Comparative Shoot Flammability of Tree Species in the Barrington Tops Region

Wallace, Molly Irene

Comparative Shoot Flammability of Tree Species in the Barrington Tops Region

Wallace, Molly Irene

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Publication Type:: Thesis
Issue Date:: 2023

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Wallace, Molly Irene
dc.date.accessioned	2024-06-19T01:22:54Z
dc.date.available	2024-06-19T01:22:54Z
dc.date.issued	2023
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/179565
dc.description	University of Technology Sydney. Faculty of Science.	en_US.UTF-8
dc.description.abstract	While wildfires are natural occurrences, climate change forecasts indicate longer and more severe fire seasons globally, impacting human life, infrastructure, and biodiversity. Understanding plant flammability is crucial for informed decision-making in fire management. Recent studies focusing on shoot-level flammability provide valuable insights, including this thesis. Using a bespoke shoot flammability apparatus, shoot flammability patterns were assessed in 38 tree species from wet habitats in Barrington Tops, New South Wales, Australia. Inter-species variation in shoot flammability was explored alongside various plant traits, such as leaf area, mass, leafing intensity, energy content, shoot mass, bulk density, water content, and branch number. Ignitability, sustainability, combustibility, and consumability were measured, revealing significant variation across species. Positive correlations were found among flame duration, height, temperature, and burnt biomass, indicating alignment with low-flammability expectations. However, species with slow time-to-flame exhibited higher flammability in other dimensions. Leaf energy content was a key predictor across flammability attributes, with more leaves resulting in faster ignitability and longer flame duration. Myrtaceous species showed higher flammability in several dimensions. This thesis aims to understand shoot-level flammability and its driving traits in wet habitat plant species of Barrington Tops, enhancing knowledge of fire behavior in non-fire prone habitats. This research can inform fire management strategies, predict fire behavior, and aid ecosystem conservation in increasingly fire-prone landscapes due to climate change.	en_US.UTF-8
dc.format	Thesis (MSc)
dc.language.iso	en_US	en_US.UTF-8
dc.relation	https://opus.lib.uts.edu.au/bitstream/10453/179565/1/thesis.pdf
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.rights	The author owns the copyright in this thesis including all reproduction and reuse rights for the work. The work may not be altered without the permission of the copyright owner. Attribution is essential when quoting or paraphrasing from this thesis.
dc.rights	© 2023 Molly Irene Wallace
dc.rights	au.edu.uts.lib/cph
dc.title	Comparative Shoot Flammability of Tree Species in the Barrington Tops Region	en_US.UTF-8
dc.type	Thesis
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*

Abstract:

While wildfires are natural occurrences, climate change forecasts indicate longer and more severe fire seasons globally, impacting human life, infrastructure, and biodiversity. Understanding plant flammability is crucial for informed decision-making in fire management. Recent studies focusing on shoot-level flammability provide valuable insights, including this thesis. Using a bespoke shoot flammability apparatus, shoot flammability patterns were assessed in 38 tree species from wet habitats in Barrington Tops, New South Wales, Australia. Inter-species variation in shoot flammability was explored alongside various plant traits, such as leaf area, mass, leafing intensity, energy content, shoot mass, bulk density, water content, and branch number. Ignitability, sustainability, combustibility, and consumability were measured, revealing significant variation across species. Positive correlations were found among flame duration, height, temperature, and burnt biomass, indicating alignment with low-flammability expectations. However, species with slow time-to-flame exhibited higher flammability in other dimensions. Leaf energy content was a key predictor across flammability attributes, with more leaves resulting in faster ignitability and longer flame duration. Myrtaceous species showed higher flammability in several dimensions. This thesis aims to understand shoot-level flammability and its driving traits in wet habitat plant species of Barrington Tops, enhancing knowledge of fire behavior in non-fire prone habitats. This research can inform fire management strategies, predict fire behavior, and aid ecosystem conservation in increasingly fire-prone landscapes due to climate change.

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