Staff at Wekiwa Springs use prescribed fire to restore and maintain fire-dependent natural communities.
The Role of Wildland Fire
The critical role that fire plays in maintaining many of the earth’s
ecosystems is now widely recognized. Largely because more lightning
strikes occur per square mile in Florida than any other place in North
America, fire is one of the primary natural forces under which Florida's
land ecosystems have developed. Before there were roads, canals, modern
agriculture, or big cities, lightning-set fires frequently swept almost
unimpeded across Florida’s landscape. Over thousands of years, many
natural habitats have evolved under the influence of periodic fire - and
are dependent on it.
Restoration and maintenance of such fire-dependent habitats now
requires prescribed burning - the mimicking of lightning fires by
carefully introducing fire according to detailed control plans called
“prescriptions.” On average, a little over 33,000 acres of state park
lands are burned each year, either by staff application of “prescribed”
fire, by naturally occurring fires, or a combination of both.
Preserving Our Natural and Cultural Heritage
As the human population of the state has grown and fire has been
increasingly excluded from natural lands, fire-dependent habitats have
drastically declined. As a result, many unique plants and animals
needing these habitats are disappearing.
The open pineywoods, ever-blooming prairies, and aromatic scrubs of
Florida and the unique species they support are an irreplaceable part of
the natural and cultural heritage of Florida’s citizens. They not only
provide a source of enjoyment and inspiration, but continue to play a
vital role in shaping the character and spirit of the people of Florida.
If our native fire-dependent habitats and species were lost, we would
not only lose a critical link to our past, but our quality of life would
be seriously diminished.
Biodiversity Conservation
Of Florida’s 44 land-based natural community types, 17 are dependent
on periodic fire for their continued existence and 16 more benefit from
an occasional fire. Without fire, applied at appropriate frequencies and
intensities, the entire structure and species composition of such areas
gradually changes. Prolonged fire exclusion would ultimately result in
loss of Florida’s fire-dependent natural communities and the species
that depend on them.
Many of Florida’s rare and endangered species of plants and animals
are dependent on periodic fire for their continued existence. Without
periodic fires, species such as the Florida scrub-jay, Sherman’s fox
squirrel, red-cockaded woodpecker, white-top pitcher-plant, and
four-petal pawpaw would disappear forever.
Increased Wildlife Abundance
Prescribed burning of natural lands is known to increase abundance
and health of many wildlife species, including native game species such
as deer, turkey, and quail.
For more information, click here:
Fire Effects on
Wildlife
Hazard Reduction
Fire-dependent natural communities contain pyrogenic vegetation. In
other words, many plant species have characteristics that actually
promote the spread of fire. Over time these “fuels” gradually
accumulate, making the occurrence of fire increasingly likely. So for
much of Florida’s wildlands, it is not a question of whether an area
will burn or not, but WHEN.
With prolonged fire exclusion, fuel levels can become dangerously
high. Under such conditions, a single lightning strike or an ember from
a backyard grill can cause a raging wildfire. With prescribed burning,
we are able to reduce fuel levels in natural communities under
controlled conditions – protecting life, property, and natural
resources.
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