Full Citation: Williams, Mark A.; Baker, William L. 2013. Variability of historical forest structure and fire across ponderosa pine landscapes of the Coconino Plateau and south rim of Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, USA. Landscape Ecology 28(2):297-310.
External Identifier(s): 10.1007/s10980-012-9835-z Digital Object Identifier
Location: Coconino Plateau, Arizona, U.S.; Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, U.S.
Ecosystem types: Ponderosa Pine forest
Southwest FireCLIME Keywords: None
FRAMES Keywords: fire intensity, fire regimes, wildfires, GIS - geographic information system, national parks, population density, topography, Juniperus osteosperma, Utah juniper, Pinus edulis, pinyon pine, Pinus ponderosa, ponderosa pine, Arizona, fire management, forest management, land management, coniferous forests, General Land Office survey, forest reconstruction, mixed-severity fire, pinon-juniper woodlands, topography, tree density, basal area, fire severity, pinon-juniper, Grand Canyon National Park, Coconino Plateau

Variability of historical forest structure and fire across ponderosa pine landscapes of the Coconino Plateau and south rim of Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, USA

Mark A. Williams, William L. Baker


Summary - what did the authors do and why?

The authors examined ponderosa pine stands using historic General Land Office (GLO) land survey data to reconstruct forest structure and fire regimes of pre-widespread European settlement on the Coconino Plateau and Grand Canyon National Park.


Publication findings:

The authors suggest that although the majority of the landscape on the Coconino Plateau was dominated by low severity fire, there is also evidence of a large amount of mixed severity fire and large patches of high severity were not uncommon. The mixed-severity fire may explain the greater variability in forest structure and composition observed at fine scales across the Coconino Plateau.

Fire and Ecosystem Effects Linkages

The authors suggest that although the majority of the landscape on the Coconino Plateau was dominated by low severity fire, there is also evidence of a large amount of mixed severity fire and large patches of high severity were not uncommon. The mixed-severity fire may explain the greater variability in forest structure and composition observed at fine scales across the Coconino Plateau.