Tree Species Composition and Diversity in Fire-Affected Areas of Miombo Woodlands, Central Mozambique

Fire strongly impacts the composition and structure of ecosystems, with consequences yet to be understood. We used Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data to map fire frequency and fire intensity and investigate their effects on miombo woodlands (MW) of central Mozambique. Tree sp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Fire (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2023-01, Vol.6 (1), p.26
Main Authors: Buramuge, Victorino Américo, Ribeiro, Natasha Sofia, Olsson, Lennart, Bandeira, Romana Rombe, Lisboa, Sá Nogueira
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accuracy
Biodiversity
Biologi
Biological Sciences
Climate change
Composition
Ecology
Ecosystems
Ekologi
fire frequency
fire intensity
Flowers & plants
Forests
Indicator species
Land use
Load
Multidimensional scaling
Natural Sciences
Naturvetenskap
Ordination
Plant diversity
Plant species
Rarefaction
Seasons
Species composition
Species diversity
Spectroradiometers
Topography
tree communities
Trees
Vegetation
Woodlands
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Summary:Fire strongly impacts the composition and structure of ecosystems, with consequences yet to be understood. We used Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data to map fire frequency and fire intensity and investigate their effects on miombo woodlands (MW) of central Mozambique. Tree species diversity was evaluated and compared using rarefaction curves. Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) ordination was used to identify patterns of species composition occurrence. The indicator value index method was applied to verify the occurrence of fire indicator species. In general, tree communities responded differently to varied fire regimes. We found low tree density in Intermediate fire frequency and intensity (IfIi) (180 trees ha−1) and High-frequency and Low intensity (HfLi) (316 trees ha−1) areas. The IfIi fire regime had the lowest carbon stocks (9.1 Mg ha−1), when compared to the rest of fire regimes. The species diversity decreased as fire intensity increased. IfIi areas had the maximum species diversity. The NMDS showed a varied species composition according to fire regime. We found a strong relationship between the species diversity and composition, and the pattern of fire occurrence in each fire regime. Our results are critical in supporting fire management policies and understanding fire regimes and their effects on miombo trees’ structure and composition.
ISSN:2571-6255
2571-6255
DOI:10.3390/fire6010026