequent low intensity fires examined in this volume characterize fire in the tropics and are a dominant force in shaping the structure and function of tropical ecosystems. Contributors discuss fire in relation to rainfall, groundwater, and the mammals and plants in the ecology and management of ecosystems. Among the management issues addressed are: habitat management, endangered species, protection of people and property, erosion and nutrient depletion, integration of knowledge from indigenous people and western science, and atmospheric pollution from fire smoke. This book will be valuable to tropical and savanna ecologists, fire ecologists and fire managers throughout the world, whether they are interested in plants, animals, soils or in the landscape as a whole.
Download or read book Ecological Effects of Fire in South African Ecosystems written by P. de V. Booysen and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 431 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a stimulating tale of the interplay of observation, experimentation, working hypotheses, tentative conclusions, niggling and weightier doubts and great aspirations, on the part of some score of students, on varied ecological and other aspects of the regime and role of fire in relevant biomes and ecosystem- mainly in South Africa - and on other pertinent features of fire ecology. The impressive contents is a tribute to conveners and authors alike. One can expect a profound range and depth ofinvestigation and interpretation, a closeknit fabric of knowledge, delicately interwoven with wisdom, an exposition and quintessence of information. Admipable is the collective vision responsible for selecting appropriate topics: the wide sweeps of the brush picturing the nature of the biomes; ably describing the fire regimes - whether in grassland, savanna, fynbos or forest; skillfully defining the effects of such regimes - according to ecosystem - upon aerial and edaphic factors of the habitat, upon constituent biota, individually, specifically and as a biotic community; elucidating the basic implications in the structure and dynamics of the plant aspect of that community ... and unravelling to some degree the tangled knot of the conservation and dissipation of moisture and nutrients. Moreover, gratitude is owed for efforts exerted to understand the interplay of fire and faunal behaviour and dynamics as well as composition, together with the principle of adaptive responses of organisms of diverse kinds.
Download or read book Culture Ecology and Economy of Fire Management in North Australian Savannas written by Jeremy Russell-Smith and published by CSIRO PUBLISHING. This book was released on 2009-10-26 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This engaging volume explores the management of fire in one of the world’s most flammable landscapes: Australia’s tropical savannas, where on average 18% of the landscape is burned annually. Impacts have been particularly severe in the Arnhem Land Plateau, a centre of plant and animal diversity on Indigenous land. Culture, Ecology and Economy of Fire Management in North Australian Savannas documents a remarkable collaboration between Arnhem Land’s traditional landowners and the scientific community to arrest a potentially catastrophic fire-driven decline in the natural and cultural assets of the region – not by excluding fire, but by using it better through restoration of Indigenous control over burning. This multi-disciplinary treatment encompasses the history of fire use in the savannas, the post-settlement changes that altered fire patterns, the personal histories of a small number of people who lived most of their lives on the plateau and, critically, their deep knowledge of fire and how to apply it to care for country. Uniquely, it shows how such knowledge and commitment can be deployed in conjunction with rigorous formal scientific analysis, advanced technology, new cross-cultural institutions and the emerging carbon economy to build partnerships for controlling fire at scales that were, until this demonstration, thought beyond effective intervention.
Download or read book Tropical Fire Ecology written by Mark Cochrane and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2010-04-11 with total page 696 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The tropics are home to most of the world’s biodiversity and are currently the frontier for human settlement. Tropical ecosystems are being converted to agricultural and other land uses at unprecedented rates. Land conversion and maintenance almost always rely on fire and, because of this, fire is now more prevalent in the tropics than anywhere else on Earth. Despite pervasive fire, human settlement and threatened biodiversity, there is little comprehensive information available on fire and its effects in tropical ecosystems. Tropical deforestation, especially in rainforests, has been widely documented for many years. Forests are cut down and allowed to dry before being burned to remove biomass and release nutrients to grow crops. However, fires do not always stop at the borders of cleared forests. Tremendously damaging fires are increasingly spreading into forests that were never evolutionarily prepared for wild fires. The largest fires on the planet in recent decades have occurred in tropical forests and burned millions of hectares in several countries. The numerous ecosystems of the tropics have differing levels of fire resistance, resilience or dependence. At present, there is little appreciation of the seriousness of the wild fire situation in tropical rainforests but there is even less understanding of the role that fire plays in the ecology of many fire adapted tropical ecosystems, such as savannas, grasslands and other forest types.
Download or read book Ecology of Tropical Savannas written by B. J. Huntley and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 677 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Carbon Accounting and Savanna Fire Management written by Jeremy Russell-Smith and published by CSIRO PUBLISHING. This book was released on 2015-06-15 with total page 490 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the context of Australia’s developing carbon economy, fire management helps to abate emissions of greenhouse gases and is an important means of generating carbon credits. The vast high-rainfall savannas of northern Australia are one of the world’s most flammable landscapes. Management of fires in this region has the potential to assist with meeting emissions reduction targets, as well as conserving biodiversity and providing employment for Indigenous people in remote parts of Australia’s north. This comprehensive volume brings together recent research from northern Australian savannas to provide an internationally relevant case study for applying greenhouse gas accounting methodologies to the practice of fire management. It provides scientific arguments for enlarging the area of fire-prone land managed for emissions abatement. The book also charts the progress towards development of a savanna fire bio-sequestration methodology. The future of integrated approaches to emissions abatement and bio-sequestration is also discussed.
Download or read book Plant Functional Diversity written by Eric Garnier and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2016 with total page 255 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Biological diversity, the variety of living organisms on Earth, is traditionally viewed as the diversity of taxa, and species in particular. However, other facets of diversity also need to be considered for a comprehensive understanding of evolutionary and ecological processes. This novel book demonstrates the advantages of adopting a functional approach to diversity in order to improve our understanding of the functioning of ecological systems and theircomponents. The focus is on plants, which are major components of these systems, and for which the functional approach has led to major scientific advances over the last 20 years. PlantFunctional Diversity presents the rationale for a trait-based approach to functional diversity in the context of comparative plant ecology and agroecology. It demonstrates how this approach can be used to address a number of highly debated questions in plant ecology pertaining to plant responses to their environment, controls on plant community structure, ecosystem properties, and the services these deliver to human societies. This research level text will be of particular relevance and use tograduate students and professional researchers in plant ecology, agricultural sciences and conservation biology.
Download or read book Fire in the Tropical Biota written by Johann G. Goldammer and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 515 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1977, the Volkswagen Foundation sponsored the first of a series of International Symposia on Fire Ecology at Freiburg University, Federal Republic of Germany. The scope of the congresses was to create a platform for researchers at a time when the science of fire ecology was not yet recognized and established outside of North America and Australia. Whereas comprehensive information on the fire ecology of the northern boreal, the temperate, and the mediter ranean biotas is meanwhile available, it was recognized that conside rable gaps in information exist on the role of fire in tropical und sub tropical ecosystems. Thus it seemed timely to meet the growing scientific interest and public demand for reliable and updated infor mation and to synthesize the available knowledge of tropical fire ecology and the impact of tropical biomass burning on global eco system processes. The Third Symposium on Fire Ecology, again sponsored by the Volkswagen Foundation and held at Freiburg University in May 1989, was convened to prepare this first pantropical and multidisci plinary monograph on fire ecology!. The book, in which 46 scientists cooperated, analyzes those fire-related ecosystem processes which have not yet been described in a synoptic way. Following the editor's concept, duplication at previous efforts in describing tropical vegeta tion patterns and dynamics was avoided. Extensive bibliographical sources are given in the reference lists of the chapters.
Download or read book Juma the Giraffe written by Monica Bond and published by . This book was released on 2018-06-04 with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What happens when Juma the giraffe sees his reflection in a waterhole? Monica Bond's story, beautifully illustrated by Kayla Harren, will touch the hearts of children everywhere who a searching for what makes them special.
Download or read book Savanna Woody Plants and Large Herbivores written by Peter Frank Scogings and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2019-09-30 with total page 794 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Insights on current research and recent developments in understanding global savanna systems Increasingly recognized as synonymous with tropical grassy biomes, savannas are found in tropical and sub-tropical climates as well as warm, temperate regions of North America. Savanna Woody Plants and Large Herbivores examines the interactions between woody plants and browsing mammals in global savannas—focusing primarily on the C4 grassy ecosystems with woody components that constitute the majority of global savannas—and discusses contemporary savanna management models and applications. This much-needed addition to current research examines topics including the varying behavior of browsing mammals, the response to browsing by woody species, and the factors that inhibit forage intake. Contributions from an international team of active researchers and experts compare and contrast different savanna ecosystems, offering a global perspective on savanna functioning, the roles of soil and climate in resource availability and organism interaction, and the possible impacts of climate change across global savannas. Fills a gap in literature on savanna management issues, including biodiversity conservation and animal production Applies concepts developed in other biomes to future savanna research Complements contemporary books on savanna or large herbivore ecology Focuses on the woody component of savanna ecosystems and large herbivore interactions in savannas Compares tree-mammal systems of savannas and other eco-systems of temperate and boreal regions Provides numerous case studies of plant-mammal interactions from various savanna ecosystems Savanna Woody Plants and Large Herbivores is a valuable addition to those in fields such as ecology, wildlife and conservation biology, natural resource management, and environmental science.
Download or read book The Cerrados of Brazil written by Paulo S. and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2013-02-05 with total page 409 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The massive grasslands of Brazil -- known as the cerrados -- which cover roughly a quarter of its land surface and are among the most threatened regions in South America, have received little media attention. This book brings together leading researchers on the area to produce the first detailed account in English of the natural history and ecology of the cerrado/savanna ecosystem. Given their extent and threatened status, the richness of their flora and fauna, and the lack of familiarity with their unique ecology at the international level, the cerrados are badly in need of this important and timely work.
Download or read book Fire in Tropical Forests and Grasslands written by Robert B. Batchelder and published by . This book was released on 1966 with total page 404 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Wildland Fire Management Handbook for Sub Sahara Africa written by Johann Georg Goldammer and published by African Minds. This book was released on 2004 with total page 446 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Africa is a fire continent. Since the early evolution of humanity, fire has been harnessed as a land-use tool. Many ecosystems of Sub-Sahara Africa that have been shaped by fire over millennia provide a high carrying capacity for human populations.
Download or read book Lamto written by Luc Abbadie and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2006-11-22 with total page 422 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Synthesizing 40 years of ongoing ecological research, this book examines the structure, function, and dynamics of the Lamto humid savanna. From the history of the Lamto ecology station, to an overview of enivronmental conditions of the site, and examining the integrative view of energy and nutrient fluxes relative to the dynamics of the region's vegetation, this exacting work is as unique and treasured as Lamto itself.
Download or read book Grassfires written by Phil Cheney and published by CSIRO PUBLISHING. This book was released on 2008 with total page 161 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Grassfirespresents the latest information from CSIRO on the behavior and spread of fires in grasslands. This second edition follows ten years of research aimed at improving the understanding of fundamental processes involved in the behavior of bushfires and grassfires. The book has been extensively revised and new case studies have been added to reflect the latest findings in research and investigations. The book covers all aspects of fire behavior and spread in the major types of grasses in Australia. It examines the factors that affect fire behavior in continuous grassy fuels; fire in spinifex fuels; the effect of weather and topography on fire spread; wildfire suppression strategies; and how to reconstruct grassfire spread after the fact. The three fire-spread meters designed by CSIRO and used for the prediction of fire danger and rate of spread of grassfires are explained and their use and limitations discussed. This new edition expands on the historical view of grassfires with respect to extensive Aboriginal burning, combustion chemistry, flame structure and temperature, spotting and spread in discontinuous/eaten out fuels, and the effect of wind in complex terrain. The case studies in the chapter "Wildfires and Their Suppression" have been updated and include the major wild grassfire events of recent years, the January 2003 ACT fires and the 2005 Wangary, SA fire. The "Myths, Facts and Fallacies" chapter includes new myths and a new section on personal safety during a wild grass fire. Of interest to all rural fire fighters and rural landholders, students and teachers of courses on landscape and ecological processes, rural and peri-urban dwellers, fire authorities and researchers.
Download or read book Global Application of Prescribed Fire written by John R. Weir and published by CSIRO PUBLISHING. This book was released on 2022-02-01 with total page 470 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Global Application of Prescribed Fire provides a first-hand perspective of the various methods and ways people around the world view and use prescribed fire. It covers the logistics, constraints and social dynamics surrounding the intentional use and application of fire by humans, and demonstrates how, why, when and where prescribed fire is used in different regions. Written by international experts, the book has four key objectives: explore new techniques, ideas and thoughts on how to apply prescribed fire from a global perspective; provide regional case studies covering issues that may constrain or enhance prescribed fire projects; stimulate cross-cultural conversations about how fires function in ecosystems; and relate prescribed fire to wildfire regimes with implications for protecting life and property, as well as sustaining local fire cultures and unique fire-dependent flora and fauna. Global Application of Prescribed Fire enhances our understanding and knowledge about the application of prescribed fire. This comprehensive book will provide fire practitioners, researchers, agencies and policymakers with key ecological and managerial insight of how prescribed fires are conducted around the globe.
