• CASE NAME
• SEASON/SEVERITY CLASSIFICATION
• STUDY LOCATION
• PREFIRE VEGETATIVE COMMUNITY
• TARGET SPECIES PHENOLOGICAL STATE
• SITE DESCRIPTION
• FIRE DESCRIPTION
• FIRE EFFECTS ON TARGET SPECIES
• FIRE MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS

CASE NAME:

Response of Utah serviceberry to prescribed fire in Nevada

REFERENCE:

Zschaechner, G. A. 1985 [10]

SEASON/SEVERITY CLASSIFICATION:

Horse Haven 1 was burned in late August, 1980. Horse Haven 2 burned in early October, 1980.

STUDY LOCATION:

These fires took place in eastern Nevada, 16 miles northwest of Ely, Nevada.

PREFIRE VEGETATIVE COMMUNITY:

The study site featured big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata), low sagebrush (A. arbuscula ssp. arbuscula), mountain snowberry (Symphoricarpus oreophilis), green rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus), rubber rabbitbrush (C. nauseosus), antelope bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata), Utah serviceberry (Amelanchier utahensis), bluegrass (Poa spp.), needlegrasses (Stipa spp.), bluebunch wheatgrass (Psuedoroegneria spicata), basin wildrye (Leymus cinereus), and a few forbs. The Horse Haven stand was estimated to be 35 years old.

TARGET SPECIES PHENOLOGICAL STATE:

Utah serviceberry plants at Horse Haven 1 were in the fruiting stage.

SITE DESCRIPTION:

The Horse Haven site is 40 acres with a southwest aspect. Slope is 12% and elevation is 7,500 feet. Precipitation is approximately 9.4 inches/year.

FIRE DESCRIPTION:

Fire conditions were as follows:

Site	Burn date	Time	Air temp (°F)	Relative humidity (%)	Wind speed (mph)	Live fuel moisture (%)	Dead fuel moisture (%)	Fuel depth (inches)	Fuel loading (lb/ac)	Soil moisture (%)
Horse Haven-1	8/29/80	1400	89	14	8	92	4	28	3.03	7
Horse Haven-2	10/8/80	1300	74	16	3	77	5	35	3.50	--

 

Flame lengths at Horse Haven 1 were 5 to 15 feet and rate of spread was 100 to 500 ft/min . Fireline intensity and heat per unit areas were 190 to 2020 BTU/ft/sec and 170 to 745 BTU/ft², respectively.

At Horse Haven 2, fire behavior was erratic.

FIRE EFFECTS ON TARGET SPECIES:

At Horse Haven 1, 6 plants were tagged before the burn, all between 3.3 and 6.6 feet tall. One growing season following the August fire, 5 of the 6 plants were resprouting. The plant that died had 2.5 times more litter accumulated at its base than the other plants, prior to the fire. By 1984, 4 of the remaining 5 plants were growing vigorously and had reached 54% of their original height. The 5th seemed stressed and dying. At Horse Haven 2, the October burn, 2 Utah serviceberry plants were tagged. One plant was not burned at all. The other did burn but resprouted, and by 1984 it was 13 inches in height.

FIRE MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS:

Utah serviceberry plants sprouted following both August and October burns, but the sample size is too small to draw conclusions about seasonal fire effects.

Related categories for SPECIES: Amelanchier utahensis | Utah Serviceberry