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Project ID:

25-1-01-23

Year:

2025

Date Started:

09/30/2025

Date Completed:

Title:

Characterizing fire refugia in a rare serotinous conifer forest

Project Proposal Abstract:

Proposal Purpose and Objectives: Baker cypress (Hesperocyparis bakeri [Jeps.] Bartel) is a rare, serotinous conifer endemic to northern California and southern Oregon. As a fire-obligate species, it depends on stand-replacing fire for regeneration. However, increasingly frequent wildfires threaten its persistence when stands burn before they have developed a canopy seed bank. A critical knowledge gap exists in understanding how some areas within burned landscapes escape fire or burn less severely, serving as “fire refugia” that may facilitate recovery. This study aims to identify the environmental characteristics that support the formation of fire refugia within Baker cypress stands. The objectives are:(1) to compare environmental conditions between refugial and non-refugial areas within Baker cypress populations affected by one or two recent wildfires; (2) to develop predictive models using field-collected data and spatially-derived fire severity, topography, pre-fire vegetation, daily fire weather, and climate data to estimate the occurrence and spatial probability of refugia; and (3) to generate maps of potential fire refugia to inform restoration and conservation efforts.

Activities to be Performed: Fieldwork will be conducted at six Baker cypress populations impacted by recent wildfires on the Klamath, Lassen, and Plumas National Forests in northern California. At each site, we will identify and map patches of Baker cypress that survived the fire(s) and compare them with the surrounding area where trees were killed. These field data will be integrated with remote sensing products (e.g., pre-fire vegetation indices, fire severity maps) and spatial layers (e.g., topographic position index, slope, aspect, climatic water deficit) in GIS. Statistical models will be used to predict refugia presence based on environmental variables. The final model outputs will be used to create maps of potential fire refugia across the species’ range.

Expected Deliverables: Deliverables will include: (1) geospatial maps showing predicted locations of fire refugia within Baker cypress stands; (2) a technical report summarizing key findings and management implications; (3) a peer-reviewed scientific manuscript submitted for publication; (4) a brief for
land managers highlighting actionable insights; and (5) presentations at scientific and management-focused conferences. All deliverables will emphasize measurable outputs, including model performance metrics, mapped outputs, and field survey results.

Benefits: This research will directly benefit federal land managers (e.g., U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Karuk Department of Natural Resources) by improving their ability to identify and prioritize fire refugia for conservation and post-fire recovery. The project will contribute actionable information that supports the strategic management of rare, fire-dependent species in increasingly fire-prone landscapes. The public will benefit through improved resilience and biodiversity conservation on public lands, as well as enhanced scientific understanding of how fire refugia function. Scientifically, the project will advance knowledge of fire ecology, landscape resilience, and rare species conservation under changing fire regimes.

Principal Investigator:

Jeffrey M. Kane

Agency/Organization:

Humboldt State University

Branch or Dept:

Department of Forestry & Wildland Resources

Other Project Collaborators

Type	Name	Agency/Organization	Branch or Dept
Agreements Contact	Pia O. Gabriel	Humboldt State University	Sponsored Programs Foundation
Budget Contact	Pia O. Gabriel	Humboldt State University	Sponsored Programs Foundation
Student Investigator	Olivia Moskowitz	Humboldt State University	Department of Forestry & Wildland Resources