@article{196ee7d4c311462bb8719c7050900d40,
title = "Preferred atmospheric circulations associated with favorable prescribed burns in the Gulf of Mexico coast, USA",
abstract = "Background: Application of prescribed fire in natural plant communities is an important wildlife habitat management tool. Prescribed fire managers have suggested anecdotally that changing weather patterns may be influencing the frequency of days that have optimal conditions to conduct coastal marsh burns along the US Gulf of Mexico coast. Our study objectives were to (1) determine whether the frequency of atmospheric circulation patterns associated with prescribed fire prescriptions has changed from 1979 to 2018 for the Gulf Coast and (2) identify circulation patterns preferred by land managers for implementing prescribed fire. Results: While coastal marsh habitat is threatened by climate change and human-associated degradation, weather type frequency was not identified as an important factor related to the application of prescribed fire, as the frequency of weather circulation types has not changed significantly over time (p > 0.05). However, some weather circulation patterns seem more advantageous (e.g., offshore winds) or disadvantageous (e.g., wet cold fronts and high winds) for consideration by prescribed fire applicators across the Gulf. Conclusions: Further insight into the weather conditions preferred and avoided by land managers along the Gulf of Mexico will improve prediction-based methods for identifying burn windows from weather forecasts. Land managers face many challenges in protecting coastal systems, while also reducing management conflicts (i.e., smoke transport) with local communities. Understanding how constraints such as urbanization, climate change, and sea-level rise interact to affect prescribed fire application will be an increasingly important aspect for developing successful adaptive management plans.",
keywords = "Coastal Plain, Gulf of Mexico, High marsh, Planning, Prescribed fire, Weather, Wildland fire management",
author = "Kross, {Chelsea S.} and Rohli, {Robert V.} and Moon, {Jena A.} and Fournier, {Auriel M.V.} and Woodrey, {Mark S.} and Nyman, {J. Andrew}",
note = "Funding Information: We thank Wenjia Cao and Nazla Bushra for helping in weather circulation data collection. Financial, logistical, and technical support was provided in part by the US Fish and Wildlife Service through the National Wildlife Refuge System. We thank the US Fish and Wildlife Service regional and local fire management teams at Anahuac, Aransas, Big Boggy, Big Branch, Bogue Chitto, Brazoria, Cameron Prairie, Grand Bay, J.N. Ding Darling, Lacassine, Mandalay, McFaddin, Moody, Sabine, Saint Marks, Saint Vincent, San Bernard, and Texas Point National Wildlife Refuges for graciously sharing their historical fire data sets that made this publication possible. We especially thank Jon Wallace, Jennifer Hinckley, and Jeffery Adams for assistance in retrieving data to support this analysis and fielding questions related to the data set. We thank Jeffery Adams for the swift and thorough review of this manuscript. MSW{\textquoteright}s and JAN{\textquoteright}s participation and contribution are based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, US Department of Agriculture, Hatch project under accession number 7002261 and the McIntire Stennis project under LAB94471, respectively. This publication is considered a contribution of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the US Government. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the US Department of Agriculture or the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Funding Information: This research was funded through a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration{\textquoteright}s (NOAA) RESTORE Science Program award NA19NOS4510195 to Mississippi State University. The US Fish and Wildlife Service provided funding for prescribed fire activities reported within this manuscript. Funding Information: We thank Wenjia Cao and Nazla Bushra for helping in weather circulation data collection. Financial, logistical, and technical support was provided in part by the US Fish and Wildlife Service through the National Wildlife Refuge System. We thank the US Fish and Wildlife Service regional and local fire management teams at Anahuac, Aransas, Big Boggy, Big Branch, Bogue Chitto, Brazoria, Cameron Prairie, Grand Bay, J.N. Ding Darling, Lacassine, Mandalay, McFaddin, Moody, Sabine, Saint Marks, Saint Vincent, San Bernard, and Texas Point National Wildlife Refuges for graciously sharing their historical fire data sets that made this publication possible. We especially thank Jon Wallace, Jennifer Hinckley, and Jeffery Adams for assistance in retrieving data to support this analysis and fielding questions related to the data set. We thank Jeffery Adams for the swift and thorough review of this manuscript. MSW{\textquoteright}s and JAN{\textquoteright}s participation and contribution are based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, US Department of Agriculture, Hatch project under accession number 7002261 and the McIntire Stennis project under LAB94471, respectively. This publication is considered a contribution of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the US Government. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the US Department of Agriculture or the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023, The Author(s).",
year = "2023",
month = dec,
doi = "10.1186/s42408-023-00169-4",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "19",
journal = "Fire Ecology",
issn = "1933-9747",
publisher = "Association for Fire Ecology",
number = "1",
}