Fire
The U.S. Geological Survey conducts fire ecology research to understand the effects of wildland fire on ecosystem structure and function, and on other ecological attributes such as wildlife habitat. Research is also directed as understanding fire history and fire regimes; interactions of fire with invasive species (e.g. cheatgrass) and climate variability; fire relations with vegetation structure and effectiveness of fuel treatments; and development of guidelines for restoring and rehabilitating fire-impacted ecosystems and watersheds.
Listed below are examples of research projects available online and general information from USGS about fire, its effects, and fire treatments.
Post-Fire Assessment
Fire Effects
- Biological Research on Fire in the West. Fact Sheet. Download the File. (460 KB, PDF) (West, California, Sierra Nevada, Nevada, Oregon, Idaho, Great Basin, Mojave desert, Sonoran desert) (FRESC) (also related to Arid Lands, Forests, Grasslands, Invasive Species, Urban Expansion)
Fire Rehabilitation, Restoration, and Monitoring
- Effects of Invasive Alien Plants on Fire Regimes. Download the File. (512 KB, PDF) (WERC) (also related to Invasive Species)
- Managing Fire in the Northern Chihuahuan Desert: A Review and Analysis of the Literature. Open-File Report. Download the File. (6,151 KB, PDF) (Arizona, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico, Northern Chihuahuan Desert, Texas) (SBSC) (also related to Arid Lands)
- Use of Fire as a Tool for Controlling Invasive Plants. Download the File. (2,648 KB, PDF) (WERC) (also related to Invasive Species)
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In the Spotlight
 Ecological Foundations for Fire Management - In a recent USFS publication (General Technical Report PNW-GTR-779), USGS scientist Jon Keeley led a team of scientists from various agencies and academic institutions in developing a framework that will inform fire management of ecosystems. This review uses a scientific synthesis to provide an ecological foundation for management of diverse ecosystems. Ecosystem-based management requires different strategies on different landscapes, necessitating a regional approach to fire management. (Jon Keeley, Three Rivers, CA, 559-565-3170) Citation: Keeley, J.E., G. Aplet, N.L. Christensen, S.G. Conard, E.A. Johnson, P.N. Omi, D.L. Peterson, and T.W. Swetnam. 2009. Ecological foundations for fire management in North American forest and shrubland ecosystems. General Technical Report PNW-GTR-779. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 92 p.
Featured Publication
 Fire Intensity and Fire Severity Terminology: Recent critiques have suggested replacing the terminology of fire intensity and fire severity. In a February 2009 research paper in the International Journal of Wildland Fire, USGS scientist Jon Keeley evaluated the current usage of these terms and draws attention to the problems encountered when clear distinctions are not made between fire intensity, fire severity, and ecosystem responses. Read More >>
 Fire Climatology in the western United States: introduction to special issue (Full text available at the International Journal of Wildland Fire)
A special issue on fire and climate was published in the International Journal of Wildland Fire that is one of the major products from the 2005 USGS Fire History workshop USGS sponsored/funded through the USGS Western Mountain Initiative (WMI) .
 Human Influence on California Fire Regimes. Ecological Applications: Vol. 17, No. 5 pp. 1388-1402. Available online at the Ecological Society of America Journal website.
Issue cover and text from the website October, vol. 18, No. 7): A headwater stream draining corn fields and pastures of a dairy farm in southwestern Wisconsin (USA). Stanley et al. study how row-cropping, livestock grazing, and limited riparian protection are common in agricultural areas, and in turn, how agricultural land use is associated with nitrogen hypersaturation in many of the state's streams and rivers (see pp. 1579-1590). Photo credit: Matt Diebel.
Additional Resources
 Publications in .PDF format require Adobe Reader. Go to the Adobe website to Download the latest version of Adobe Reader
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U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey
Fire 
USGS scientist