Fire frequency, state change and hysteresis in tallgrass prairie

Hysteresis is a fundamental characteristic of alternative stable state theory, yet evidence of hysteresis is rare. In mesic grasslands, fire frequency regulates transition from grass‐ to shrub‐dominated system states. It is uncertain, however, if increasing fire frequency can reverse shrub expansion...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ecology letters 2021-04, Vol.24 (4), p.636-647
Main Authors: Collins, Scott L., Nippert, Jesse B., Blair, John M., Briggs, John M., Blackmore, Pamela, Ratajczak, Zak, Comita, Liza
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alternative stable states
Burning
Community composition
Composition
Convergence
Dispersal
Ecosystem
Encroachment
Fires
Grasses
Grassland
Grasslands
Hysteresis
Poaceae
Prairies
prescribed fire
regime shift
resilience
Shrubs
Stochasticity
Vegetation
woody encroachment
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Summary:Hysteresis is a fundamental characteristic of alternative stable state theory, yet evidence of hysteresis is rare. In mesic grasslands, fire frequency regulates transition from grass‐ to shrub‐dominated system states. It is uncertain, however, if increasing fire frequency can reverse shrub expansion, or if grass‐shrub dynamics exhibit hysteresis. We implemented annual burning in two infrequently burned grasslands and ceased burning in two grasslands burned annually. With annual fires, grassland composition converged on that of long‐term annually burned vegetation due to rapid recovery of grass cover, although shrubs persisted. When annual burning ceased, shrub cover increased, but community composition did not converge with a long‐term infrequently burned reference site because of stochastic and lagged dispersal by shrubs, reflecting hysteresis. Our results demonstrated that annual burning can slow, but not reverse, shrub encroachment. In addition, reversing fire frequencies resulted in hysteresis because vegetation trajectories from grassland to shrubland differed from those of shrubland to grassland. Hysteresis is a key characteristic of alternative stable state theory, yet evidence of hysteresis is rare. We implemented annual burning in two infrequently burned grasslands and ceased burning in two grasslands burned annually to test for hysteresis. Reversing fire frequencies in this 25–40 year long experiment resulted in hysteresis because vegetation trajectories from grassland to shrubland differed from those of shrubland to grassland.
ISSN:1461-023X
1461-0248
DOI:10.1111/ele.13676