21 0
R. DAUBENMIRE
vegetation burning ha8 acrumulated during the past 26 years. Hanson
(1!)39) brought togcther tho evidence justifying burning in diverse types
of land use and management. Ahlgren and Ahlgren (1960) have recently
summarized tlw information on the ecology of forest fires. Cooper (1963)
has prepared an annotated bibliography on the effects of fire on Australian vegetation, West (1965) has reviewed the literature on fire influences and uses in the management of African savannas, and Batchelder and Hirt (1966) have summarized fire in the tropics from a
geographer’s viewpoint. The former has been especially valuable in preparing this summary of the literature for the fact that a considerable
amount of fire research has been done in sub-Saharan Africa, but the
results are largely published in processed form or in journals not available in most libraries of the Northern Hemisphere.
The intent of the present account is to review the ecology of fire in
grasslands comprehensively, and to draw such generalizations as seem
warranted regarding environmental alterations, the effects on species
of plants, the effects on vegetation, and associated animala. As will be
pointed out, considerable change in our concepts regarding grass burning has been necessary in recent years in consequence of the accumulation of critical data that have undermined old emotional biases.
The term “grassland” is here given a broad definition to include any
herb-dominated vegetation, steppe to tundra to marsh, as well as herbdominated layers of savanna or open forest.
Lightning is a universal natural cause of vegetation fires from tundra
to tropical rainforest (Komarek, 1964; Robertson, 1955), and apparently
authentic accounts show that a wide variety of other non-anthropeic
causes of fire operate occasionally, these including volcanic eruptions,
spontaneous combustion (Viosca, 1931), pnd the occurrence of eparks
when boulders roll down a slope.
These natural fires have undoubtedly been occurring from the earliest
appearance of land vegetation. Their effect is to injure a plmt community to a greater or lesser degree, after which the community may
escape similar disturbance for sufficient time to allow a restoration of
its former structure and composition, this being especially true for herbdominated vegetation.
At a very early date in his evolution, man learned some advantages
of the use of vegetation fires in driving game animals to their dmtruction, or in bringing on new succulent growth to attract grazers and
facilitate their slaughter. Jts w e in warfare, in clearing ground for
agriculture, and in the production and maintenance of good grazing
lands for domesticated herds later became additional motives for deliberately setting fire to vegetation. Intentional burning and carelessness combined, especially in regions of high fire hazard, set the stage for
R. DAUBENMIRE
vegetation burning ha8 acrumulated during the past 26 years. Hanson
(1!)39) brought togcther tho evidence justifying burning in diverse types
of land use and management. Ahlgren and Ahlgren (1960) have recently
summarized tlw information on the ecology of forest fires. Cooper (1963)
has prepared an annotated bibliography on the effects of fire on Australian vegetation, West (1965) has reviewed the literature on fire influences and uses in the management of African savannas, and Batchelder and Hirt (1966) have summarized fire in the tropics from a
geographer’s viewpoint. The former has been especially valuable in preparing this summary of the literature for the fact that a considerable
amount of fire research has been done in sub-Saharan Africa, but the
results are largely published in processed form or in journals not available in most libraries of the Northern Hemisphere.
The intent of the present account is to review the ecology of fire in
grasslands comprehensively, and to draw such generalizations as seem
warranted regarding environmental alterations, the effects on species
of plants, the effects on vegetation, and associated animala. As will be
pointed out, considerable change in our concepts regarding grass burning has been necessary in recent years in consequence of the accumulation of critical data that have undermined old emotional biases.
The term “grassland” is here given a broad definition to include any
herb-dominated vegetation, steppe to tundra to marsh, as well as herbdominated layers of savanna or open forest.
Lightning is a universal natural cause of vegetation fires from tundra
to tropical rainforest (Komarek, 1964; Robertson, 1955), and apparently
authentic accounts show that a wide variety of other non-anthropeic
causes of fire operate occasionally, these including volcanic eruptions,
spontaneous combustion (Viosca, 1931), pnd the occurrence of eparks
when boulders roll down a slope.
These natural fires have undoubtedly been occurring from the earliest
appearance of land vegetation. Their effect is to injure a plmt community to a greater or lesser degree, after which the community may
escape similar disturbance for sufficient time to allow a restoration of
its former structure and composition, this being especially true for herbdominated vegetation.
At a very early date in his evolution, man learned some advantages
of the use of vegetation fires in driving game animals to their dmtruction, or in bringing on new succulent growth to attract grazers and
facilitate their slaughter. Jts w e in warfare, in clearing ground for
agriculture, and in the production and maintenance of good grazing
lands for domesticated herds later became additional motives for deliberately setting fire to vegetation. Intentional burning and carelessness combined, especially in regions of high fire hazard, set the stage for