G. Matt Davies

• PhD Fire and Vegetation Ecology
• Head of Agriculture at Falkland Islands Government

Northern European heathlands and moorlands dominated by Calluna vulgaris are internationally recognized for their conservation importance while also supporting traditional, low-intensity agriculture and game hunting. Managed burning plays an important role in maintaining these ecosystems but climate and land-use changes, including planned or unplan...

Grassland birds are globally imperiled. Those of endemic Neotropical savannas may be particularly threatened as knowledge of the ecology of many species is lacking, restricting our ability to take decisive conservation action. During the dry (non-breeding) season of 2010, we studied the population size, distribution, and habitat associations of the...

Many ecosystems are experiencing increased fire frequencies and species invasions that can erode their resilience and cause a shift to alternative states. In the sagebrush‐steppe, a semi‐arid shrubland ecosystem in North America, restoration treatments are often implemented following wildfire to enhance their resilience to invasion. However, little...

Peatland ecosystems are of global conservation and environmental importance storing globally significant amounts of ancient carbon, regulating regional temperatures and hydrological regimes, and supporting unique biodiversity. Livestock grazing, land-use change, drainage, nutrient and acid deposition, and wildfire threaten the composition and funct...

Oak and hickory (Quercus spp. and Carya spp.) recruitment in forests of eastern North America is adversely impacted by woody invasive species. Conservation grazing, the use of livestock for restoration or biodiversity promotion, has been used to control invasive plants. The efficacy of such grazing and its ecological tradeoffs in oak-hickory forest...

Questions Plant communities are shaped by interactions between natural and anthropogenic disturbances and underlying environmental conditions. We asked how disturbance by rock climbing alters patterns of cryptogam species diversity and composition along elevational abiotic gradients. Location Red River Gorge, Kentucky, United States of America. M...

Land-use, climate, and policy changes have impacted the fire regimes of many landscapes across northern Europe. Heathlands in oceanic climates are globally important ecosystems that have experienced an increase in the prevalence of destructive wildfire. Many of these landscapes are also managed using traditional prescribed burning that enhances the...

This report examines Incident Reporting System (IRS) data on wildland fire incidents and uses these to improve the understanding of how upland wildfires start, investigate if wildfire occurrence differs between geographical areas; and describe how wildfires exhibit seasonal and temporal trends.

This chapter describes the history, policies, practices and controversies associated with traditional managed burning in heathlands landscapes of NW Europe. The focus is primarily on fire use in the United Kingdom and Norway where robust traditions of managed burning remain. Key topics considered include: - History of fire in oceanic heath and moor...

Oak-hickory (Quercus spp. and Carya spp.) recruitment and regeneration are negatively impacted by non-natives species. Goats can provide an initial control of non-native vegetation; however, browsing behavior and preference should be studied before their introduction in the forest. Our objective was to analyze goats’ browsing behavior and preferenc...

Globally, forest-savanna mosaic landscapes are of significant conservation importance but have been widely impacted by human land-use. We studied how restoration, through cessation of long-term cattle grazing impacts (i) forest regeneration; (ii) forest understory structure and composition; and (iii) populations and diversity of large mammals and n...

The future status of peatlands as carbon stores/sinks is uncertain given current and predicted environmental change. Several factors can affect the magnitude of the peatland carbon sink including disturbances such as wildfire. There is at present little evidence of how wildfire affects the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) via pert...

Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) pollution has become a major global public health concern, particularly in urbanizing and rapidly developing nations such as China. Health effects from PM pollution include increases in cardiovascular and respiratory illnesses and problems during pregnancy and child development. Developing methods to mitigate PM...

Peatlands are subject to increased pressure from environmental and land-use change, particularly in temperate regions such as the US Midwest. Bryophytes dominate the ground cover of peatlands and play a key role in their functioning. Effective management and restoration of degraded peatlands requires good understanding of their bryophyte communitie...

Understanding how plant community dynamics are impacted by altered disturbance regimes is a pressing challenge for restoration ecology. Most assessments of community dynamics involve computationally‐intensive statistical techniques, whilst management often defers to derived, qualitative “state‐and‐transition” models. Here, we demonstrate an interme...

Peatlands are a large source of methane (CH4) to the atmosphere, yet the uncertainty around the estimates of CH4 flux from peatlands is large. To better understand the spatial heterogeneity in temperate peatland CH4 emissions and their response to physical and biological drivers, we studied CH4 dynamics throughout the growing seasons of 2017 and 20...

Background: Prescribed burning plays an important role in the management of many ecosystems and can also be used to mitigate landscape-scale fire risk. Safe and effective application of prescribed fire requires that managers have a robust understanding of potential fire behaviour in order to decide on the appropriate tools and tactics for any burni...

Peatlands are a large source of methane (CH4) to the atmosphere, yet the uncertainty around the estimates of CH4 flux from peatlands is large. To better understand the spatial heterogeneity in temperate peatland CH4 emissions and their response to physical and biological drivers, we studied CH4 dynamics throughout the growing seasons of 2017 and 20...

Large amounts of carbon are stored in northern peatlands. There is concern that greater wildfire severity fol-lowing projected increases in summer drought will lead to higher post-fire carbon losses. We measured soilcarbon dynamics in aCallunaheathland and a raised peat bog after experimentally manipulatingfire severity. Agradient offire severity w...

Calluna vulgaris-dominated habitats are valued for ecosystem services such as carbon storage and for their conservation importance. Climate and environmental change are altering their fire regimes. In particular, more frequent summer droughts will result in higher severity wildfires. This could alter the plant community composition of Calluna habit...

Fire behaviour characteristics define the impacts on society and the environment. While wildland fire science has expanded to include the analysis of fire activity and effects across the globe, an understanding of global fire behaviour patterns and its drivers remains incomplete. We utilized the literature and unpublished datasets as sources for co...

Understanding wildfire rate of spread (RoS) is often a key objective of many fire behavior modelling and measurement exercises. Using instrumented moderate scale laboratory burns we provide an assessment of eight different methods of flame front RoS determination, including visible imagery (VIS) analysis techniques, use of thermocouple arrays, and...

Background: Prescribed burning in peatlands is controversial due to concerns over damage to their ecological functioning, particularly regarding their key genus Sphagnum. However, empirical evidence is scarce. Aims: Quantify Sphagnum recovery following prescribed burns. Methods: We completed nine fires at a raised bog in Scotland, achieving a range...

Moorland habitats dominated by the dwarf shrub Calluna vulgaris provide important ecosystem services. Drought is projected to intensify throughout their range, potentially leading to increased fire severity as moisture is a key control on severity. We studied the effect of low fuel moisture content (FMC) on fire severity by using 2 × 2 m rain-out s...

Variation in the structure of ground fuels, i.e. the moss and litter (M/L) layer, may be an important control on fire severity in heather moorlands and thus influence vegetation regeneration and soil carbon dynamics. We completed experimental fires in a Calluna vulgaris-dominated heathland to study the role of the M/L layer in determining (i) fire-...

Abiotic conditions, biotic factors, and disturbances can act as filters that control community structure and composition. Understanding the relative importance of these drivers would allow us to understand and predict the causes and consequences of changes in community structure. We used long-term data (1989-2002) from the sagebrush steppe in Washi...

The effects of fire and its use on European peatlands and heaths are the focus of considerable research and debate due to the important services these ecosystems provide and the threats they face from climatic and land-use change. Whilst in some countries ecologists are actively promoting the restoration of historic fire management regimes, in the...

We are glad that Brown et al. [1] and Douglas et al. [2] agree that there is a need to move forward in the debate regarding the use of fire as a management tool in the UK uplands and appreciate their robust responses to some of the issues we identified. We may not agree, but discussing these problems and balancing the current debate from an ecologi...

Fire is widely used as a traditional habitat management tool in Scotland, but wildfires pose a significant and growing threat. The financial costs of fighting wildfires are significant and severe wildfires can have substantial environmental impacts. Due to the intermittent occurrence of severe fire seasons, Scotland, and the UK as a whole, remain s...

Supplementary Document The effect of data set size and fire occurrence frequency on the results of Thiel-Sen analysis as described by Eastaugh, Arpaci & Vacik (2012)

Supplementary Tables And Figures Supplementary tables showing summaries of generalized model fits relating fire weather characteristics to wildfire occurrence. Supplementary Figure showing the distribution of large and all wildfires across in relation to season and fire weather

R script detailing data analysis procedures

Supplemental Information for: Regional variation in fire weather controls the reported occurrence of Scottish wildfires R script detailing analysis in Supplementary Document R script to demonstrate the effect of data set size and fire occurrence frequency on the results of Thiel-Sen analysis described by Eastaugh, Arpaci & Vacik (2012)

Fire has been used for centuries to generate and manage some of the UK's cultural landscapes. Despite its complex role in the ecology of UK peatlands and moorlands, there has been a trend of simplifying the narrative around burning to present it as an only ecologically damaging practice. That fire modifies peatland characteristics at a range of sca...

Temperate peatland wildfires are of significant environmental concern but information on their environmental effects is lacking. We assessed variation in burn severity and fuel consumption within and between wildfires that burnt British moorlands in 2011 and 2012. We adapted the composite burn index (pCBI) to provide semi-quantitative estimates of...

Pseudoreplication is defined as the use of inferential statistics to test for treatment effects where treatments are not replicated and/or replicates are not statistically independent. It is a genuine but controversial issue in ecology particularly in the case of costly landscape-scale manipulations, behavioral studies where ethics or other concern...

Temperate peatland wildfires are of significant environmental concern but information on their environmental effects is lacking. We assessed variation in burn severity and fuel consumption within and between wildfires that burnt British moorlands in 2011 and 2012. We adapted the Composite Burn Index (pCBI) to provide semi-quantitative estimates of...

European heathland habitats are cultural landscapes derived from previously-forested ecosystems. Heathlands are of significant conservation interest but have experienced prolonged degradation due to a range of factors including overgrazing by domestic livestock. There is growing recognition of the need to restore upland landscapes to produce a dive...

Globally peatlands contain ca. 550 GT of ancient carbon and there is the potential for a positive feedback between peatland degradation and global climate change. Peatlands cover a substantial area of the British Uplands and the effects of wildfire and traditional managed burning on their ecological integrity are issues of growing debate. Land-mana...

A series of experimental fires were conducted to investigate the effect of ground-fuel structure and fuel moisture content in controlling fire severity in a Calluna vulgaris dominated environment. Their influence on fire-induced temperature pulses into the soil (peat) was quantified. The effect of fire-related changes in fuel structure on peat micr...

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Finding ecologically and economically effective ways to establish matrix species is often critical for restoration success. Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata subsp. wyomingensis) historically dominated large areas of western North America, but has been extirpated from many areas by large wildfires; its re-establishment in these areas ofte...

Mediterranean landscapes are changing due to the impacts of changing land-use patterns and climate. Fuel–weather interactions determine that large, severe wildfires are increasingly common. Prescribed burning in southern Europe is therefore justified by the need to manage fire-prone vegetation types and maintain cultural landscapes that provide a r...

The concept of “fire regime” is central to understanding the effects of fires on ecological systems. This chapter focuses on the effects of fire on vegetation as this relates strongly to the availability of fuel for wildfires and the provision of habitats for wildlife. Characterising fire regimes requires an appreciation of both the factors that co...

Repeated perturbations, both biotic and abiotic, can lead to fundamental changes in the nature of ecosystems, including changes in state. Sagebrush steppe communities provide important habitat for wildlife and grazing for livestock. Fire is an integral part of these systems, but there is concern that increased ignition frequencies and invasive spec...

Heat of combustion (HoC) is a key characteristic of fuels when analyzing and modeling wildfire scenarios. Despite significant differences in the structure of fuels from different environments, HoC is frequently considered a constant. This article briefly reviews methods used to describe natural fuels and the various different definitions of HoC. We...

Managed and wild fires play a significant role in the ecology of heathlands in the UK but we currently have little ability to forecast fire behaviour or the likelihood of accidental wildfires. Like many shrubland fuel types, heathlands display significant structural complexity and the role of different fuel components in governing flammability has...

Thousands of hectares of high quality sagebrush shrub-steppe burned in south-central Washington in 2000 and 2007, particularly on the Arid Lands Ecology Reserve (ALE) on the Hanford Reach National Monument. Extensive rehabilitation efforts took place on ALE to control invasive species and establish native species following each of these fires. Perm...

Underground fires in peatlands are relatively rare events but when active they can smoulder for very long periods and cause significant environmental damage. They emit large quantities of combustion products, including greenhouse gases, into the atmosphere causing deterioration in air quality and public health. These fires are fed by small but cont...

Understanding local perceptions of degradation and attitudes to fire management are critical for gaining support for restoration work and improving livelihoods. Deforestation and annual burning are causing significant land degradation problems in the area around Bandawe, northern Malawi. We mapped evidence of soil erosion and remaining areas of woo...

Background: Dramatic reductions in early-spring Calluna vulgaris moisture content have been linked to extreme fire hazard and plant die-back.Aims: To investigate spatial and temporal variation in the fuel moisture content of Calluna vulgaris.Methods:Calluna vulgaris plants were sampled in different sites and seasons to examine vertical profiles in...

1. Upland heaths in the UK are of significant conservation importance. Large areas are managed through prescribed burning to improve habitat and grazing for red grouse Lagopus lagopus scoticus, deer Cervus elaphus and sheep Ovis aries. Previous research has identified trends in vegetation development following burning, but has not linked this to va...

Keywords: Calluna vulgaris, rotational burning, upland heath, fire severity, carbon budgets.

1. Calluna-dominated heaths occur throughout Europe but are in decline across their range. There is growing interest in using prescribed burning for their management, but environmental and social change will impact future fire regimes. Understanding fire behaviour is vital for the sustainable use of fire, but no robust models exist to inform manage...

Question: How does regular management burning of a northern, Calluna vulgaris ‐dominated heathland affect the lichen diversity at the patch and landscape scale? Location: Mar Lodge Estate, Scottish Highlands, United Kingdom. Methods: 26 fire sites of different ages and 11 long‐term unburnt stands were surveyed to create a chronosequence of changing...

Prescribed and wild fires play a significant role in the ecology of upland areas; changes in the frequency and intensity of both can have significant effects on biodiversity and ecosystem function. Whilst the way we manage fire in the future will depend on desired outcomes, the risk of wildfires and the suitability of conditions for prescribed burn...

This paper gives a brief overview of the important factors relating to fuel properties and the propagation of fire in peatlands, and presents a case study combining monitoring and modelling of factors related to peat fuel moisture in relation to meteorological changes. The discussion relates to the direct and indirect environmental effects of peat...

Fuel moisture plays a crucial role in determining fuel flammability and fire behaviour but most models of fire hazard only refer to dead fuel assuming that it is the most important component driving fire behaviour. In a number of fuel types, particularly shrublands such as Calluna-dominated heathlands, live fuels can form a significant or even domi...

We present a simple non-destructive technique for assessing fuel load and critical aspects of vegetation structure that play important roles in determining fire behaviour. The method is tested in a Scottish Calluna vulgaris (L.) Hull heathland but could be applied to any vegetation up to ~1 m high. Visual obstruction of a banded measurement stick (...

Prescribed fire is a powerful management tool that can be used for multiple objectives and is not just suitable for grouse moor management. Wildfires can cause massive environmental damage, but through prescribed burning we can manipulate the fire regime of the British uplands to both maximise the ecological benefits of fire and manage the threat o...

For roughly the past 200 years land-managers have used the practice of “muirburning” to manipulate the structure of heather (Calluna vulgaris) to create a patchwork of habitat structures able to provide forage and nesting sites for red grouse (Lagopus lagopus scoticus) as well as grazing for sheep (Ovis aries) and red deer (Cervus elaphus). This...