Burning for Biodiversity

Eighteen fire plots have been established at the Territory Wildlife Park where scientists from CSIRO and Charles Darwin University are experimenting with different burning patterns.

The project is called Burning for Biodiversity and it’s being funded by the national Bushfire Cooperative Research Centre.

Fire is a natural part of the environment in northern Australia. It’s a consequence of the monsoonal climate. Grasses grow tall and thick in the wet season and then become highly flammable during the dry season. Top End fires are generally confined to the grass layer and pose little threat to people and property.

However, there are warning signs that biodiversity is declining in many parts of northern Australia and the cause is connected to current burning practices.

Aboriginal people had been burning the tropical woodlands for thousands of years before white settlement. They started at the end of the wet season and continued throughout the year. Their patchy, low intensity fires were ‘good for wildlife’ because they created a diverse range of habitats.

Traditional Aboriginal burning no longer occurs in many parts of the Top End and wildlife experts are concerned about what’s replaced it. In particular, they’re concerned that many areas are being burnt too often. There’s also concern about the number of ‘hot’ fires late in the dry season.

There is a pressing need to improve our knowledge about the effects of different fire regimes.

The term ‘fire regime’ encompasses:

• when burning occurs;
• how often burning occurs;
• how intense the fires are;
• how big an area is burnt.

The Burning for Biodiversity Project at the Territory Wildlife Park researches these issues.