The importance of fire refugia in the recolonization of a fire-sensitive conifer in northern Patagonia

LANDESMANN, JENNIFER B.; MORALES, JUAN M.

PLANT ECOLOGY

SPRINGER

Año: 2018

1385-0237

Seed dispersal and seedling establishmentare essential for plant recolonization after distur-bances, espec ially for plants that rely exclusively onsexual reproduction such as post-fire colonizer trees.Fire refugia may play a key role not only allowingtrees to survive fire, but also functioning as seedsources after it. The estimation of seed dispersal andseedling establishment are essential for assessing plantrecolonization ability, understanding landscapedynamics and determining which areas may not beable to recover due to lack of seed arrival. Here westudy the post-fire recolonization ability of Austroce-drus chilensis (Cordil leran Cypress) from fire refugiain burned areas of northwest Patagonia, Argentina. Wemapped all female trees, saplings and seedlings within and around fire refugia, recorded the reproduct ivecapacit y of female trees and characterized themicrosite conditions for establishment. We used aninverse modelling approach and Approxi mate Baye-sian Computation to estimate the seed dispersal kerneland the probability of seedling establishment. Wefound that the average dispersal distance of an A.chilensis seed was 88.52 m. The dispersal kernel wasfat-tailed, meaning that A. chilensis has the capacity ofproducing accelerating expansions. Large woodydebris, litter, and the protection of shrubs were themost important factors associated with the presence ofrecruits. We highlight the importance of fire refugia asseed sources for the recolonization of burned areas andthus the relevance of protecting these places to allowthe persistence of fire-sensitive species.