Research Database
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6
Small-scale fire refugia increase soil bacterial and fungal richness and increase community cohesion nine years after fire
Year: 2025
Small-scale variation in wildfire behavior may cause large differences in belowground bacterial and fungal communities with consequences for belowground microbial diversity, community assembly, and function. Here we combine pre-fire, active-fire, and post-wildfire measurements in a mixed-conifer forest to identify how fine-scale wildfire behavior, unburned refugia, and aboveground forest structure are associated with belowground bacterial and fungal communities nine years after wildfire. We used fine-scale mapping of small (0.9–172.6 m2) refugia to sample soil-associated burned and…
Publication Type: Journal Article
A Systematic Review of Trends and Methodologies in Research on the Effects of Wildfires on the Avifauna in Temperate Forests
Year: 2025
Perceptions of the relationships between forest ecosystems and wildfires have evolved. The ecological role of wildfires is now recognised as essential for maintaining the functionality of fire-adapted forests. Although research on the impact of fire on fauna has grown notably, there is a lack of consensus on its global effects due to the variable responses of faunal communities across taxa. This review provides a bibliometric synthesis of wildfires and their impact on avifauna in temperate forests. It identifies patterns and gaps in research methodologies and offers recommendations for future…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Trailing edge contractions common in interior western US trees under varying disturbances
Year: 2025
As climate warms, trees are expected to track their ideal climate, referred to as ‘range shifts’; however, lags in tree range shifts are currently common. Disturbance events that kill trees may help catalyse tree migrations by removing biotic competition, but can also limit regeneration by eliminating seed sources, and it is unknown whether disturbance will facilitate or inhibit tree migrations in the face of climate change. Here we use national forest inventory data to show that seedlings of 15 dominant tree species in the interior western United States occupy historically cooler areas than…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Fatigue in wildland firefighting: relationships between sleep, shift characteristics, and cognitive function
Year: 2025
BackgroundWildland firefighting requires exposure to long shifts and poor sleep, which may pose a risk to worker safety due to impaired cognitive function.AimsWe investigated the associations between sleep, shift characteristics, and cognitive function in wildland firefighters.MethodsWe conducted a within-subject observational study with 25 wildland firefighters from the British Columbia Wildfire Service, Canada. Data were collected remotely during the 2021 and 2022 fire seasons. Wrist-worn actigraphy and the psychomotor vigilance task served…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Wildland firefighter exposure and female cancer risk: currently available evidence
Year: 2025
The James M. Inhofe National Defence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 established that certain illnesses and diseases are to be deemed as proximately caused by employment in federal fire protection activities. However, cancers affecting female wildland firefighters were not included on this list and are recommended for further evaluation. We present the best available scientific evidence for the risk of breast and gynaecological cancers associated with exposures that are commonly measured in the wildland fire environment, including benzene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and…
Publication Type: Journal Article
Impact of wildfire smoke, heat stress and sleep deprivation on the brain health of wildland firefighters
Year: 2025
Wildland firefighters (WLFFs) face significant brain health risks due to prolonged exposure to smoke, extreme heat, dehydration, physical exertion and irregular sleep patterns. Here, the literature is presented as a narrative review on studies that inform our knowledge on WLFF brain health. The neurotoxic components of wildfire smoke, such as particulate matter, carbon monoxide and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, can disrupt brain function by inducing oxidative stress, neuroinflammation and hypoxia, which can contribute to cognitive decline and increase the risk of neurodegenerative…
Publication Type: Journal Article