For many years lightning strikes created wildfires that burned patches of Florida woods, fields, and marshes creating a mosaic of habitats and plants that are adapted to survive fire. Back then no one cared – because people weren’t around yet. Later, Native Americans used fire to clear forests for hunting, for food, and to create new growth. The forest responded by providing food for deer and other animals, prey for panthers, and diverse habitats that supported the life of many species of plants and animals. Wildfires burned every few years, keeping the amount of burnable wood/vines (fuel) low.
Today, wildfires are generally suppressed by fire departments and the Florida Forest Service in order to protect people and property. However, on conservation lands like CREW fire is still desirable and necessary so that the pine flatwoods and marshes remain pine flatwoods and marshes and continue to provide essential habitat and food sources for wildlife. So, to mimic the effects of those fires from long ago, the CREW land management team conducts prescribed burns.One such burn took place at the CREW Marsh Trails on October 16th. If you hike the trail just 100 yards for the parking lot you’ll see evidence of the fire. The saw palmettos, ferns and wildflowers began sprouting new shoots just days after the burn. The charcoal black ash carries nutrients back into the soil, serving as fertilizer for new plants to grow. Predators like hawks and panthers can see their prey more readily, and the small oaks and wax myrtle trees will die back allowing the slash pines to regenerate.
More prescribed burns will take place during the next few months at the Cypress Dome Trails and other areas of CREW. In preparation, you may find that some of the trails are plowed up to prevent the fire from creeping across the trail. These fire breaks help keep the burn where it is supposed to be. And the result will be healthier forests for wildlife and the watershed as a whole.Next spring, the wildflowers will bloom profusely in and around the edges of the burned area because of the extra nutrients and the added sunshine from a more open canopy. Watch for changes as the burned area re-grows – the textures and colors, the new flowers, the smells, the animals as they pass through. After a burn is a unique time to visit the trails at CREW.
Deb Hanson is an Environmental Education Specialist at CREW Land & Water Trust. This is Deb’s final article. She is moving to Portland, Oregon. We wish her well and thank her for her contributions to Spotlight Magazines.
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