Wildfire
Contemporary Fire Regimes Provide a Critical Perspective on Restoration Needs in the Mexico-United States Borderlands
The relationship between people and wildfire has always been paradoxical: fire is an essential ecological process and management tool, but can also be detrimental to life and property. Consequently, fire regimes have been modified throughout history through both intentional burning to promote benefits and active suppression to reduce risks. Reintroducing fire and its benefits back into the Sky Island mountains of the United States-Mexico borderlands has the potential to reduce adverse effects of altered fire regimes and build resilient ecosystems and human communities.
Forest Fire Histories of La Frontera: Fire-Scar Reconstructions of Fire Regimes in the United States/Mexico Borderlands
Fire is a dominant ecological process in almost all landscapes of La Frontera. Fire histories from throughout the region on the United States side of the border show that, before circa 1900, extensive surface fires occurred within pine-dominant forests at about the same frequency as wet-dry cycles related to the El Niño-Southern Oscillation, i.e., 2 to 7 year intervals (Swetnam and Betancourt 1990, 1998; Swetnam and Baisan 1996a, 1996b). Regionally synchronous fire events occurred at the rate of about 10 per century and often coincided with the most extreme wet-dry cycles.
Invasive Plants in the Sonoran Desert
By Garry Rogers
(First in series on Sonoran Desert invasive plants.)
Introduction to Invasive Plants in Deserts
Invasive species, like storm troopers leading the surging ruin of global warming, are demolishing Earth's ecosystems.
White Mountians in Arizona after the Wallow Fire
The Wallow Fire in mid-June of 2011 became the largest wildfire in Arizona history. Much of the forest it burned, however, was not destroyed. Forest conditions were enhanced in more than half of the areas we encountered. Here are some photos from months after the fire.
Wildfire in the Sierra Madre of Sonora
This wildfire was likely human caused and was burning in pine and oak forest primarily in the understory.
Wildfires raging near Rancho Pan Duro
We just returned from Rancho Pan Duro on the spine of the Sierra Madre. It is located south of Los Ojos, 50 miles or so southeast of Agua Prieta/Douglas. Mexico doesn't have fire suppression infrastructure in place as does the US.
Sierra El Pinito, Sonora
Bird survey trip by Aaron Flesch and crew. Most of the mountain range burned in a fire in 2011, but there is very little damage due to the fact this range seems to burn every few years.
Analysis of fire-related Vegetation Patterns in the Huachuca Mountains, Arizona, USA, and Sierra los Ajos, Sonora, Mexico
There is general interest among fire ecologists to integrate observed fire regimes into long term fire management. The United States-Mexico borderlands provide unique research opportunities to study effects of contrasting forest management activities on forest structure and pattern. To increase understanding of the range of forest stand conditions in borderland ecosystems, we compared tree crown patterns from two forests near the US- Mexico border that are managed under contrasting fire policies and have contrasting fire histories.
Sierra Bacadéhuachi, Sonora
MABA trip to the Sierra Bacadéhuachi in east-central Sonora.