High-intensity fire and long-term destocking causes top kill but fails to reverse encroachment and restore biodiversity.
- 1Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, USA.
- 2Department of Biology, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA.
- 3Department of Wildland Resources, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA.
Abstract
Woody encroachment is a pervasive threat in grasslands worldwide. Encroachment has proven resilient to many nature-based interventions, including frequent burning and destocking grazers. A potential solution is high-intensity fires-or "extreme" fires-which combine high fuel loads with burning under dry windy conditions. Large-scale tests of high-intensity fire are limited and have had mixed results. We compared two catchments of tallgrass prairie heavily encroached by resprouting shrubs, with similar land-use histories, including long-term grazer destocking. In 2021, one catchment burned under typical low-intensity conditions. The other burned on a dry, windy day, producing a high-intensity fire with approximately 10-m flame lengths. Based on remote-sensed and on-the-ground measurements, low-intensity fire decreased woody encroachment initially, with nearly full recovery of shrub height/cover after 2 years. High-intensity fire caused top-kill across almost the entire catchment, but vigorous resprouting resulted in nearly full height recovery after 3 years and an increase in woody cover. After the high-intensity fire, diversity metrics and forb cover increased, then fell to prefire values 1 year later. Our results suggest that high-intensity fires may help constrain low-severity encroachment. However, reversing encroachment will require a long-term approach and novel combinations of interventions, especially where resprouting shrubs are expanding.
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BibTeX
@article{nippertchurchman2026highintensity,
title = {{High-intensity fire and long-term destocking causes top kill but fails to reverse encroachment and restore biodiversity.}},
author = {Kalea R Nippert-Churchman and Zak Ratajczak and Abigail C Schmidt},
journal = {Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1002/eap.70341},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42910691},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - High-intensity fire and long-term destocking causes top kill but fails to reverse encroachment and restore biodiversity.
AU - Kalea R Nippert-Churchman
AU - Zak Ratajczak
AU - Abigail C Schmidt
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America
DO - 10.1002/eap.70341
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42910691
AB - Woody encroachment is a pervasive threat in grasslands worldwide. Encroachment has proven resilient to many nature-based interventions, including frequent burning and destocking grazers. A potential solution is high-intensity fires-or "extreme" fires-which combine high fuel loads with burning under dry windy conditions. Large-scale tests of high-intensity fire are limited and have had mixed results. We compared two catchments of tallgrass prairie heavily encroached by resprouting shrubs, with similar land-use histories, including long-term grazer destocking. In 2021, one catchment burned under typical low-intensity conditions. The other burned on a dry, windy day, producing a high-intensity fire with approximately 10-m flame lengths. Based on remote-sensed and on-the-ground measurements, low-intensity fire decreased woody encroachment initially, with nearly full recovery of shrub height/cover after 2 years. High-intensity fire caused top-kill across almost the entire catchment, but vigorous resprouting resulted in nearly full height recovery after 3 years and an increase in woody cover. After the high-intensity fire, diversity metrics and forb cover increased, then fell to prefire values 1 year later. Our results suggest that high-intensity fires may help constrain low-severity encroachment. However, reversing encroachment will require a long-term approach and novel combinations of interventions, especially where resprouting shrubs are expanding.
SN - 1051-0761
ER -