Articles | Volume 21, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-109-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-109-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
05 Jan 2024
Research article |
| 05 Jan 2024
| 05 Jan 2024
Geographically divergent trends in snow disappearance timing and fire ignitions across boreal North America
Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Brendan M. Rogers
Woodwell Climate Research Center, Falmouth, MA, USA
Rebecca C. Scholten
Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Stefano Potter
Woodwell Climate Research Center, Falmouth, MA, USA
Thomas A. J. Janssen
Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Sander Veraverbeke
Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
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Jose V. Moris, Pedro Álvarez-Álvarez, Marco Conedera, Annalie Dorph, Thomas D. Hessilt, Hugh G. P. Hunt, Renata Libonati, Lucas S. Menezes, Mortimer M. Müller, Francisco J. Pérez-Invernón, Gianni B. Pezzatti, Nicolau Pineda, Rebecca C. Scholten, Sander Veraverbeke, B. Mike Wotton, and Davide Ascoli
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 1151–1163, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1151-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1151-2023, 2023
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This work describes a database on holdover times of lightning-ignited wildfires (LIWs). Holdover time is defined as the time between lightning-induced fire ignition and fire detection. The database contains 42 datasets built with data on more than 152 375 LIWs from 13 countries in five continents from 1921 to 2020. This database is the first freely-available, harmonized and ready-to-use global source of holdover time data, which may be used to investigate LIWs and model the holdover phenomenon.
Surendra Shrestha, Christopher A. Williams, Brendan M. Rogers, John Rogan, and Dominik Kulakowski
Biogeosciences, 21, 2207–2226, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2207-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2207-2024, 2024
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Here, we generated chronosequences of leaf area index (LAI) and surface albedo as a function of time since fire to demonstrate the differences in the characteristic trajectories of post-fire biophysical changes among seven forest types and 21 level III ecoregions of the western United States (US) using satellite data from different sources. We also demonstrated how climate played the dominant role in the recovery of LAI and albedo 10 and 20 years after wildfire events in the western US.
Qing Ying, Benjamin Poulter, Jennifer D. Watts, Kyle A. Arndt, Anna-Maria Virkkala, Lori Bruhwiler, Youmi Oh, Brendan M. Rogers, Susan M. Natali, Hilary Sullivan, Luke D. Schiferl, Clayton Elder, Olli Peltola, Annett Bartsch, Amanda Armstrong, Ankur R. Desai, Eugénie Euskirchen, Mathias Göckede, Bernhard Lehner, Mats B. Nilsson, Matthias Peichl, Oliver Sonnentag, Eeva-Stiina Tuittila, Torsten Sachs, Aram Kalhori, Masahito Ueyama, and Zhen Zhang
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-84, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-84, 2024
Preprint under review for ESSD
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We present daily methane fluxes of northern wetlands at 10-km resolution during 2016–2022 (WetCH4) derived from a novel machine-learning framework with improved accuracy. We estimated an average annual CH4 emissions of 20.8 ±2.1 Tg CH4 yr-1. Emissions were intensified in 2016, 2020, and 2022, with the largest interannual variations coming from West Siberia. Continued, all-season tower observations and improved soil moisture products are needed for future improvement of CH4 upscaling.
Lucas Ribeiro Diaz, Clement J. F. Delcourt, Moritz Langer, Michael M. Loranty, Brendan M. Rogers, Rebecca C. Scholten, Tatiana A. Shestakova, Anna C. Talucci, Jorien E. Vonk, Sonam Wangchuk, and Sander Veraverbeke
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-469, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-469, 2024
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Our study in Eastern Siberia investigated how fires affect permafrost thaw depth in larch forests. We found that fire induces deeper thaw, yet this process was mediated by topography and vegetation. By combining field and satellite data, we estimated summer thaw depth across an entire fire scar. This research provides insights into post-fire permafrost dynamics and the use of satellite data for mapping fire-induced permafrost thaw.
Jonas Mortelmans, Anne Felsberg, Gabriëlle J. M. De Lannoy, Sander Veraverbeke, Robert D. Field, Niels Andela, and Michel Bechtold
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 445–464, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-445-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-445-2024, 2024
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With global warming increasing the frequency and intensity of wildfires in the boreal region, accurate risk assessments are becoming more crucial than ever before. The Canadian Fire Weather Index (FWI) is a renowned system, yet its effectiveness in peatlands, where hydrology plays a key role, is limited. By incorporating groundwater data from numerical models and satellite observations, our modified FWI improves the accuracy of fire danger predictions, especially over summer.
Stefano Potter, Sol Cooperdock, Sander Veraverbeke, Xanthe Walker, Michelle C. Mack, Scott J. Goetz, Jennifer Baltzer, Laura Bourgeau-Chavez, Arden Burrell, Catherine Dieleman, Nancy French, Stijn Hantson, Elizabeth E. Hoy, Liza Jenkins, Jill F. Johnstone, Evan S. Kane, Susan M. Natali, James T. Randerson, Merritt R. Turetsky, Ellen Whitman, Elizabeth Wiggins, and Brendan M. Rogers
Biogeosciences, 20, 2785–2804, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2785-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2785-2023, 2023
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Here we developed a new burned-area detection algorithm between 2001–2019 across Alaska and Canada at 500 m resolution. We estimate 2.37 Mha burned annually between 2001–2019 over the domain, emitting 79.3 Tg C per year, with a mean combustion rate of 3.13 kg C m−2. We found larger-fire years were generally associated with greater mean combustion. The burned-area and combustion datasets described here can be used for local- to continental-scale applications of boreal fire science.
Michael Moubarak, Seeta Sistla, Stefano Potter, Susan M. Natali, and Brendan M. Rogers
Biogeosciences, 20, 1537–1557, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1537-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1537-2023, 2023
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Tundra wildfires are increasing in frequency and severity with climate change. We show using a combination of field measurements and computational modeling that tundra wildfires result in a positive feedback to climate change by emitting significant amounts of long-lived greenhouse gasses. With these effects, attention to tundra fires is necessary for mitigating climate change.
Jose V. Moris, Pedro Álvarez-Álvarez, Marco Conedera, Annalie Dorph, Thomas D. Hessilt, Hugh G. P. Hunt, Renata Libonati, Lucas S. Menezes, Mortimer M. Müller, Francisco J. Pérez-Invernón, Gianni B. Pezzatti, Nicolau Pineda, Rebecca C. Scholten, Sander Veraverbeke, B. Mike Wotton, and Davide Ascoli
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 1151–1163, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1151-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1151-2023, 2023
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This work describes a database on holdover times of lightning-ignited wildfires (LIWs). Holdover time is defined as the time between lightning-induced fire ignition and fire detection. The database contains 42 datasets built with data on more than 152 375 LIWs from 13 countries in five continents from 1921 to 2020. This database is the first freely-available, harmonized and ready-to-use global source of holdover time data, which may be used to investigate LIWs and model the holdover phenomenon.
Dave van Wees, Guido R. van der Werf, James T. Randerson, Brendan M. Rogers, Yang Chen, Sander Veraverbeke, Louis Giglio, and Douglas C. Morton
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 8411–8437, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-8411-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-8411-2022, 2022
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We present a global fire emission model based on the GFED model framework with a spatial resolution of 500 m. The higher resolution allowed for a more detailed representation of spatial heterogeneity in fuels and emissions. Specific modules were developed to model, for example, emissions from fire-related forest loss and belowground burning. Results from the 500 m model were compared to GFED4s, showing that global emissions were relatively similar but that spatial differences were substantial.
Clement Jean Frédéric Delcourt and Sander Veraverbeke
Biogeosciences, 19, 4499–4520, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-4499-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-4499-2022, 2022
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This study provides new equations that can be used to estimate aboveground tree biomass in larch-dominated forests of northeast Siberia. Applying these equations to 53 forest stands in the Republic of Sakha (Russia) resulted in significantly larger biomass stocks than when using existing equations. The data presented in this work can help refine biomass estimates in Siberian boreal forests. This is essential to assess changes in boreal vegetation and carbon dynamics.
Anna-Maria Virkkala, Susan M. Natali, Brendan M. Rogers, Jennifer D. Watts, Kathleen Savage, Sara June Connon, Marguerite Mauritz, Edward A. G. Schuur, Darcy Peter, Christina Minions, Julia Nojeim, Roisin Commane, Craig A. Emmerton, Mathias Goeckede, Manuel Helbig, David Holl, Hiroki Iwata, Hideki Kobayashi, Pasi Kolari, Efrén López-Blanco, Maija E. Marushchak, Mikhail Mastepanov, Lutz Merbold, Frans-Jan W. Parmentier, Matthias Peichl, Torsten Sachs, Oliver Sonnentag, Masahito Ueyama, Carolina Voigt, Mika Aurela, Julia Boike, Gerardo Celis, Namyi Chae, Torben R. Christensen, M. Syndonia Bret-Harte, Sigrid Dengel, Han Dolman, Colin W. Edgar, Bo Elberling, Eugenie Euskirchen, Achim Grelle, Juha Hatakka, Elyn Humphreys, Järvi Järveoja, Ayumi Kotani, Lars Kutzbach, Tuomas Laurila, Annalea Lohila, Ivan Mammarella, Yojiro Matsuura, Gesa Meyer, Mats B. Nilsson, Steven F. Oberbauer, Sang-Jong Park, Roman Petrov, Anatoly S. Prokushkin, Christopher Schulze, Vincent L. St. Louis, Eeva-Stiina Tuittila, Juha-Pekka Tuovinen, William Quinton, Andrej Varlagin, Donatella Zona, and Viacheslav I. Zyryanov
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 179–208, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-179-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-179-2022, 2022
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The effects of climate warming on carbon cycling across the Arctic–boreal zone (ABZ) remain poorly understood due to the relatively limited distribution of ABZ flux sites. Fortunately, this flux network is constantly increasing, but new measurements are published in various platforms, making it challenging to understand the ABZ carbon cycle as a whole. Here, we compiled a new database of Arctic–boreal CO2 fluxes to help facilitate large-scale assessments of the ABZ carbon cycle.
Thomas Janssen, Ype van der Velde, Florian Hofhansl, Sebastiaan Luyssaert, Kim Naudts, Bart Driessen, Katrin Fleischer, and Han Dolman
Biogeosciences, 18, 4445–4472, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4445-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4445-2021, 2021
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Satellite images show that the Amazon forest has greened up during past droughts. Measurements of tree stem growth and leaf litterfall upscaled using machine-learning algorithms show that leaf flushing at the onset of a drought results in canopy rejuvenation and green-up during drought while simultaneously trees excessively shed older leaves and tree stem growth declines. Canopy green-up during drought therefore does not necessarily point to enhanced tree growth and improved forest health.
Elizabeth B. Wiggins, Arlyn Andrews, Colm Sweeney, John B. Miller, Charles E. Miller, Sander Veraverbeke, Roisin Commane, Steven Wofsy, John M. Henderson, and James T. Randerson
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 8557–8574, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-8557-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-8557-2021, 2021
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We analyzed high-resolution trace gas measurements collected from a tower in Alaska during a very active fire season to improve our understanding of trace gas emissions from boreal forest fires. Our results suggest previous studies may have underestimated emissions from smoldering combustion in boreal forest fires.
Leah Birch, Christopher R. Schwalm, Sue Natali, Danica Lombardozzi, Gretchen Keppel-Aleks, Jennifer Watts, Xin Lin, Donatella Zona, Walter Oechel, Torsten Sachs, Thomas Andrew Black, and Brendan M. Rogers
Geosci. Model Dev., 14, 3361–3382, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-3361-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-3361-2021, 2021
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The high-latitude landscape or Arctic–boreal zone has been warming rapidly, impacting the carbon balance both regionally and globally. Given the possible global effects of climate change, it is important to have accurate climate model simulations. We assess the simulation of the Arctic–boreal carbon cycle in the Community Land Model (CLM 5.0). We find biases in both the timing and magnitude photosynthesis. We then use observational data to improve the simulation of the carbon cycle.
Thomas Janssen, Katrin Fleischer, Sebastiaan Luyssaert, Kim Naudts, and Han Dolman
Biogeosciences, 17, 2621–2645, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-2621-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-2621-2020, 2020
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The frequency and severity of droughts are expected to increase in the tropics, impacting the functioning of tropical forests. Here, we synthesized observed responses to drought in Neotropical forests. We find that, during drought, trees generally close their leaf stomata, resulting in reductions in photosynthesis, growth and transpiration. However, on the ecosystem scale, these responses are not visible. This indicates that resistance to drought increases from the leaf to ecosystem scale.
Guido R. van der Werf, James T. Randerson, Louis Giglio, Thijs T. van Leeuwen, Yang Chen, Brendan M. Rogers, Mingquan Mu, Margreet J. E. van Marle, Douglas C. Morton, G. James Collatz, Robert J. Yokelson, and Prasad S. Kasibhatla
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 9, 697–720, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-697-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-697-2017, 2017
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Fires occur in many vegetation types and are sometimes natural but often ignited by humans for various purposes. We have estimated how much area they burn globally and what their emissions are. Total burned area is roughly equivalent to the size of the EU with most fires burning in tropical savannas. Their emissions vary substantially from year to year and contribute to the atmospheric burdens of many trace gases and aerosols. The 20-year dataset is mostly suited for large-scale assessments.
R. A. Fisher, S. Muszala, M. Verteinstein, P. Lawrence, C. Xu, N. G. McDowell, R. G. Knox, C. Koven, J. Holm, B. M. Rogers, A. Spessa, D. Lawrence, and G. Bonan
Geosci. Model Dev., 8, 3593–3619, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-8-3593-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-8-3593-2015, 2015
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Predicting the distribution of vegetation under novel climates is important, both to understand how climate change will impact ecosystem services, but also to understand how vegetation changes might affect the carbon, energy and water cycles. Historically, predictions have been heavily dependent upon observations of existing vegetation boundaries. In this paper, we attempt to predict ecosystem boundaries from the ``bottom up'', and illustrate the complexities and promise of this approach.
S. Veraverbeke, B. M. Rogers, and J. T. Randerson
Biogeosciences, 12, 3579–3601, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-3579-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-3579-2015, 2015
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We developed a statistical model of daily carbon consumption by fire for Alaska at 450m resolution between 2001 and 2012. We used field measurements from black spruce forests in Alaska to build nonlinear multiplicative models predicting carbon consumption by fire in response to environmental variables. Our analysis highlights the importance of accounting for the spatial heterogeneity within fuels and consumption when extrapolating emissions in space and time.
B. M. Rogers, J. T. Randerson, and G. B. Bonan
Biogeosciences, 10, 699–718, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-699-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-699-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Remote Sensing: Terrestrial
Divergent biophysical responses of western United States forests to wildfire driven by eco-climatic gradients
Synergistic use of Sentinel-2 and UAV-derived data for plant fractional cover distribution mapping of coastal meadows with digital elevation models
Data-based investigation of the effects of canopy structure and shadows on chlorophyll fluorescence in a deciduous oak forest
Evaluation of five models for constructing forest NPP–age relationships in China based on 3121 field survey samples
Reviews and syntheses: Remotely sensed optical time series for monitoring vegetation productivity
Dune belt restoration effectiveness assessed by UAV topographic surveys (northern Adriatic coast, Italy)
High-resolution data reveal a surge of biomass loss from temperate and Atlantic pine forests, contextualizing the 2022 fire season distinctiveness in France
Local environmental context drives heterogeneity of early succession dynamics in alpine glacier forefields
Remote sensing reveals fire-driven facilitation of a C4 rhizomatous alien grass on a small Mediterranean volcanic island
Surendra Shrestha, Christopher A. Williams, Brendan M. Rogers, John Rogan, and Dominik Kulakowski
Biogeosciences, 21, 2207–2226, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2207-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2207-2024, 2024
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Here, we generated chronosequences of leaf area index (LAI) and surface albedo as a function of time since fire to demonstrate the differences in the characteristic trajectories of post-fire biophysical changes among seven forest types and 21 level III ecoregions of the western United States (US) using satellite data from different sources. We also demonstrated how climate played the dominant role in the recovery of LAI and albedo 10 and 20 years after wildfire events in the western US.
Ricardo Martínez Prentice, Miguel Villoslada, Raymond D. Ward, Thaisa F. Bergamo, Chris B. Joyce, and Kalev Sepp
Biogeosciences, 21, 1411–1431, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1411-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1411-2024, 2024
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Despite hosting a wide range of ecosystem services, coastal wetlands face threats from global changes. This study models the plant fractional cover of plant communities in Estonian coastal meadows with a synergistic use of drone, satellite imagery and digital elevation models. This approach highlights the significant contribution of digital elevation models to multispectral data, enabling the modelling of heterogeneous plant community distributions in such wetlands.
Hamadou Balde, Gabriel Hmimina, Yves Goulas, Gwendal Latouche, Abderrahmane Ounis, and Kamel Soudani
Biogeosciences, 21, 1259–1276, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1259-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1259-2024, 2024
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We show that FyieldLIF was not correlated with SIFy at the diurnal timescale, and the diurnal patterns in SIF and PAR did not match under clear-sky conditions due to canopy structure. Φk was sensitive to canopy structure. RF models show that Φk can be predicted using reflectance in different bands. RF models also show that FyieldLIF was more sensitive to reflectance and radiation than SIF and SIFy, indicating that the combined effect of reflectance bands could hide the SIF physiological trait.
Peng Li, Rong Shang, Jing M. Chen, Mingzhu Xu, Xudong Lin, Guirui Yu, Nianpeng He, and Li Xu
Biogeosciences, 21, 625–639, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-625-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-625-2024, 2024
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The amount of carbon that forests gain from the atmosphere, called net primary productivity (NPP), changes a lot with age. These forest NPP–age relationships could be modeled from field survey data, but we are not sure which model works best. Here we tested five different models using 3121 field survey samples in China, and the semi-empirical mathematical (SEM) function was determined as the optimal. The relationships built by SEM can improve China's forest carbon modeling and prediction.
Lammert Kooistra, Katja Berger, Benjamin Brede, Lukas Valentin Graf, Helge Aasen, Jean-Louis Roujean, Miriam Machwitz, Martin Schlerf, Clement Atzberger, Egor Prikaziuk, Dessislava Ganeva, Enrico Tomelleri, Holly Croft, Pablo Reyes Muñoz, Virginia Garcia Millan, Roshanak Darvishzadeh, Gerbrand Koren, Ittai Herrmann, Offer Rozenstein, Santiago Belda, Miina Rautiainen, Stein Rune Karlsen, Cláudio Figueira Silva, Sofia Cerasoli, Jon Pierre, Emine Tanır Kayıkçı, Andrej Halabuk, Esra Tunc Gormus, Frank Fluit, Zhanzhang Cai, Marlena Kycko, Thomas Udelhoven, and Jochem Verrelst
Biogeosciences, 21, 473–511, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-473-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-473-2024, 2024
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We reviewed optical remote sensing time series (TS) studies for monitoring vegetation productivity across ecosystems. Methods were categorized into trend analysis, land surface phenology, and assimilation into statistical or dynamic vegetation models. Due to progress in machine learning, TS processing methods will diversify, while modelling strategies will advance towards holistic processing. We propose integrating methods into a digital twin to improve the understanding of vegetation dynamics.
Regine Anne Faelga, Luigi Cantelli, Sonia Silvestri, and Beatrice Maria Sole Giambastiani
Biogeosciences, 20, 4841–4855, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4841-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4841-2023, 2023
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A dune restoration project on the northern Adriatic coast (Ravenna, Italy) was assessed using UAV monitoring. Structure-from-motion photogrammetry, elevation differencing, and statistical analysis were used to quantify dune development in terms of sand volume and vegetation cover change. Results show that the installed fence has been effective as there was significant sand accumulation, embryo dune development, and a decrease in blowout features due to increased vegetation colonization.
Lilian Vallet, Martin Schwartz, Philippe Ciais, Dave van Wees, Aurelien de Truchis, and Florent Mouillot
Biogeosciences, 20, 3803–3825, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3803-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3803-2023, 2023
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This study analyzes the ecological impact of the 2022 summer fire season in France by using high-resolution satellite data. The total biomass loss was 2.553 Mt, equivalent to a 17 % increase of the average natural mortality of all French forests. While Mediterranean forests had a lower biomass loss, there was a drastic increase in burned area and biomass loss over the Atlantic pine forests and temperate forests. This result revisits the distinctiveness of the 2022 fire season.
Arthur Bayle, Bradley Z. Carlson, Anaïs Zimmer, Sophie Vallée, Antoine Rabatel, Edoardo Cremonese, Gianluca Filippa, Cédric Dentant, Christophe Randin, Andrea Mainetti, Erwan Roussel, Simon Gascoin, Dov Corenblit, and Philippe Choler
Biogeosciences, 20, 1649–1669, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1649-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1649-2023, 2023
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Glacier forefields have long provided ecologists with a model to study patterns of plant succession following glacier retreat. We used remote sensing approaches to study early succession dynamics as it allows to analyze the deglaciation, colonization, and vegetation growth within a single framework. We found that the heterogeneity of early succession dynamics is deterministic and can be explained well by local environmental context. This work has been done by an international consortium.
Riccardo Guarino, Daniele Cerra, Renzo Zaia, Alessandro Chiarucci, Pietro Lo Cascio, Duccio Rocchini, Piero Zannini, and Salvatore Pasta
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2023-19, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2023-19, 2023
Revised manuscript accepted for BG
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For the first time, we documented the outstanding after-fire resilience of an invasive alien species, Saccharum biflorum, a rhizomatous C4 perennial grass introduced in the 19th century on the small volcanic island of Stromboli (Aeolian archipelago, Italy, Mediterranean Sea). Even if Saccharum biflorum prevails on native species in the early after-fire succession, it counteracts hydrogeological instability, paving the way to the recolonisation by native woody vegetation within a few decades.
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Short summary
In boreal North America, snow and frozen ground prevail in winter, while fires occur in summer. Over the last 20 years, the northwestern parts have experienced earlier snow disappearance and more ignitions. This is opposite to the southeastern parts. However, earlier ignitions following earlier snow disappearance timing led to larger fires across the region. Snow disappearance timing may be a good proxy for ignition timing and may also influence important atmospheric conditions related to fires.
In boreal North America, snow and frozen ground prevail in winter, while fires occur in summer....
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