FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Ferocactus wislizenii | Barrel Cactus 



FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS : 
Large succulents such as barrel cactus have a thick cortex that
insulates the vascular tissue.  The cortex thickens with age, so older
individuals may be more resistant to fire than younger ones.  Taller
individuals are more likely to survive fire because the apical meristem
may be above flame height.  Cacti escape fire in refugia and in areas
with fuels too sparse to carry fire.  Cacti do not appear to store seed
in soil seedbanks [30].

Although desert vegetation rarely burns completely due to a lack of
continuous fuels, unusually heavy winter rains may produce a cover of
annual species dense enough to carry a fire when cured.  Fires resulting
from this situation tend to occur at the desert-desert grassland ecotone
[16], a common habitat of barrel cactus.  Thomas [30] has cited
references suggesting that fire intervals in desert grasslands may be as
short as 3 to 40 years.  Repeated fires may be disastrous to barrel
cactus populations, whose recovery period has been estimated at more
than 15 years [37].  Most desert habitat does not produce enough
vegetation to support frequent fires.  If frequent fires do occur they
gradually reduce succulent populations, although a small percentage of
individuals may survive in refugia [30].


POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY : 
NO-ENTRY

Related categories for Species: Ferocactus wislizenii | Barrel Cactus