ORCID Profile
0000-0002-5203-9818
Current Organisations
Colorado State University
,
Herbizone Private Limited
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Research Topics
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Top 5 Research Topics
ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)
Natural Hazards | Computational Heat Transfer | Environmental Science and Management | Forestry Fire Management | Conservation and Biodiversity | Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience | Atmospheric Dynamics | Population, Ecological and Evolutionary Genetics |
ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)
Environmental Management Systems | Natural Hazards in Forest and Woodlands Environments | Expanding Knowledge in the Environmental Sciences | Forest and Woodlands Land Management | Forest and Woodlands Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity
Related Links
Publications
The 2019/2020 mega-fires exposed Australian ecosystems to an unprecedented extent of high-severity fire
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 24-03-2021
Abstract: Extreme fire seasons characterised by very large ‘mega-fires’ have demonstrably increased area burnt across forested regions globally. However, the effect of extreme fire seasons on fire severity, a measure of fire impacts on ecosystems, remains unclear. Very large wildfires burnt an unprecedented area of temperate forest, woodland and shrubland across south-eastern Australia in 2019/2020, providing an opportunity to examine the impact of extreme fires on fire severity patterns. We developed an atlas of wildfire severity across south-eastern Australia between 1988 and 2020 to test (a) whether the 2019/2020 fire season was more severe than previous fire seasons, and (b) if the proportion of high-severity fire within the burn extent (HSp) increases with wildfire size and annual area burnt. We demonstrate that the 2019/2020 wildfires in south-eastern Australia were generally greater in extent but not proportionally more severe than previous fires, owing to constant scaling between HSp and annual fire extent across the dominant dry-forest communities. However, HSp did increase with increasing annual fire extent across wet-forests and the less-common rainforest and woodland communities. The absolute area of high-severity fire in 2019/2020 (∼1.8 M ha) was larger than previously seen, accounting for ∼44% of the area burnt by high-severity fire over the past 33 years. Our results demonstrate that extreme fire seasons are a rare but defining feature of fire regimes across forested regions, owing to the disproportionate influence of mega-fires on area burnt.
Wildfire survival plans in theory and practice
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1071/WF14193
Abstract: Bushfire survival plans are a valuable tool for residents living in fire-prone landscapes. Plans include assigning trigger points for action, roles for all household members, and alternate approaches should the original plan fail. Fire agencies advocate that residents write, practise and discuss these plans before the fire season. In this study we use a multiple-methods approach to examine the theoretical and actual application of bushfire survival plans in south-east Australia. First, we review agency advice regarding survival plans to determine the consistency, clarity and specificity of the advice. Second, an online survey of residents examines the relationships between types of plans, with the planned action during a wildfire, gender and past experience with fire. Finally, semi-structured interviews with residents who have experienced wildfire examine the reality of decision-making, triggers used for actions and the role of survival plans. The study concludes that: a) fire agencies provide clear and concise information around survival plans despite some variation between states b) preparation of survival plans is limited by the same range of factors that limit the extent of overall wildfire preparedness and c) without a written, discussed and practised plan, decision-making during a wildfire may be impaired with potentially fatal consequences.
Improved accuracy of wildfire simulations using fuel hazard estimates based on environmental data
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2022
Exogenous Application of Biostimulants and Synthetic Growth Promoters Improved the Productivity and Grain Quality of Quinoa Linked with Enhanced Photosynthetic Pigments and Metabolomics
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 14-11-2021
Abstract: Modern agriculture is mainly concerned with maximum resource use efficiency linked with greater productivity to feed the growing global population. The exogenous application of biostimulants is considered a sustainable approach to improve the growth and productivity of field crops. The present study was carried out to explore the comparative impact of biostimulants and synthetic compounds on quinoa crop (cultivar UAF-Q7), as it has gained significant popularity among agricultural scientists and farmers throughout the world, due to its high nutritional profile. A two-year field experiment was carried out at the Research Area of Directorate of Farms, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan. Application of moringa leaf extract (MLE) produced the maximum total chlorophyll (5.11 mg g−1) and carotenoids (1.2 mg g−1), compared with the control. Antioxidants’ activities and gas exchange attributes were also recorded as the highest following MLE application. Mineral elements in root and in shoot were found highest in response to MLE application. Similarly, application of MLE significantly improved the growth and yield attributes of quinoa. Mineral elements of grain (Mg, Zn and Fe) were also significantly enhanced. MLE was found to be more responsive in improving the growth and quality compared with synthetic compounds.
Into the firing line: civilian ingress during the 2013 “Red October” bushfires, Australia
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-09-2015
Bayes Nets as a method for analysing the influence of management actions in fire planning
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2011
DOI: 10.1071/WF10076
Abstract: Wildfire can result in significant economic costs with inquiries following such events often recommending an increase in management effort to reduce the risk of future losses. Currently, there are no objective frameworks in which to assess the relative merits of management actions or the synergistic way in which the various combinations may act. We examine the value of Bayes Nets as a method for assessing the risk reduction from fire management practices using a case study from a forested landscape. Specifically, we consider the relative reduction in wildfire risk from investing in prescribed burning, initial or rapid attack and suppression. The Bayes Net was developed using existing datasets, a process model and expert opinion. We compared the results of the models with the recorded fire data for an 11-year period from 1997 to 2000 with the model successfully duplicating these data. Initial attack and suppression effort had the greatest effect on the distribution of the fire sizes for a season. Bayes Nets provide a holistic model for considering the effect of multiple fire management methods on the risk of wildfires. The methods could be further advanced by including the costs of management and conducting a formal decision analysis.
Avian responses to the diversity and configuration of fire age classes and vegetation types across a rainfall gradient
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2014
Improved laboratory method to test flammability metrics of live plants under dynamic conditions and future implications
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 16-11-2022
DOI: 10.1071/WF21172
Abstract: The role of live vegetation fuel properties in altering fire behaviour is increasingly being recognised. The techniques utilised to assess how fuel characteristics impact fire behaviour, however, use apparatuses that do not accurately represent the exposure of plants to fire. This study presents a replicable and precise laboratory method of testing flammability metrics in live vegetation, particularly Acacia floribunda, Cassinia arcuata and Pinus radiata. Two heating regimes were tested – a static heat flux to reflect current methods and a dynamic (increasing) heat flux to more accurately replicate an approaching fire front. Piloted ignition and autoignition were used for both heating regimes to test the effect of different ignition mechanisms on flammability metrics. The pilot igniter increased the number of s les that reached flaming ignition, and decreased the time and energy required to reach all flammability metrics. Significant differences were observed between heating regimes, suggesting it is important to test flammability of live plants under a dynamic heating regime that most accurately replicates an approaching fire front. Adoption of this methodology is recommended to ensure more realistic and standardised data on flammability of in idual plant species and plant communities. This will lead to better-informed and more accurate wildfire behaviour modelling.
Leaf traits predict global patterns in the structure and flammability of forest litter beds
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-12-2021
Species distribution models for conservation planning in fire‐prone landscapes
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-2021
Quantifying merging fire behaviour phenomena using unmanned aerial vehicle technology
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1071/WF20088
Abstract: Catastrophic wildfires are often a result of dynamic fire behaviours. They can cause rapid escalation of fire behaviour, increasing the danger to ground-based emergency personnel. To date, few studies have characterised merging fire behaviours outside the laboratory. The aim of this study was to develop a simple, fast and accurate method to track fire front propagation using emerging technologies to quantify merging fire behaviour at the field scale. Medium-scale field experiments were conducted during April 2019 on harvested wheat fields in western Victoria, Australia. An unmanned aerial vehicle was used to capture high-definition video imagery of fire propagation. Twenty-one junction and five inward parallel fire fronts were identified during the experiments. The rate of spread (ROS) of junction fire fronts was found to be at least 60% higher than head fire fronts. Thirty-eight per cent of junction fire fronts had increased ROS at the final stage of the merging process. Furthermore, the angle between two junction fire fronts did not change significantly in time for initial angles of 4–14°. All these results contrast with previous published work. Further investigation is required to explain the results as the relationship between fuel load, wind speed and scale is not known.
Suppression resources and their influence on containment of forest fires in Victoria
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 28-10-2022
DOI: 10.1071/WF22029
Abstract: Background Wildfire suppression is becoming more costly and dangerous as the scale and severity of impacts from fires increase under climate change. Aims We aim to identify the key environmental and management variables influencing containment probability for forest fires in Victoria and determine how these change over time. Methods We developed Random Forest models to identify variables driving fire containment within the first 24 h of response. We used a database of ~12 000 incident records collected across Victoria, Australia. Key results Response time, fire size at first attack, number of ground resources deployed (e.g. fire fighters), ignition cause, and environmental factors that influence fire spread (e.g. elevation, humidity, wind, and fuel hazard) were key drivers of suppression success within the first 24 h. However, certainty about the factors influencing suppression reduced as the containment period increased. Conclusions Suppression success hinges on a balance between the environmental factors that drive fire spread and the rapid deployment of sufficient resources to limit fire perimeter growth. Implications Decreasing the period between an ignition and the time of arrival at the fire will allow first responders to begin suppression before the fire size has exceeded their capability to construct a control line.
The Influence of Atmosphere‐Ocean Phenomenon on Water Availability Across Temperate Australia
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 30-12-2021
DOI: 10.1029/2020WR029409
Abstract: Links between climate variability modes, rainfall, and streamflow are important for understanding the trajectories of change and dynamics in water availability. In this study, we examined the influence of the El Nino Southern Oscillation, Indian Ocean Dipole, Southern Annular Mode, and Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation modes on interannual variations in rainfall and streamflow in four hydroclimate regions. We also explored the link between climate variability modes and extreme rainfall and streamflow years. Climate mode indices, rainfall, and streamflow data from 1975 to 2018 were analyzed for 92 predominately forested catchments located across temperate Australia. Climate modes had ergent influences on streamflow and rainfall between and within regions. Across temperate Australia, a higher proportion of interannual variation in rainfall was explained by climate modes than for streamflow, indicating factors other than atmosphere‐ocean phenomena are important in determining interannual streamflow variability. Extremes in rainfall and streamflow across regions were related to the co‐occurrence of climate modes, with a stronger relationship between teleconnections and low rainfall/streamflow years than high rainfall/streamflow years. The study provides new insights into the regional drivers of hydrological extremes and consolidates our understanding of the role of teleconnections on water availability in the temperate zone of Australia.
The fuel-climate-fire conundrum: How will fire regimes change in temperate eucalypt forests under climate change?
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 16-06-2022
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.16283
Abstract: Fire regimes are changing across the globe in response to complex interactions between climate, fuel, and fire across space and time. Despite these complex interactions, research into predicting fire regime change is often unidimensional, typically focusing on direct relationships between fire activity and climate, increasing the chances of erroneous fire predictions that have ignored feedbacks with, for ex le, fuel loads and availability. Here, we quantify the direct and indirect role of climate on fire regime change in eucalypt dominated landscapes using a novel simulation approach that uses a landscape fire modelling framework to simulate fire regimes over decades to centuries. We estimated the relative roles of climate-mediated changes as both direct effects on fire weather and indirect effects on fuel load and structure in a full factorial simulation experiment (present and future weather, present and future fuel) that included six climate ensemble members. We applied this simulation framework to predict changes in fire regimes across six temperate forested landscapes in south-eastern Australia that encompass a broad continuum from climate-limited to fuel-limited. Climate-mediated change in weather and fuel was predicted to intensify fire regimes in all six landscapes by increasing wildfire extent and intensity and decreasing fire interval, potentially led by an earlier start to the fire season. Future weather was the dominant factor influencing changes in all the tested fire regime attributes: area burnt, area burnt at high intensity, fire interval, high-intensity fire interval, and season midpoint. However, effects of future fuel acted synergistically or antagonistically with future weather depending on the landscape and the fire regime attribute. Our results suggest that fire regimes are likely to shift across temperate ecosystems in south-eastern Australia in coming decades, particularly in climate-limited systems where there is the potential for a greater availability of fuels to burn through increased aridity.
Population viability analysis using Bayesian networks
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2022
Ecological processes in urban landscapes: mechanisms influencing the distribution and activity of insectivorous bats
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-02-2011
Effect of weather forecast errors on fire growth model projections
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1071/WF19199
Abstract: Fire management agencies use fire behaviour simulation tools to predict the potential spread of a fire in both risk planning and operationally during wildfires. These models are generally based on underlying empirical or quasi-empirical relations and rarely are uncertainties considered. Little attention has been given to the quality of the input data used during operational fire predictions. We examined the extent to which error in weather forecasts can affect fire simulation results. The study was conducted using data representing the State of Victoria in south-eastern Australia, including grassland and forest conditions. Two fire simulator software packages were used to compare fire growth under observed and forecast weather. We found that error in the weather forecast data significantly altered the predicted size and location of fires. Large errors in wind speed and temperature resulted in an overprediction of fire size, whereas large errors in wind direction resulted in an increased spatial error in the fire’s location. As the fire weather intensified, fire predictions using forecast weather under predicted fire size, potentially resulting in greater risks to the community. These results highlight the importance of on-ground intelligence during wildfires and the use of ensembles to improve operational fire predictions.
Suppression resource decisions are the dominant influence on containment of Australian forest and grass fires
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.JENVMAN.2018.09.031
Abstract: Fire agencies aim to contain wildfires before they impact on life, property and infrastructure and to reduce the risk of damage to the environment. Despite the large cost of suppression, there are few data on the success of suppression efforts under varying weather, fuel and resource scenarios. We examined over 2200 forest and 4600 grass fires in New South Wales, Australia to determine the dominant influences on the containment of wildfires. A random forest modelling approach was used to analyse the effect of a range of human and environmental factors. The number of suppression resources per area of fire were the dominant influence on the containment of both forest and grass fires. As fire weather conditions worsened the probability of containment decreased across all fires and as fuel loads and slope increased the probability of containment decreased for forest fires. Environmental controls limit the effectiveness of wildfire management. However, results suggest investment in suppression resources and strategic fuel management will increase the probability of containment.
Influence of Fuels, Weather and the Built Environment on the Exposure of Property to Wildfire
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 31-10-2014
Divergent responses of fire to recent warming and drying across south-eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 28-03-2014
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.12449
Abstract: The response of fire to climate change may vary across fuel types characteristic of differing vegetation types (i.e. litter vs. grass). Models of fire under climatic change capture these differing potential responses to varying degrees. Across south-eastern Australia, an elevation in the severity of weather conditions conducive to fire has been measured in recent decades. We examined trends in area burned (1975-2009) to determine if a corresponding increase in fire had occurred across the erse range of ecosystems found in this part of the continent. We predicted that an increase in fire, due to climatic warming and drying, was more likely to have occurred in moist, temperate forests near the coast than in arid and semiarid woodlands of the interior, due to inherent contrasts in the respective dominant fuel types (woody litter vs. herbaceous fuels). Significant warming (i.e. increased temperature and number of hot days) and drying (i.e. negative precipitation anomaly, number of days with low humidity) occurred across most of the 32 Bioregions examined. The results were mostly consistent with predictions, with an increase in area burned in seven of eight forest Bioregions, whereas area burned either declined (two) or did not change significantly (nine) in drier woodland Bioregions. In 12 woodland Bioregions, data were insufficient for analysis of temporal trends in fire. Increases in fire attributable mostly to warming or drying were confined to three Bioregions. In the remainder, such increases were mostly unrelated to warming or drying trends and therefore may be due to other climate effects not explored (e.g. lightning ignitions) or possible anthropogenic influences. Projections of future fire must therefore not only account for responses of different fuel systems to climatic change but also the wider range of ecological and human effects on interactions between fire and vegetation.
Climatic and edaphic gradients predict variation in wildland fuel hazard in south‐eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-2019
DOI: 10.1111/ECOG.04714
Taxonomic revision of south-eastern Australian giant burrowing frogs (Anura: Limnodynastidae: Heleioporus Gray)
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 09-08-2021
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.5016.4.1
Abstract: The rarely encountered giant burrowing frog, Heleioporus australiacus, is distributed widely in a variety of sclerophyll forest habitats east of the Great Dividing Range in south-eastern Australia. Analyses of variation in nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial ND4 gene and thousands of nuclear gene SNPs revealed the presence of two deeply ergent lineages. Multivariate morphological comparisons show the two lineages differ in body proportions with 91% of in iduals being correctly classified in DFA. The two lineages differ in the number and size of spots on the lateral surfaces and the degree by which the cloaca is surrounded by colour patches. The mating calls are significantly different in number of pulses in the note. The presence of a F2 hybrid in the area where the distribution of the two taxa come into closest proximity leads us to assign subspecies status to the lineages, as we have not been able to assess the extent of potential genetic introgression. In our s ling, the F2 hybrid s le sits within an otherwise uns led gap of ~90km between the distributions of the two lineages. The nominate northern sub-species is restricted to the Sydney Basin bioregion, while the newly recognised southern subspecies occurs from south of the Kangaroo Valley in the mid-southern coast of New South Wales to near Walhalla in central Gippsland in Victoria. The habitat of the two subspecies is remarkably similar. Adults spend large portions of their lives on the forest floor where they forage and burrow in a variety of vegetation communities. The southern subspecies occurs most commonly in dry sclerophyll forests with an open understory in the south and in open forest and heath communities with a dense understory in the north of its distribution. The northern subspecies is also found in dry open forests and heaths in association with eroded sandstone landscapes in the Sydney Basin bioregion. Males of both taxa call from both constructed burrows and open positions on small streams, differing from the five Western Australian species of Heleioporus where males call only from constructed burrows. Using the IUCN Red List process, we found that the extent of occupancy and area of occupancy along with evidence of decline for both subspecies are consistent with the criteria for Endangered (A2(c)B2(a)(b)).
The influence of planting size and configuration on landscape fire risk
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.JENVMAN.2019.109338
Abstract: Revegetating cleared land with native trees and shrubs is increasingly used as a means of addressing loss of bio ersity, degraded soil and water resources and sequestration of carbon. However, revegetation also brings a potential to alter fire risk due to changing fuel types across the landscape. Previous research has found that increasing the area of revegetation does not increase the risk of fire at a landscape scale, but it remains unclear whether the design of revegetation can be optimised to minimise risk. We evaluated if size and arrangement of revegetation affects fire size and intensity within an agricultural setting using a simulation modelling approach. Three revegetation planting designs were assessed, including small (3.2 ha) dispersed plantings, small (3.2 ha) plantings clustered into one third of the landscape, and large (29.2 ha) dispersed plantings, all resulting in the same overall percentage of revegetation (approximately 10% of the landscape). We simulated fires using Phoenix Rapidfire under varying planting design, weather, surrounding pasture conditions, and fire suppression. Planting design had little effect on fire sizes across the landscape, with larger plantings resulting in slightly larger fire sizes. Fires were smaller in landscapes with all planting designs compared with current landscape patterns. There was no significant influence of planting design on fire intensity. Weather and suppression had the strongest influence on both fire size and intensity, with larger and more intense fires under extreme weather conditions, with higher adjacent pasture loads and with no simulated suppression. Management of fuel loads in the pasture surrounding revegetation, weather and suppression are far greater risk factors for fire in these landscapes than planting design.
Brave new green world - Consequences of a carbon economy for the conservation of Australian biodiversity
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2013
Assessing legacy effects of wildfires on the crown structure of fire-tolerant eucalypt trees using airborne LiDAR data
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 20-10-2019
DOI: 10.3390/RS11202433
Abstract: The fire-tolerant eucalypt forests of south eastern Australia are assumed to fully recover from even the most intense fires however, surprisingly, very few studies have quantitatively assessed that recovery. The accurate assessment of horizontal and vertical attributes of tree crowns after fire is essential to understand the fire’s legacy effects on tree growth and on forest structure. In this study, we quantitatively assessed in idual tree crowns 8.5 years after a 2009 wildfire that burnt extensive areas of eucalypt forest in temperate Australia. We used airborne LiDAR data validated with field measurements to estimate multiple metrics that quantified the cover, density, and vertical distribution of in idual-tree crowns in 51 plots of 0.05 ha in fire-tolerant eucalypt forest across four wildfire severity types (unburnt, low, moderate, high). Significant differences in the field-assessed mean height of fire scarring as a proportion of tree height and in the proportions of trees with epicormic (stem) resprouts were consistent with the gradation in fire severity. Linear mixed-effects models indicated persistent effects of both moderate and high-severity wildfire on tree crown architecture. Trees at high-severity sites had significantly less crown projection area and live crown width as a proportion of total crown width than those at unburnt and low-severity sites. Significant differences in LiDAR -based metrics (crown cover, evenness, leaf area density profiles) indicated that tree crowns at moderate and high-severity sites were comparatively narrow and more evenly distributed down the tree stem. These conical-shaped crowns contrasted sharply with the rounded crowns of trees at unburnt and low-severity sites and likely influenced both tree productivity and the accuracy of biomass allometric equations for nearly a decade after the fire. Our data provide a clear ex le of the utility of airborne LiDAR data for quantifying the impacts of disturbances at the scale of in idual trees. Quantified effects of contrasting fire severities on the structure of resprouter tree crowns provide a strong basis for interpreting post-fire patterns in forest canopies and vegetation profiles in Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and other remotely-sensed data at larger scales.
Biogeographical variation in the potential effectiveness of prescribed fire in south-eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-09-2015
DOI: 10.1111/JBI.12579
Changing dominance of key plant species across a Mediterranean climate region: implications for fuel types and future fire regimes
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-11-2013
Understanding risk: representing fire danger using spatially explicit fire simulation ensembles
Publisher: Imprensa da Universidade de Coimbra
Date: 2014
Relating mammal species richness to landscape patterns across multiple spatial scales
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 26-02-2021
Resolving future fire management conflicts using multicriteria decision making
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-11-2016
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12580
Abstract: Management strategies to reduce the risks to human life and property from wildfire commonly involve burning native vegetation. However, planned burning can conflict with other societal objectives such as human health and bio ersity conservation. These conflicts are likely to intensify as fire regimes change under future climates and as growing human populations encroach farther into fire-prone ecosystems. Decisions about managing fire risks are therefore complex and warrant more sophisticated approaches than are typically used. We applied a multicriteria decision making approach (MCDA) with the potential to improve fire management outcomes to the case of a highly populated, bio erse, and flammable wildland-urban interface. We considered the effects of 22 planned burning options on 8 objectives: house protection, maximizing water quality, minimizing carbon emissions and impacts on human health, and minimizing declines of 5 distinct species types. The MCDA identified a small number of management options (burning forest adjacent to houses) that performed well for most objectives, but not for one species type (arboreal mammal) or for water quality. Although MCDA made the conflict between objectives explicit, resolution of the problem depended on the weighting assigned to each objective. Additive weighting of criteria traded off the arboreal mammal and water quality objectives for other objectives. Multiplicative weighting identified scenarios that avoided poor outcomes for any objective, which is important for avoiding potentially irreversible bio ersity losses. To distinguish reliably among management options, future work should focus on reducing uncertainty in outcomes across a range of objectives. Considering management actions that have more predictable outcomes than landscape fuel management will be important. We found that, where data were adequate, an MCDA can support decision making in the complex and often conflicted area of fire management.
Determining the likelihood of asset destruction during wildfires: Modelling house destruction with fire simulator outputs and local-scale landscape properties
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2021
Recording fox baiting effort across the landscape using geographic information systems: Facilitating more effective management
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-12-2012
DOI: 10.1111/EMR.12026
Impacts of frequent burning on live tree carbon biomass and demography in post-harvest regrowth forest
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 22-04-2014
DOI: 10.3390/F5040802
Predicting the impact of climate change on Australia’s most endangered snake, Hoplocephalus bungaroides
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2010
Posttraumatische Fehlstellungen und Pseudarthrosen des proximalen Humerus
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-06-2015
DOI: 10.1007/S00113-015-0032-9
Abstract: According to the future demographic trends the incidence of proximal humeral fractures and subsequent posttraumatic malunions and nonunions of the proximal humerus are expected to substantially increase. This article reviews the indications, techniques and outcomes of corrective osteotomy for the treatment of posttraumatic nounions and malunions of the proximal humerus. A selective literature search was performed and personal surgical experiences are reported. Malunions of the proximal humerus can occur after both surgical and conservative management of fractures. Due to the complex anatomy of the proximal humerus, malunions have to be systematically assessed regarding epiphyseal and metaphyseal malpositioning. Furthermore, the objective anatomical disorder has to be completely correlated with the subjective patient complaints. The associated soft tissue structures, such as the glenohumeral joint capsule and ligaments, long head of the biceps tendon, rotator cuff and muscles inserting in the metaphysis, can independently cause discomfort to the patient and need to be meticulously identified as such. A variety of corrective surgical strategies are available, which are indicated depending on the location and extent of the malunion. The depicted single-cut osteotomy technique represents an elegant therapeutic option for multidimensional deformities of the proximal humerus. Nonunions of the proximal humerus can usually be successfully managed with autologous cancellous bone grafting and locking plate osteosynthesis.
Long-term changes in food availability mediate the effects of temperature on growth, development and survival in striped marsh frog larvae: implications for captive breeding programmes
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 2015
Adding fuel to the fire? Revegetation influences wildfire size and intensity
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2015
DOI: 10.1016/J.JENVMAN.2014.11.009
Abstract: The regrowth of woody vegetation in cleared landscapes (i.e. revegetation) has the potential to dramatically alter the spatial characteristics of vegetation and fuels, which will potentially alter fire characteristics. Understanding how revegetation alters fire size and intensity will be critical in determining the social and environmental value of revegetation. We used simulation modelling to examine (i) whether increasing native woody vegetation extent across landscapes cleared for pasture (i.e. revegetation) affects fire size and median fireline intensity and (ii) whether fuel load in the pasture matrix, the initial extent of land clearing and weather conditions during a fire alter the direction and/or magnitude of the relationships between revegetation and fire size or intensity. Simulations revealed that fire size and intensity were altered by increasing woody vegetation extent, though the direction of change was dependent upon landscape context. Increased woody vegetation extent led to (i) increased fire size in landscapes with low pasture fuel load (2 t ha(-1)) regardless of the extent of land clearing, (ii) decreased fire size in highly cleared landscapes with moderate (4.5 t ha(-1)) and high (7 t ha(-1)) pasture fuel load, and (iii) little change to fire size in landscapes subjected to low levels of clearing when pasture fuel load was moderate or high. Similar patterns were observed for fireline intensity. The magnitude of change in fire size and intensity was greatest under extreme fire weather conditions. Revegetation rarely increased median fireline intensity beyond suppressible levels (i.e. 4000 kW m(-1)), with fire weather and pasture fuel load being the main determinants of suppression potential. Our findings show that the response of fire size and intensity to revegetation will depend on landscape scale pasture management.
Frogs during the flood: Differential behaviours of two amphibian species in a dryland floodplain wetland
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 29-05-2014
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12158
The drivers of wildfire enlargement do not exhibit scale thresholds in southeastern Australian forests
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2016
DOI: 10.1016/J.JENVMAN.2016.06.033
Abstract: Wildfires are complex adaptive systems, and have been hypothesized to exhibit scale-dependent transitions in the drivers of fire spread. Among other things, this makes the prediction of final fire size from conditions at the ignition difficult. We test this hypothesis by conducting a multi-scale statistical modelling of the factors determining whether fires reached 10 ha, then 100 ha then 1000 ha and the final size of fires >1000 ha. At each stage, the predictors were measures of weather, fuels, topography and fire suppression. The objectives were to identify differences among the models indicative of scale transitions, assess the accuracy of the multi-step method for predicting fire size (compared to predicting final size from initial conditions) and to quantify the importance of the predictors. The data were 1116 fires that occurred in the eucalypt forests of New South Wales between 1985 and 2010. The models were similar at the different scales, though there were subtle differences. For ex le, the presence of roads affected whether fires reached 10 ha but not larger scales. Weather was the most important predictor overall, though fuel load, topography and ease of suppression all showed effects. Overall, there was no evidence that fires have scale-dependent transitions in behaviour. The models had a predictive accuracy of 73%, 66%, 72% and 53% accuracy at 10 ha, 100 ha, 1000 ha and final size scales. When these steps were combined, the overall accuracy for predicting the size of fires was 62%, while the accuracy of the one step model was only 20%. Thus, the multi-scale approach was an improvement on the single scale approach, even though the predictive accuracy was probably insufficient for use as an operational tool. The analysis has also provided further evidence of the important role of weather, compared to fuel, suppression and topography in driving fire behaviour.
HFE Genotype in Patients with Hemochromatosis and Other Liver Diseases
Publisher: American College of Physicians
Date: 15-06-1999
DOI: 10.7326/0003-4819-130-12-199906150-00002
Abstract: Hereditary hemochromatosis is a common inherited disorder of iron metabolism. The gene HFE, which contains two missense mutations (C282Y and H63D), was recently identified. To determine how HFE genotyping for the C282Y and H63D mutations contributes to the diagnosis of hemochromatosis and to determine the prevalence of HFE mutations in a group of patients with liver disease. Cross-sectional study. Academic medical center. 66 patients with hereditary hemochromatosis and 132 referred patients with other liver diseases. At initial diagnosis, fasting transferrin saturation, ferritin level, routine chemistry panel, and complete blood count were determined. Percutaneous liver biopsy was done on all patients for histologic analysis and measurement of hepatic iron concentration and hepatic iron index. HFE genotyping for the C282Y and H63D mutations was done on all patients by using genomic DNA s les. Of the 66 patients with hemochromatosis diagnosed on the basis of serum iron studies and liver biopsy findings, 60 (91%) were C282Y homozygotes, 2 (3%) were compound heterozygotes, 1 (1.5%) was a C282Y heterozygote, 2 (3%) were H63D heterozygotes, and 1 (1.5%) was negative for both mutations. Of the 132 patients with liver disease, 6 (5%) were C282Y homozygotes, 8 (6%) were compound heterozygotes, 6 (5%) were C282Y heterozygotes, 5 (4%) were H63D homozygotes, 20 (15%) were H63D heterozygotes, and 87 (66%) were negative for both mutations. All 66 C282Y homozygotes had an elevated hepatic iron concentration, and 65 of the 66 patients (98%) had a transferrin saturation of at least 45%. Ten of the 66 patients (15% [95% CI, 7.5% to 26%]) had a hepatic iron index less than 1.9 mmol/kg per year hemochromatosis was not suspected in 6 of the 10 patients before genotyping. Cirrhosis or substantial hepatic fibrosis was not seen in any (0% [CI, 0% to 18%]) of the 19 patients younger than 40 years of age who were homozygous for the C282Y mutation. All 66 patients homozygous for the C282Y mutation of HFE had an elevated hepatic iron concentration, but approximately 15% of these patients did not meet a previous diagnostic criterion for hemochromatosis (hepatic iron index > 1.9 mmol/kg per year). Determination of HFE genotype is clinically useful in patients with liver disease and suspected iron overload and may lead to identification of otherwise unsuspected C282Y homozygotes.
Amphibian Chytrid Prevalence in an Amphibian Community in Arid Australia
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 22-02-2013
Modelling surface fine fuel dynamics across climate gradients in eucalypt forests of south-eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-02-2014
DOI: 10.1111/ECOG.00445
Beetle assemblages captured using static panel traps within New South Wales pine plantations
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-2010
Detecting pest and prey responses to fox control across the landscape using remote cameras
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2011
DOI: 10.1071/WR10213
Abstract: Context The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) is a widespread pest in southern Australia and is subject to control over large areas using poison baits to protect both agricultural and ecological assets. Foxes and their prey are often cryptic or in low densities, making it difficult to quantify the efficacy of control programs. Aims We explore the use of remote cameras to estimate the activity and spatial occupancy of foxes and potential mammalian and avian prey species before and after poison baiting in the Goonoo region, central New South Wales. Methods In the first of two studies, we set camera traps at 48 sites in forest and cleared areas, on and off tracks, during autumn 2009. In the second study, we placed camera traps in forest and cleared areas, on tracks only, at 100 sites covering an area of ~441 500 ha during winter 2009. We examined camera-trap rates of all species detected and the activity and site occupancy of a selected subset of species before and after poison baiting. Key results Camera traps indicated greater levels of fox activity on vehicular tracks than off them, with this difference being more marked in forest than in cleared agricultural land. Fox activity and occupancy were greater in agricultural land than in forest, with no effect of baiting detected at the landscape scale. Thirty-five other mammal and bird species were identified from photos, with activity for most being greater on than off tracks. Conclusions No clear effects of fox-baiting were detected on foxes or potential prey species in either study by either activity or occupancy. The lack of a baiting effect may reflect rapid recolonisation by foxes from unbaited areas, as bait placement is generally clustered in agricultural land, or the ready availability of alternative food (lambs or lamb carcasses) in some cleared areas. Implications Our results demonstrate that remote cameras provide a simple means of monitoring changes in fox activity and occupancy at the landscape level, and that these measures have great potential to quantify the success or otherwise of fox-control c aigns on both pest and prey species.
Climatic, vegetation and edaphic influences on the probability of fire across mediterranean woodlands of south‐eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-07-2015
DOI: 10.1111/JBI.12547
Costs of preventing and supressing wildfires in Victoria, Australia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2023
Using MODIS data to analyse post-fire vegetation recovery in Australian eucalypt forests
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 24-11-2014
Spatial patterns of wildfire ignitions in south-eastern Australia
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2015
DOI: 10.1071/WF15054
Abstract: Wildfires can have devastating effects on life, property and the environment. Official inquiries following major damaging fires often recommend management actions to reduce the risk of future losses from wildfires. Understanding where wildfires are most likely to occur in the landscape is essential to determining where wildfires pose the greatest risk to people and property. We investigated the spatial patterns of wildfire ignitions at a bioregional scale in New South Wales and Victoria using generalised linear models. We used a combination of social and biophysical variables and examined whether different categories of ignitions respond to different explanatory variables. Human-caused ignitions are the dominant source of ignitions for wildfires in south-eastern Australia and our results showed that for such ignitions, population density was the most important variable for the spatial pattern of ignitions. In future years, more ignitions are predicted in the coastal and hinterland areas due to population increases and climate change effects.
Can precipitation influence landscape controls on wildfire severity? A case study within temperate eucalypt forests of south-eastern Australia
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2014
DOI: 10.1071/WF12184
Abstract: The environmental, economic and social impacts of wildfires depend on spatial patterns of fire severity. An understanding as to how drivers of fire severity vary across broad vegetation communities exists. However, examination of variation within communities in response to gradients of moisture has received little attention so far. This study examined whether relationships between environmental variables (i.e. fire weather, topography and fuel age) and fire severity were modified by increasing mean annual precipitation. Understorey fires were more likely to occur in young fuels (i.e. years since fire) in drier sites, although this effect diminished as precipitation increased. The probability of occurrence of understorey fires under non-extreme weather and on steep slopes was reduced in wetter areas. Relationships between crown fire and weather, topography and fuel age were largely unaltered by the precipitation gradient, with only a marginally significant interaction occurring between weather and mean annual precipitation. Greater fine fuel accumulation associated with increased precipitation presumably reduced fuel limitations imposed by environmental factors (i.e. fire weather, slope, fuel age), altering their relative control on the probability of understorey fire. The probability of crown fires is predominantly driven by fire weather and is consequently less sensitive to precipitation gradients. Consideration of precipitation gradients will be necessary when identifying controls of fire severity and devising effective fire management strategies.
Detecting Extinction Risk from Climate Change by IUCN Red List Criteria
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-02-2014
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12234
Abstract: Anthropogenic climate change is a key threat to global bio ersity. To inform strategic actions aimed at conserving bio ersity as climate changes, conservation planners need early warning of the risks faced by different species. The IUCN Red List criteria for threatened species are widely acknowledged as useful risk assessment tools for informing conservation under constraints imposed by limited data. However, doubts have been expressed about the ability of the criteria to detect risks imposed by potentially slow-acting threats such as climate change, particularly because criteria addressing rates of population decline are assessed over time scales as short as 10 years. We used spatially explicit stochastic population models and dynamic species distribution models projected to future climates to determine how long before extinction a species would become eligible for listing as threatened based on the IUCN Red List criteria. We focused on a short-lived frog species (Assa darlingtoni) chosen specifically to represent potential weaknesses in the criteria to allow detailed consideration of the analytical issues and to develop an approach for wider application. The criteria were more sensitive to climate change than previously anticipated lead times between initial listing in a threatened category and predicted extinction varied from 40 to 80 years, depending on data availability. We attributed this sensitivity primarily to the ensemble properties of the criteria that assess contrasting symptoms of extinction risk. Nevertheless, we recommend the robustness of the criteria warrants further investigation across species with contrasting life histories and patterns of decline. The adequacy of these lead times for early warning depends on practicalities of environmental policy and management, bureaucratic or political inertia, and the anticipated species response times to management actions.
An empirical wildfire risk analysis: the probability of a fire spreading to the urban interface in Sydney, Australia
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2015
DOI: 10.1071/WF14160
Abstract: We present a method and case study to predict and map the likelihood of wildfires spreading to the urban interface through statistical analysis of past fire patterns using 15 000 lines from 677 fires with known ignition points and date and random potential end points on the urban interface of Sydney, Australia. A binomial regression approach was used to model whether the fire burnt to the end point of the lines as a function of measures of distance, fuel, weather and barriers to spread. Fire weather had the strongest influence on burning likelihood followed by the percentage of the line that was forested, distance and time since last fire. Fuel treatments would substantially reduce risk from fires starting 1–4 km away from the interface. The model captured 90% of variation in burning with 98% predictive accuracy on test data and was not affected by spatial autocorrelation. We apply the method to map fire risk in Sydney and discuss how the method could be expanded to estimate total risk (from ignition to impact on assets). The method has considerable promise for predicting risk, especially as a complement to simulation methods.
Climate more important than soils for predicting forest biomass at the continental scale
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 29-07-2020
DOI: 10.1111/ECOG.05180
Defining adequate means of residents to prepare property for protection from wildfire
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2013
Warmer and drier conditions have increased the potential for large and severe fire seasons across south‐eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-04-2022
DOI: 10.1111/GEB.13514
Abstract: The aims were: (1) to identify the environmental drivers of interannual variation in wildfire extent and severity (2) to examine temporal trends in climatic potential for large and severe wildfires and (3) to assess whether environmental conditions experienced during the 2019–2020 mega‐fire season were anomalous. South‐eastern Australia. 1953–2020. Temperate forests. We used satellite‐derived fire severity mapping from 1988 to 2020 to model the effects of drought, weather and fuels on the annual area burned and the proportion of the area burned that was impacted by high‐severity fire across four bioregions. Trends in wildfire extent and severity were then estimated from 1953 to 2020 using these derived models and gridded climate data to assess changes in climatic potential for large and severe wildfires. Estimates of wildfire extent and severity for the 2019–2020 fire season were then assessed against prior seasons (1953–2019). Annual area burned was positively related to the severity of seasonal drought and frequency of fire weather conditions that promote substantial daily fire growth. Wildfire severity was elevated in years with severe fire weather and increased with increasing antecedent drought in years without severe fire weather. Fuels had a lesser effect on wildfire extent and severity than climate. Potential fire extent and severity have increased over time in response to an increased severity of drought and worsening fire weather conditions. Estimates of wildfire extent and severity during the 2019–2020 fire season approached the upper extreme within each bioregion, owing to widespread extreme climatic conditions. The climatic potential for large and severe forest fires has increased across south‐eastern Australia since the 1950s, probably because of anthropogenic climate change. The magnitude and severity of the 2019–2020 fires reflected climatic conditions that are driving an increase in the size and severity of wildfires.
Modelling the determinants of ignition in the Sydney Basin, Australia: implications for future management
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2013
DOI: 10.1071/WF12027
Abstract: Variations in area burnt by fire are governed by four processes: biomass growth, availability to burn, fire weather and ignitions. Insight into these how these processes are shaped by biophysical and human influences is required to underpin the development of effective management strategies. Patterns of natural and arson ignitions were examined within the densely populated Sydney region of south-eastern Australia to determine the extent to which management can alter the risk of ignition. Arson ignitions were more likely on ridges in association with human infrastructure, i.e. roads and houses. Lightning ignitions also occurred more frequently on ridges, but at greater distances from human infrastructure. These patterns are consistent with those reported in studies from forested regions in the northern hemisphere. Fuel age had a variable effect with lightning more likely in older fuels ( years) and arson more likely in younger fuels ( years). Probability of both ignition types increased under more severe fire weather. Climate change is predicted to increase the severity of fire weather and is therefore likely to result in an increase in ignition frequency in the Sydney Basin. Urban expansion is also likely to have significant effects on ignitions and resultant risks to people and property via an increase in the probability of arson ignitions.
The potential for remote cameras to monitor visitation by birds and predators at Malleefowl mounds
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-2008
A flexible framework for cost-effective fire management
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2023
Interactive effects of climate change and fire on metapopulation viability of a forest-dependent frog in south-eastern Australia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2015
Role of sepiolite for cadmium (Cd) polluted soil restoration and spinach growth in wastewater irrigated agricultural soil
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2020
DOI: 10.1016/J.JENVMAN.2019.110020
Abstract: Metals that contaminate soil are one of the major problems seriously affecting sustainable agriculture worldwide. Cadmium (Cd) toxicity to agricultural crops is a global problem. Mobility of Cd in contaminated soil can be minimized by the amendment of soil passivators which will ultimately reduce its movement from soil to plants. A pot study was performed to evaluate the impact of sepiolite from 1% to 5% on Cd solubility and its accumulation in spinach tissues. Soil pH, Cd fractionation, Cd accumulation in spinach tissue and Cd adsorption mechanism were determined. Results were recorded that soil pH was increased from 0.3 to 1.0 units with the increasing rate of sepiolite from 1% to 5%. Similarly, Cd contents in acid soluble phase was decreased by 42.8% and increased in residual phase by 35.8% at 5% rate, relative to control. Moreover, the significant reduction in Cd uptake by spinach shoots and roots was occurred by 26.2% and 30.6% at 5% rate, respectively. Furthermore, the maximum Cd adsorption capacity 37.35 mg g
Climate and recent fire history affect fuel loads in Eucalyptus forests: Implications for fire management in a changing climate
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2010
Determinants of growth of the flammable grass, Triodia scariosa: Consequences for fuel dynamics under climate change in the Mediterranean region of South Eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-02-2016
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12348
Fire and biodiversity in the Anthropocene
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 20-11-2020
Abstract: Fire has played a prominent role in the evolution of bio ersity and is a natural factor shaping many ecological communities. However, the incidence of fire has been exacerbated by human activity, and this is now affecting ecosystems and habitats that have never been fire prone or fire adapted. Kelly et al. review how such changes are already threatening species with extinction and transforming terrestrial ecosystems and discuss the trends causing changes in fire regimes. They also consider actions that could be taken by conservationists and policy-makers to help sustain bio ersity in a time of changing fire activity. Science , this issue p. eabb0355
Examining the relative effects of fire weather, suppression and fuel treatment on fire behaviour - A simulation study
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2013
DOI: 10.1016/J.JENVMAN.2013.10.007
Abstract: Large budgets are spent on both suppression and fuel treatments in order to reduce the risk of wildfires. There is little evidence regarding the relative contribution of fire weather, suppression and fuel treatments in determining the risk posed from wildfires. Here we undertake a simulation study in the Sydney Basin, Australia, to examine this question using a fire behaviour model (Phoenix Rapidfire). Results of the study indicate that fire behaviour is most strongly influenced by fire weather. Suppression has a greater influence on whether a fire reaches 5 ha in size compared to fuel treatments. In contrast, fuel treatments have a stronger effect on the fire size and maximum distance the fire travels. The study suggests that fire management agencies will receive additional benefits from fuel treatment if they are located in areas which suppression resources can respond rapidly and attempt to contain the fires. No combination of treatments contained all fires, and the proportion of uncontained fires increased under more severe fire weather when the greatest number of properties are lost. Our study highlights the importance of alternative management strategies to reduce the risk of property loss.
Indications of positive feedbacks to flammability through fuel structure after high-severity fire in temperate eucalypt forests
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 06-07-2021
DOI: 10.1071/WF20153
Abstract: Forest fire severity influences post-fire fuel structure and thus the behaviour of subsequent fires. Understanding such interactions is critical to improving predictions of fire risk and emergency management, yet few studies have quantified fire severity effects on fuel attributes. We quantify fuel structure of a fire-tolerant eucalypt forest 7 years after a landscape-scale wildfire in south-eastern Australia. We used high-density airborne lidar data to estimate understorey fuel metrics in three strata representing horizontal and vertical connectivity in 1084 plots (0.06 ha) representing four wildfire severities (unburnt, low, moderate, high). Fuel structure was changed by high-severity fire, which significantly increased the cover and horizontal connectivity of the elevated and midstorey strata and decreased space between the understorey and canopy relative to other severity types. Random Forest models indicated that understorey fuel metrics were most influenced by wildfire severity, pre-fire values of each metric, and post-fire canopy cover, and least influenced by climatic and topographic variables. Our study provides evidence of positive feedbacks to flammability by high-severity wildfire in fire-tolerant eucalypt forests through increased horizontal and vertical fuel connectivity. It demonstrates the utility of airborne lidar data for quantifying fuel structure in complex forests and providing critical data for fire risk assessments.
Control of the red fox in remnant forest habitats
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1071/WR15133
Abstract: Context The European red fox (Vulpes vulpes) is subject to control by poison baiting in many parts of its range in Australia to protect both native and domestic species. Assessments of baiting programs can improve their effectiveness and help ensure that long-term control outcomes are achieved. Aims We describe spatial and temporal patterns of bait uptake by the red fox in remnant forest within an agricultural matrix, including multiple bait-takes and hotspots of activity over time, and examine the response of foxes to baiting operations. Methods We analysed bait uptake (Foxoff®) from 12 baiting operations over 5 years in the Goonoo forest, a 62 500 ha remnant surrounded by cleared land in central New South Wales, Australia. More than 8000 checks of bait-stations were analysed to provide indices of fox activity per bait-check, patterns of bait removal during bait-checks, and bait uptake at stations within and across operations. Fox activity was also assessed before and after four operations using sand plots. Key results There was no consistent decline in relative fox activity in relation to changes in bait-take increases in the activity index occurred in successive checks within most operations. Spatial analyses of checks within control operations showed that consecutive baits were removed at more than 70% of bait stations that were visited by foxes. Temporal analyses showed further that within an operation, multiple bait-takes occurred at ~20% of stations and, across all operations, hot spots of activity could be identified. Conclusions A short (2-week) baiting window in standard baiting operations may not be effective in reducing the activity of foxes across the landscape. It is likely that many baits are being cached during each operation, and that foxes move into the baited area from unbaited surrounding areas. Implications More frequent and timely baiting operations are needed to achieve maximum disruption to the fox population in the remnant forest environment, at least as indicated by patterns of bait-take. Increasing the distance between baits, to ~1.5 km, while reducing baiting-gaps at the landscape scale, will also be important to reduce caching and still ensure that baits are encountered.
Prescribed burning: how can it work to conserve the things we value?
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2011
DOI: 10.1071/WF09131
Abstract: Prescribed burning is a commonly applied management tool, and there has been considerable debate over the efficacy of its application. We review data relating to the effectiveness of prescribed burning in Australia. Specifically, we address two questions: (1) to what extent can fuel reduction burning reduce the risk of loss of human life and economic assets posed from wildfires? (2) To what extent can prescribed burning be used to reduce the risk of bio ersity loss? Data suggest that prescribed burning can achieve a reduction in the extent of wildfires however, at such levels, the result is an overall increase in the total area of the landscape burnt. Simulation modelling indicates that fuel reduction has less influence than weather on the extent of unplanned fire. The need to incorporate ecological values into prescribed burning programmes is becoming increasingly important. Insufficient data are available to determine if existing programs have been successful. There are numerous factors that prevent the implementation of better prescribed burning practices most relate to a lack of clearly defined, measurable objectives. An adaptive risk management framework combined with enhanced partnerships between scientists and fire-management agencies is necessary to ensure that ecological and fuel reduction objectives are achieved.
Quantifying the effect of mastication on flaming and smouldering durations in eucalypt forests and woodlands under laboratory conditions
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 19-05-2021
DOI: 10.1071/WF20157
Abstract: Mechanical mastication is growing in popularity as a wildfire mitigation technique. Yet few studies quantify its effects on fire behaviour. Such information is needed by fire managers to evaluate its efficacy. Our aim was to develop an understanding of how mastication alters flaming and smouldering durations and the longevity of any effects. Flaming and smouldering duration are important determinants of soil heating and smoke emissions. We used a paired s ling design, collecting litter bed (hereafter surface fuel) s les from 15 sites with masticated and untreated vegetation in shrub-encroached Eucalyptus woodlands. We measured a range of fuel bed properties and then burnt the s les in the laboratory. Average smouldering durations increased 88% from 25 to 47 min in untreated v. masticated fuel flaming durations increased 100% from 6 to 12 min. These changes were attributable to higher fine and coarse fuel loads in the masticated fuel bed. However, fine and coarse fuel load declined significantly over 4 years, meaning the effects of mastication on combustion duration are likely to be short-lived. Despite being a laboratory study, the results assist with evaluating mastication as a fuel treatment by demonstrating the potential magnitude of changes to flaming and smouldering duration.
Biophysical Mechanistic Modelling Quantifies the Effects of Plant Traits on Fire Severity: Species, Not Surface Fuel Loads, Determine Flame Dimensions in Eucalypt Forests
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 16-08-2016
Reducing the risk of house loss due to wildfires
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2015
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