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Abstract
Fire History of the Chaparral Zone in the Southern Sierra Nevada
Jon E. Keeley* and Anne Pfaff, U.S. Geological Survey, Sequoia-Kings, Canyon Field Station, Three Rivers, CA 93271; ph: (559) 565-3170, *email: jon_keeley@usgs.gov. Pat Lineback, Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks, Three Rivers, CA 93271.
Chaparral dominates a significant portion of the southern Sierra Nevada foothills, yet relatively little attention has been given to historical patterns of burning in these shrublands. Using a historical database on fire history for the national parks, national forests, BLM, CDF and other jurisdictions in the foothills we have evaluated burning patterns for the 20th century. Roughly half of the chaparral area has not recorded a fire during this time period whereas some areas have had repeated fires. Spatial and temporal patterns of burning are presented. From these and other studies there is reason to believe that unlike southern California chaparral, these ecosystems may be at risk from fire exclusion.
