Drought, Fire, and Tree Survival in a Borneo Rainforest, East Kalimantan, Indonesia

Background

While draughts and fires are seen as important components of tropical forests, large-scale assessments of the effects of these events are scarce. This paper compares the forest stand level impact between severe drought and a subsequent extensive fires on forest stand in a lowland rainforest in East Kalimantan.

Goals & Methods

The authors examined stem mortality in eighteen 1.8‐ha paired permanent plots that crossed a firebreak after a drough, allowing them to examine the separate effects of both fire and draught. 

Conclusions & Takeaways

The authors find that the lower amount of biomass was observed in the site disturbed by drought solely, while higher amount of biomass was detected in the site followed by fires. However, the authors argue that fires explain the drought’s effect. The authors also find that around 60% of dead above ground biomass was caused by droughts, even in burned areas. The mortality rate on both sites depended on the resistance of the species.