Ecology & Management of Disturbed Landscapes Challenges and Opportunities Jiquan Chen Landscape Ecology & Ecosystem Science University of Toledo Apr 16, 2007

Objective To study the dynamics of understory plant species diversity, as a function of landscape structure when alternative harvesting at both stand and landscape levels are applied using a harvest allocation model (HARVEST) and a stand projection model.

What Is HARVEST? GIS-based research / planning tool Assess spatial pattern consequences of broad timber management strategies (harvesting allocation) INPUT GIS Coverages: -stand age & id -management area -forest types Constraints (riparian buffers, etc.) Cutting Guidelines -total area harvested -size distribution of openings -rotation interval -spatial dispersion of harvests OUTPUT GIS Coverage: -stand age Analysis Options Gustafson & Crow (1996)

HARVEST Simulations Output (Text File) All Simulations Run for 200 Years Buffer Patches in GIS (20 m each side) Buffer Roads (20 m each side) Original Vegetation Type Stand Age Area Edge Zone Occurrence -Roads -Different Patches Current Patch Type Classification Cutting Guidelines Applied According to Distinct Management Areas Minimum Patch Size=0.08 ha

Current Patch Type Classification IF WE HAVE MEASURED DATA FOR CURRENT PATCH TYPE: Assign Proper Probability and Abundance Vectors Obtained from Sampled Plots Shrubs & Herbs Mature Hardwoods Young Hardwoods Mature Red Pine Mature Jack Pine Young Pine Mixed Hardwood/Pine Wetland New Clearcuts/Non-Vegetated Hardwood Road Zone Red Pine Road Zone Pine/Clearcut Edge (in forest) Clearcut/Pine Edge (in clearcut) Multiple Edge Zones Other

Assign probability & abundance vectors from measured data: Species Probability In a Particular Patch Type = Sampled Frequency in 50m 2 Plots Abundance Vectors = Mean, Std. Of Sampled Abundances in 50m 2 Plots Generate Probability Of Occurrence By Species Does Species Occur? YES NO Generate Abundance = Probability From Normal Distribution by species With Mean and Std. Of Measured Abundance NEXT SPECIES

Species Richness Run 1 Run 5 Wetland Herbs/Shrubs Young Hardwoods Red Pine Jack Pine Mature Hardwoods Mixed Hdwd/Pine Young Pine Hdwd Road Zone Pine Road Zone CC/Pine Edge ZonePine/CC Edge Zone Patch Type

Understory Species Richness Run 1Run 5 Overall Landscape Richness = 237 species (Run 1) = 237 species (Run 5)

Fires, Management, and Land Mosaics Interactions: A Generic Spatial Model and Toolkit from Stand to Landscape Scales Jiquan Chen (University of Toledo) Thomas Crow (USDA Forest Service) Bo Song (Clemson University) Daolan Zheng (University of Toledo) Xianli Wang (Clemson University) Jacob LaCroix (University of Toledo) Soung – Ryoul Ryu (University of Toledo)

Development of a generic, spatially-explicit management toolkit based on 4 key interactions among fire, fuels, vegetation, & management practices

Ryu et al. (in press) But, managers need “cookbooks”

Simulated fire spreads in different parts of a managed forest landscape in Northern Wisconsin. Pattern-Process

Animations of A Simulated Fire (FARSITE) in N. WI Wang et al. (2006)

FARSITE Surface Fire Interactive FARSITE Surface Fire Interactive Chequamegon National Forest, WI Introduction Fire Spread –Red Pine Site Photos Simulation Data Table Graph –Hardwood Site Photos Simulation Data Table Graph –Jack Pine Site Photos Simulation Data Table Graph Acknowledgments Contact About –FARSITEFARSITE –JFSPJFSP –LEES Lab University of ToledoLEES Objective: to place fires on the Chequamegon National Forest (FARSITE simulations of 15- day fires) in different patches/habitats to examine the fire-mosaic interactions. Choose a location from the map.

Choose a Location Red Pine Stands Northern Hardwoods Jack Pine Barrens No more activities, end. Legend Red = Litter with no under story, Red Pines Green = Litter with under story, Northern Hardwoods Yellow = Brush < 2 ft high, Pine Barrens Brown = Light Logging Slash, Clear cuts Moquah Natural Area Fire Tower Pipeline Bladder Lake Lake Lenawee Twin Lakes Campground Horseshoe Lake Horse Camp N Miles Back to outline

Northern Hardwoods Forest Type Characterized by FARSITE as fuel with litter and under story. Northern Hardwoods may include species like Sugar Maple, Red Maple, Red Oak, White Oak, Ironwood, Hazelnut and can, in this exercise, include softer Birches and Aspens. Back to outline

Northern Hardwoods: Choose the number of days for the fire to last and the level of rain desired. Low RainAverage RainHigh Rain 5 Days5_Lo Rain5_Ave Rain5_Hi Rain 10 Days10_Lo Rain10_Ave Rain10_Hi Rain 15 Days15_Lo Rain15_Ave Rain15_Hi Rain End Back to locationsBack to outline

Northern Hardwoods Low Rain 5 day fire Time of arrival shown in hours. 828 Ha burned. Back to locations. Back to Northern Hardwoods rain level and day length. End N Miles

Northern Hardwoods Low Rain 10 day fire Time of arrival shown in hours Ha burned. Back to Northern Hardwoods rain level and day length. Back to locations. End N Miles

Northern Hardwoods Low Rain 15 day fire Time of arrival shown in hours Ha burned. Back to Northern Hardwoods rain level and day length. Back to locations. End N Miles

Northern Hardwoods Average Rain 5 day fire Time of arrival shown in hours. 803 Ha burned. Back to Northern Hardwoods rain level and day length. Back to locations. End N Miles

Northern Hardwoods Average Rain 10 day fire Time of arrival shown in hours Ha burned. Back to Northern Hardwoods rain level and day length. Back to locations. End N Miles

Northern Hardwoods Average Rain 15 day fire Time of arrival shown in hours Ha burned. Back to Northern Hardwoods rain level and day length. Back to locations. End N Miles

Northern Hardwoods High Rain 5 day fire Time of arrival shown in hours. 704 Ha burned. Back to Northern Hardwoods rain level and day length. Back to locations. End N Miles

Northern Hardwoods High Rain 10 day fire Time of arrival shown in hours Ha burned. Back to Northern Hardwoods rain level and day length. Back to locations. End N Miles

Jacob LaCroix Chapter 3: Fuel Loading within AEI and AMEI Scenarios Effect Fire Size and Movement Jacob LaCroix Questions: Does AEI and AMEI (area of multiple edge influence) effect fire movement? (Li et al., 2006) Can managing fuel loading in AEI impact fire spread? Which ecosystems resist edge influences? Can we manage burned area outside of a prescribed fire at the landscape level?

Chapter 3: Hypotheses 1.Adding and manipulating the fuel loading within AEI and AMEI landscape scenarios will change burned area and fire movement Using multiple measures, BA and fire front vector direction and loading 2.AEI will override the role of the dominant ecosystem fuel in which a fire is located and control fire front direction and vector loading

Chapter 3: Objectives Overall: to examine edge fuel loading structural scenarios for contributions to fire movement with multiple levels of fuel loading in AEI and AMEI To determine: –The impacts of AEI and AMEI on fire size and movement –Fire front direction and vector loading without edges to isolate the AEI and AMEI effects FARSITE parameterization: to demonstrate an application of a GIS AMEI delineating procedure –Algorithm developed in the LEES Lab (Li et al. 2006)

Chapter 3: Methods Six landscapes: 1 no edge, 3 with single edge, each with different fuel loading, 2 AMEI i – 3 levels of fuel Quantify dependent variables: –Burned area (ha), fire front direction (az. degrees), and vector loading, (% of 5/7 fuels) Quantified by ecosystem Quantify daily fire front vector responses

Model # DescriptionFuel Loading (mg/ha) 1 hour 10 hour 100 hour Rate of Spread (m/min) Flame Length (m) 5Brush Low Edge Red Pine Medium Edge Light Slash Hardwood High Edge AMEI AMEI AMEI Fuel loading for Anderson (1982) and custom fuels

Percent Area in Each Classification Anderson ’ s (1982) Fuel Model # ’ s Custom Fuel Model # ’ s BrushRed Pine Hard wood SlashLowMedHighAMEI 1 AMEI 2 AMEI 3 Scenarios No Edge Low Medium High AMEI i AMEI i Landscape Scenarios

Chapter 3: Landscapes

Chapter 3: Edge Structure Influences Burned Area

AMEI 30, loc 16, day 1 Burned area = 51.6 ha Fire front dir = 174 o Vector loading HW = 9%, slash = 20%, AMEI 2 = 61%, AMEI 3 = 10%. AEI high, loc 16, day 1 Burned area = 47.5 ha Fire front dir = 176 o Vector loading HW = 9%, slash = 26% AEI = 65%. Landscape Classification Changes Fire Front Direction and Fuel Loading Brush Red pine HW Slash Water AEI = AMEI 1 AMEI 2 AMEI 3

AMEI 30, loc 16, day 1 Burned area = 51.6 ha Fire front dir = 174 o Vector loading HW=9%, slash=20% AMEI 1 = 61%, AMEI 2 = 10%. AMEI 60, loc 16, day 1 Burned area = 71.0 ha Fire front dir = 179 o Vector loading HW=7%, AMEI 1 = 48% AMEI 2 = 35%, AMEI 3 = 10% AMEI Landscape Classification Changes Using Different DEI Brush Red pine HW Slash Water AEI = AMEI 1 AMEI 2 AMEI 3

AMEI 60, loc 6, day 1 Burned area = 44.4 ha Fire front direction = 140 o Vector loading HW = 20%, AMEI 1 = 65%, AMEI 2 = 15%. AMEI 60, loc 6, day 2 Burned area = ha Fire front direction = 195 o Vector loading HW = 14%, AMEI 1 = 47%, AMEI 2 = 30%, AMEI 3 = 9%. Daily Changes in Fire Front Vector for the AMEI 60 Scenario Brush Red pine HW Slash Water AEI = AMEI 1 AMEI 2 AMEI 3

Chapter 3: Edge Influence in Jack Pine

Chapter. 3: Edge Influence in Hardwoods

Amei N c d Fire Front Vectors Differ Among Landscapes Vector Fuel Loading Yellow = Brush Black = Edge/AMEI 1 Grey = AMEI 2 Green = Hardwood Brown = Slash Red = Pine Reference Landscape c d b c d c

Amei30, Loc N a b c d e f Landscape Edge Fuel Loading Scenarios a = low b = medium c = no edge d = high e = AMEI 30 f = AMEI 60 Fire Front Vectors Differ Among Landscapes Jack Pine Ecosystem Vector Fuel Loading Yellow = Brush, Black = Edge/AMEI 1 Grey = AMEI 2, Green = Hardwood Brown = Slash, Red = Pine Reference Landscape

Amei30, Loc N a b c d e f Landscape Edge Fuel Loading Scenarios a = low b = medium c = no edge d = high e = AMEI 30 f = AMEI 60 Fire Front Vectors Differ Among Landscapes Hardwoods Ecosystem Vector Fuel Loading Yellow = Brush, Black = Edge/AMEI 1 Grey = AMEI 2, Green = Hardwood Brown = Slash, Red = Pine Reference Landscape a b c d e f

Amei30, Loc N a b c d Landscape Edge Fuel Loading Scenarios a = low b = medium c = no edge d = high e = AMEI 30 f = AMEI 60 Fire Front Vectors Differ Among Landscapes Red Pines Ecosystem Vector Fuel Loading Yellow = Brush, Black = Edge/AMEI 1 Grey = AMEI 2, Green = Hardwood Brown = Slash, Red = Pine Reference Landscape b c d a b c d e f

Conclusions Advances in the Functional Role of Landscape Structure on Fire Spread Harvest changed patch configuration and thereby burned area (BA) –Rain influences BA AEI fuel loading altered BA AEI and AMEI changed modeled projection of fire size and movement AMEI gave more details and delineated complex edge locations to place fuel Low edge fuel loading changed fire front vector direction High edge fuel loading acted as a corridor for fire spread and can over ride the dominant ecosystem fuel

Questions?