About this Research Topic

Background

Wildfire regimes vary across different ecosystems due to factors such as plant productivity, fuel loads, and human activities. Plants have evolved a range of adaptive traits to withstand recurrent fires, including fire-resistant traits, post-fire resprouting and fire-stimulated recruitment. However, recent shifts in fire regimes due to global climate change and other human actions are increasing the frequency and intensity of fires in many regions.

Post-fire, forest recovery can sequester carbon and offset initial pyrogenic carbon emissions. However, frequent fires can hinder the full recovery of forests, often resulting in transition into different ecosystem types, such as grasslands, with reduced carbon-storage potential. Notably, in regions like the Mediterranean, North America, South America, and Australia, mega-fires are occurring with increasing frequencies that impact post-fire recovery within ecosystems. Therefore, understanding the impact of fires, recovery and plant adaptability is key for effective forest management and carbon cycling mitigation considering escalating wildfire frequencies and intensities driven by rapid climate change. These efforts to manage and conserve forests in response to increasing fires are crucial for reducing carbon emissions, mitigating climate change, and promoting environmental sustainability.

This research topic proposes a comprehensive investigation into the impact of climate change on fire regimes, and the physiological and ecological responses of plants across terrestrial ecosystems to these fire regimes. The topic will examine the complex relationships between climate, fire and drought, tree physiology and adaptation, and carbon dynamics. This research topic will provide insights to inform forest management, and landscape planning under changing climatic conditions.

The goal is to enhance our understanding of fire regimes, carbon emissions, and ecosystem resilience, which are crucial for sustainable forest management, climate change mitigation, and biodiversity preservation in fire-prone regions.

This research topic encompasses multiple fields, including plant physiology, soil biochemistry, and sustainability sciences, alongside dendrochronological studies. Our goal is to assess historical fire dynamics and their profound impact on bushfires, tree growth, and ecosystem functioning. By integrating these diverse disciplines, we aim to gain a better understanding of the complex interactions between fire regimes, vegetation dynamics, and ecosystem resilience.

This Research Topic will invite submissions of original research, research reports, reviews, and policy and practice reviews all focused on various aspects of post-fire recovery, including:

(a) The changing patterns of fire regimes due to global climate change.
(b) The impact of fire regimes on post-fire recovery, including the potential exhaustion of resprouting mechanisms and subsequent mortality of resprouting plants.
(c) The influence of fire regimes on vegetation growth rates, physiology, and resilience.
(d) Plant adaptation to changing fire regimes and climate conditions.
(e) Forest and fire management strategies at the regional or national levels aimed at improving recovery, enhancing biodiversity, and mitigating carbon emissions. Manuscripts addressing these topics are encouraged to contribute to a better understanding of post-fire recovery dynamics and inform effective management strategies in fire-affected ecosystems.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Data Report
• Editorial
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Data Report
• Editorial
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Post-fire recovery and mortality, carbon stocks, ecosystem degradation, plant physiological shifts, carbon cycling, forest management.

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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