Intensifying postfire weather and biological invasion drive species loss in a Mediterranean-type biodiversity hotspot.

ABSTRACT: Prolonged periods of extreme heat or drought in the first year after fire affect the resilience and diversity of fire-dependent ecosystems by inhibiting seed germination or increasing mortality of seedlings and resprouting individuals. This interaction between weather and fire is of growing concern as climate changes, particularly in systems subject to stand-replacing crown fires, such as most Mediterranean-type ecosystems. We examined the longest running set of permanent vegetation plots in the Fynbos of South Africa (44 y), finding a significant decline in the diversity of plots driven by increasingly severe postfire summer weather events (number of consecutive days with high temperatures and no rain) and legacy effects of historical woody alien plant densities 30 y after clearing. Speci

SUBMITTER: Slingsby JA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5422759 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature