Wildfires as an ecosystem service
Open accessAbstract
Wildfires are often perceived as destructive disturbances, but we propose that when integrating evolutionary and socioecological factors, fires in most ecosystems can be understood as natural processes that provide a variety of benefits to humankind. Wildfires generate open habitats that enable the evolution of a diversity of shade‐intolerant plants and animals that have long benefited humans. There are many provisioning, regulating, and cultural services that people obtain from wildfires, and prescribed fires and wildfire management are tools for mimicking the ancestral role of wildfires in an increasingly populated world.
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Enhanced provisioning of some ecosystem services can result from wildfires, particularly under non-extreme conditions, including improved natural disease and pest control, enhanced pollinator activity, or alleviation of water shortages.
“Enhanced provisioning of some ecosystem services can even result from wildfires, particularly under non-extreme conditions, including e.g.improved natural disease and pest control, enhanced pollinator activity, or alleviation of water shortages [15,21].”
From Wildfire management in Mediterranean-type regions: paradigm change needed (2020) · cites this paper as [21]
Cites
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A Burning Story: The Role of Fire in the History of Life
Pausas, J. G., & Keeley, J. E. (2009) · BioScience · doi:10.1525/bio.2009.59.7.10 · Cited by 1,226 · see citing works
Self-citationLinking the influence and dependence of people on biodiversity across scales
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Tropical grassy biomes: misunderstood, neglected, and under threat
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Fire in Mediterranean Ecosystems: Ecology, Evolution and Management
Keeley, J. E., Bond, W. J., Bradstock, R. A., Pausas, J. G., & Rundel, P. W. (2011) · doi:10.1017/cbo9781139033091 · Cited by 479 · see citing works
Self-citationSpecies turnover promotes the importance of bee diversity for crop pollination at regional scales
Winfree, R., Reilly, J. R., Bartomeus, I., Cariveau, D. P., Williams, N. M., & Gibbs, J. (2018) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.aao2117 · Cited by 324 · see citing works
Towards an understanding of the evolutionary role of fire in animals
Pausas, J. G., & Parr, C. L. (2018) · Evolutionary Ecology · doi:10.1007/s10682-018-9927-6 · Cited by 267 · see citing works
Self-citationManaged wildfire effects on forest resilience and water in the Sierra Nevada
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Wildfire management in Mediterranean-type regions: paradigm change needed
Moreira, F., Ascoli, D., Safford, H., Adams, M. A., Moreno, J. M., Pereira, J. M. C., Catry, F. X., Armesto, J., Bond, W., González, M. E., et al. (2020) · Environmental Research Letters · doi:10.1088/1748-9326/ab541e · Cited by 561 · see citing works
Self-citationSánchez-García, C., Santín, C., Neris, J., Sigmund, G., Otero, X. L., Manley, J., González-Rodríguez, G., Belcher, C. M., Cerdà, A., Marcotte, A. L., et al. (2023) · Environment International · doi:10.1016/j.envint.2023.108065 · Cited by 107 · see citing works
Odwuor, A., Yañez, C. C., Chen, Y., Hopkins, F. M., Moreno, A., Xu, X., Czimczik, C. I., & Randerson, J. T. (2023) · Environmental Research Letters · doi:10.1088/1748-9326/aced17 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
- Authors
- Pausas, J. G., & Keeley, J. E.
- Affiliations
- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ES)
- Western Ecological Research Center (US)
- Corresponding author
- Pausas, Juli G
- Venue
- Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2019-05-06
- Volume
- 17
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 289-295
- ISSN
- 1540-9295 (ISSN-L)
- 1540-9309
- OpenAlex
- W2944354219
- Cited by
- 465
- References
- 8
- Citations by year
- 2026: 89 · 2025: 96 · 2024: 68 · 2023: 58 · 2022: 45 · 2021: 61 · 2020: 29 · 2019: 18
- FWCI
- 19.69
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (publishedVersion)
- DIGITAL.CSIC (Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Generalitat Valenciana
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Fire effects on ecosystems
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Land Use and Ecosystem Services
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Rangeland and Wildlife Management
- Keywords
- forest fires, ecosystem services, fire ecology, prescribed burning, wildfire management, fire-adapted species, shade-intolerant species, open habitats, provisioning services, regulating services, cultural ecosystem services, socioecology, evolutionary ecology
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