Plants are not adapted to fire per se, but to specific fire regimes, and thus some adaptations may provide…

Plants are not adapted to fire per se, but to specific fire regimes, and thus some adaptations may provide persistence to some fire regimes but not to all. That is, species that exhibit traits that are adaptive under a particular fire regime can be threatened when that regime changes.

Originally shared by Daniel Montesinos

Plants adapted to fire: hot!

From :  Fire Ecology 

“This is by no means an exhaustive list, but a few examples of common species for illustrative purpose. You can find a description of these adaptations and further examples elsewhere [1, 2, 3, 4]. It is also important to note that plants are not adapted to fire per se, but to specific fire regimes, and thus some adaptations may provide persistence to some fire regimes but not to all [1]. That is, species that exhibit traits that are adaptive under a particular fire regime can be threatened when that regime changes.

–Serotiny (canopy seed storage): Pinus halepensis, Pinus pinaster, with variability in serotiny driven by different fire regimes [5, 6]

–Fire-stimulated germination: There are examples of heat-stimulated germination, like many Cistaceae (e.g., Cistus, Fumana [7, 8]) and many Fabaceae (e.g., Ulex parviflorus, Anthyllis cytisoides [7, 8]), as well as examples of smoke-stimulated germination like many Lamiaceae (e.g., Rosmarinus officinalis, Lavandula latifolia [7]) or Coris monspeliensis (Primulaceae [7]). There are also examples of species with smoke-stimulated seedling growth (Lavandula latifolia [7])

–Resprouting from lignotubers: Arbutus unedo, Phillyrea angustifolia, many Erica species (e.g., E. multiflora, E. arborea, E. scoparia, E. australis) [4]

–Epicormic resprouting: Quercus suber [9, 10], Pinus canariensis [4]

Fire-stimulated flowering: Some monocots like species of Asphodelus, Iris, Narcissus [11, 12]

–Enhanced flammability: Ulex parviflorus shows variability of flammability driven by different fire regimes [13] and under genetic control [14]. Many Lamiaceae species have volatile organic compounds that enhance flammability (e.g., Rosmarinus officinalis [16]).

–Thick bark and self-pruning (in understory fires): Pinus nigra [3,15]”

References and links to pdf’s in the link below

http://jgpausas.blogs.uv.es/2015/09/07/fire-adaptations-in-mediterranean-basin-plants/

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