The response and management of species sensitive to altered fire regimes

Fire regimes (the sequence of fires and their attributes including intensity, frequency and patchiness) are fundamental to the structure and function of many ecosystems. In many locations, changes in fire regimes are threatening large numbers of species. In this Review, we discuss the factors that cause certain species and groups of species to be harmed by fire regime changes and identify strategies to manage the species that are most sensitive to fire regime change. Variation in species sensitivity to fire and fire regime change is influenced by species life history characteristics (such as long generation times or low reproductive rates) and landscape characteristics (such as habitat patchiness caused by previous fires). Management considerations include maintaining or restoring appropriate levels of spatial patchiness in fire; avoiding degradation of ecosystem condition; implementing post-fire management that can support species recovery (for example, avoid salvage logging and control invasive species); managing the overall disturbance burden; and minimizing the stressors that can co-occur with (and interact negatively with) altered fire regimes. Progress in identifying and conserving species most sensitive to altered fire regimes requires more long-term studies, particularly those spanning multiple fire events and accounting for stressors that interact with fire regimes and affect ecosystem integrity. In many locations globally, wildfires are becoming more frequent, intense and/or larger in area compared with historical fire regimes. This Review discusses the factors that determine how species and ecosystems respond to changing fire regimes and outlines important conservation and management considerations.