EFFECT OF FIRE ON WOODY SPECIES IN CENTRAL SEMIARID ARGENTINA

The objective of this work was to study the effects of different fire intensities and season of burning on five important woody species in t he central semiarid rangelands of Argentina. Overall results in this e xperiment indicate that a single fire reduces woody species abundance. This effect persists for several growing seasons after the fire and i s related to fire intensity. Mortality rates, with the exception of La rrea divaricata, were low and air the species produced new sprouts aft er the fire. This sprouting capacity may be the key to the abundance a nd persistence of woody species in these communities. A single fire do es not start a replacement sequence and the plant community persists w ith some variation in the abundance of the principal woody species. (C ) 1997 Academic Press Limited