The burning questions about Hluhluwe : causes and consequences of a severe wildfire

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dc.contributor.advisorBond, William Jen_ZA
dc.contributor.advisorMidgley, Jeremy Jen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorBrowne, Catherineen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2017-08-08T06:49:08Z
dc.date.available2017-08-08T06:49:08Z
dc.date.issued2009en_ZA
dc.description.abstractThe biophysical drivers of fire; ignition, fire weather conditions, fuel biomass, and flammability, differ in varying ecosystems. The rates of occurrence of these factors influence fire regimes. This study investigated the causes and consequences of a severe wildfire that swept through the Hluhluwe Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal South Africa in September 2008. This fire was an extreme event that seems only to have been possible due to the combination of circumstances that occurred in the days prior to and during the 14th/15th September 2008. The event was considered extreme because it burnt from savanna into thicket and forest patches, which is atypical of fires. The fire caused large structural change in tree demography, however, not much change in densities. The results of this study indicate that coupled weather conditions conducive to fire; namely low relative humidity, high temperatures and high wind speeds, occurred at the time of the fire. The synergistic influences of fire weather conditions and the state of available fuel caused this severe fire. The fire continued to bum for 48 hours before weather conditions relaxed and became less dangerous. These data suggest extreme fires such as the September 2008 event may be exploited by managers to reclaim former grasslands and savannas that have suffered the effects of bush encroachment and/or create open areas allowing grasslands to develop. However, severe fires run the risk of leading to the loss of forests and the biodiversity that they support. This study has identified the conditions likely to promote such severe fires.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationBrowne, C. (2009). <i>The burning questions about Hluhluwe : causes and consequences of a severe wildfire</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24856en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationBrowne, Catherine. <i>"The burning questions about Hluhluwe : causes and consequences of a severe wildfire."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24856en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationBrowne, C. 2009. The burning questions about Hluhluwe : causes and consequences of a severe wildfire. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Browne, Catherine AB - The biophysical drivers of fire; ignition, fire weather conditions, fuel biomass, and flammability, differ in varying ecosystems. The rates of occurrence of these factors influence fire regimes. This study investigated the causes and consequences of a severe wildfire that swept through the Hluhluwe Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal South Africa in September 2008. This fire was an extreme event that seems only to have been possible due to the combination of circumstances that occurred in the days prior to and during the 14th/15th September 2008. The event was considered extreme because it burnt from savanna into thicket and forest patches, which is atypical of fires. The fire caused large structural change in tree demography, however, not much change in densities. The results of this study indicate that coupled weather conditions conducive to fire; namely low relative humidity, high temperatures and high wind speeds, occurred at the time of the fire. The synergistic influences of fire weather conditions and the state of available fuel caused this severe fire. The fire continued to bum for 48 hours before weather conditions relaxed and became less dangerous. These data suggest extreme fires such as the September 2008 event may be exploited by managers to reclaim former grasslands and savannas that have suffered the effects of bush encroachment and/or create open areas allowing grasslands to develop. However, severe fires run the risk of leading to the loss of forests and the biodiversity that they support. This study has identified the conditions likely to promote such severe fires. DA - 2009 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2009 T1 - The burning questions about Hluhluwe : causes and consequences of a severe wildfire TI - The burning questions about Hluhluwe : causes and consequences of a severe wildfire UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24856 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/24856
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationBrowne C. The burning questions about Hluhluwe : causes and consequences of a severe wildfire. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences, 2009 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24856en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Biological Sciencesen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherBotanyen_ZA
dc.subject.otherEcologyen_ZA
dc.subject.otherBiological Conservationen_ZA
dc.subject.otherBiodiversityen_ZA
dc.titleThe burning questions about Hluhluwe : causes and consequences of a severe wildfireen_ZA
dc.typeBachelor Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelHonours
dc.type.qualificationnameBSc (Hons)en_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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