USGS - science for a changing world

Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center

  Home About NPWRC Our Science Staff Employment Contacts Common Questions About the Site

Fire in North American Wetland Ecosystems and Fire-Wildlife Relations: An Annotated Bibliography


85. Givens, L. S. 1962. Use of fire on southeastern wildlife refuges Proc. Annu. 
         Tall Timbers Fire Ecol. Conf. 1:121-126.

Prescribed burning is very effective in conditioning upland wildlife and marsh habitat on many southeastern National Wildlife Refuges. It removes dense vegetation (e.g., cattail, cordgrass, and giant southern-wildrice) and accumulated litter. This makes valuable seed-bearing food plants, such as barnyardgrass and foxtail, more available to waterfowl. Burning also provides succulent sprout growth for browsing waterfowl (e.g., Canada geese). By setting back succession, more productive plant communities can be maintained. As a management tool, fire is most useful when used in conjunction with flooding and discing. Burning should be done in winter to minimize damage to bird nests. Examples are given of how fire has been beneficial on specific refuges. [K-L-S]


Back to Author Index
Back to Subject Index

Accessibility FOIA Privacy Policies and Notices

Take Pride in America logo USA.gov logo U.S. Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey
URL: http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/literatr/firewild/bib/085.htm
Page Contact Information: Webmaster
Page Last Modified: Thursday, 03-Aug-2006 11:42:49 EDT
Menlo Park, CA [caww54]