INIBIOMA   20415
INSTITUTO DE INVESTIGACIONES EN BIODIVERSIDAD Y MEDIOAMBIENTE
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
congresos y reuniones científicas
Título:
Reconstructing the historical pyrogeography of western North America, 1600-1900 AD
Autor/es:
FALK, D.; SWETNAM, T.W.; KITZBERGER, T.; BIGIO, E.
Lugar:
Santa Fe New Mexico
Reunión:
Conferencia; Southwest Fire Ecology Conference; 2012
Institución organizadora:
Association for Fire Ecology
Resumen:
The Fire and Climate Synthesis (FACS) project is a collaboration of fire ecologists to compile and synthesize fire and climate data for western North America. The FACS PIs and collaborators have compiled over 900 multi-century fire-scar based fire histories from the western United States, Canada, and Mexico, as well as tree-ring based climate reconstructions and modern climate records. Our emphasis is on understanding the role of longer-term (annual to decadal) climate variation in regulating fire occurrence over the past 500+ years, complementing shorter-term fire season and weather outlooks. This extensive network is providing new insights into the pyrogeography of western North America. Annual fire-year maps are available indicating years of widespread regional fire under top-down climatic control. Spatial analysis of large-scale fire occurrence patterns indicates years in which teleconnections of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) regulate widespread regional fire years, through expression of regional drought, while in other years fires are widespread across western North America. Patterns of spatiotemporal similarity in the historical fire record can be compared with similar indices for modern fire occurrence.