COS 275-3 - Midwest prescribed fire monitoring network: A pilot study to engage land managers in evaluating prescribed fire objectives and outcomes

Background/Question/Methods

Fire was prominent in the midwestern United States from the last glacial retreat until European settlement. Settlement brought increased demand for infrastructure and agriculture, leaving the original landscape heavily fragmented. Fragmentation and fire suppression resulted in fewer fires occurring on the landscape. Because of this, the remnants of original oak (Quercus spp.) ecosystems that persist today suffer from lack of fire, except for a very small percentage of managed sites where prescribed fire frequency approaches historic patterns. The primary objectives of this pilot project were to: 1) verify which management objectives are important to land managers in oak savanna ecosystems, 2) provide land managers with pre- and post-fire monitoring protocols to evaluate if management objectives are being met, and 3) use data to improve management designed to maintain and restore rare oak ecosystems in Southern Wisconsin. We engaged land managers in piloting monitoring protocols in 2021 and 2022. We hypothesize: 1) land managers across Southern Wisconsin are trying to achieve the same management objectives, 2) prescribed fires are being used to promote oak ecosystem structure and control non-native invasive shrubs, and 3) involving land managers in data collection will help fill knowledge gaps and improve land management outcomes.

Results/Conclusions

Our results indicate that management objectives for oak savanna sites in Southern Wisconsin are ubiquitous. All the land managers surveyed indicated they have three main management objectives for oak savanna sites: 1) maintain or increase native oak savanna species, including promoting oak regeneration and reducing mesophytic species, 2) prevent or decrease undesirable woody stems and invasive species, and 3) promote oak savanna structure. Participation in the pilot study indicates a strong interest in prescribed fire monitoring protocols with clear objectives and outcomes. Additionally, managers are willing to participate in data collection to improve land management outcomes. These results suggest that expanding the Midwest Prescribed Fire Monitoring Network could enhance our understanding of prescribed fire outcomes and improve restoration and maintenance of oak ecosystems across the Midwest in collaboration with land managers.