(Press-News.org) Irvine, Calif., Feb. 28, 2024 — In a study recently published in the journal Ecology, University of California, Irvine scientists uncover the intricate dance between drought, wildfires and invasive species in Southern California's coastal sage scrub ecosystems.
Titled “Long-term drought promotes invasive species by reducing wildfire severity,” the research, led by Sarah Kimball, Ph.D., director of the Center for Environmental Biology at UCI, sheds light on the critical interplay of these factors and its profound implications for ecosystem health.
The research, conducted at the Loma Ridge Global Change Experiment, showcases how prolonged drought acts as a catalyst, influencing not only the severity of wildfires but also paving the way for invasive species to take center stage. By simulating drought conditions, the study clarifies connections between climate change, wildfire dynamics, and shifts in plant communities.
Reduced fire severity associated with drought creates an environment conducive to invasive species. Non-native grasses, in particular, thrive in these conditions, potentially leading to a transformation of the landscape and abundance and diversity of native species.
The findings carry significant implications for managing these vulnerable ecosystems. The study advocates for strategies that carefully consider the frequency of wildfires and the control of invasive species post-fire. Controlled burns, commonly used in other ecosystems, are not recommended for coastal sage scrub systems, as they can inadvertently promote invasive species.
Kimball, the paper’s corresponding author, emphasizes the importance of experimental work in unraveling the dynamics between drought, wildfires and invasive species. “This study is unique in that replicate experimental plots were subjected to several years of different precipitation regimes prior to the wildfire, allowing an opportunity to test how a range of pre-fire weather conditions influenced fire severity and resulting plant community composition,” she said.
Kimball adds: “We found feedbacks between invasive species and low-severity wildfire, indicating that control burns should not be conducted in this system.”
Beyond academic circles, the research holds significance for the public. As wildfires increasingly impact communities, comprehending the factors influencing their severity becomes paramount. The study prompts a reevaluation of traditional wildfire management approaches, highlighting the urgent need to address climate change for the preservation of natural ecosystems.
The Nature Conservancy; the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Biological and Environmental Research, grant/award number DE-SC0020382; and the Natural Communities Coalition supported the research.
About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities and is ranked among the nation’s top 10 public universities by U.S. News & World Report. The campus has produced five Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 36,000 students and offers 224 degree programs. It’s located in one of the world’s safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County’s largest employer, contributing $7 billion annually to the local economy and $8 billion statewide. For more on UCI, visit www.uci.edu.
Media access: Radio programs/stations may, for a fee, use an on-campus ISDN line to interview UCI faculty and experts, subject to availability and university approval. For more UCI news, visit news.uci.edu. Additional resources for journalists may be found at communications.uci.edu/for-journalists.
END
Study finds drought fuels invasive species after wildfires
UCI biologists highlight critical link between drought, wildfires and coastal ecosystem transformations
2024-02-28
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
A safer treatment path for high-risk children to overcome food allergies
2024-02-28
New research from the University of British Columbia reveals a safe path to overcoming food allergies for older children and others who can’t risk consuming allergens orally to build up their resistance.
It’s called sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT), and it involves placing smaller amounts of food allergens under the tongue.
A study conducted by UBC clinical professor and pediatric allergist Dr. Edmond Chan and his team at BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute found SLIT to be as safe and effective for high-risk older children and adolescents ...
Researchers create method to detect cases of anemia in archaeological remains
2024-02-28
Hamilton, ON, Feb. 28, 2024 – Diagnosing anemia in living people is typically a matter of a routine blood test.
Retrospectively diagnosing anemia in people who died decades or even centuries ago is much more challenging since there is no blood left to test.
Anthropologists at McMaster University and the University of Montreal, working with a hematologist colleague, have overcome that obstacle by developing a way to detect anemia through patterns in the structures of bones.
Paleopathologists Megan Brickley, ...
Data-processing tool could enable better early stage cancer detection
2024-02-28
Cancers begin with abnormal changes in individual cells, and the ability to track the accumulation of mutations at the single-cell level can shed new light on the early stages of the disease. Such knowledge could enable more effective early detection and treatment options for patients as well as more accurate predictions of disease progression.
According to a paper in Nature Communications, a team of Rice University researchers led by Luay Nakhleh has developed a platform for integrating DNA and RNA data from single-cell sequencing with greater speed and precision than more recent, state-of-the-art technologies. The method, mapping cross domain ...
ESA 2024 Graduate Student Policy Award Cohort named
2024-02-28
The Ecological Society of America is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2024 Katherine S. McCarter Graduate Student Policy Award (GSPA). Students in the 2024 cohort are engaged in advocacy with an interest in science policy. Awardees will travel to Washington, D.C., for policy, communication and career training followed by meetings with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
“I am thrilled to welcome this latest cohort of Graduate Student Policy Awardees,” said ESA President Shahid Naeem. “The caliber of this year's awardees, as has been true for awardees in our program since its inception, reflects ...
Five Sandia Labs scientists earn 2024 Black Engineer of the Year Awards
2024-02-28
Dissecting doorbells, exploring music, mastering retail software, love of the arts and old-fashioned hard work were early paths that led five Sandia National Laboratories engineers to their callings and recently earned them national Black Engineer of the Year Awards.
The awards, recognizing outstanding achievements in engineering, science and technology, include Science Spectrum Trailblazer, Modern Day Technology Leader, Most Promising Engineer in Industry and the Senior Investigator Award.
Each Sandia award winner has made significant contributions in creative, innovative and science-based systems engineering solutions to help solve our nation’s most challenging national security ...
'Cosmic lighthouses' that cleared primordial fog identified with JWST
2024-02-28
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Scientists working with data from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have obtained the first full spectra of some of the earliest starlight in the universe. The images provide the clearest picture yet of very low-mass, newborn galaxies, created less than a billion years after the Big Bang, and suggest the tiny galaxies are central to the cosmic origin story.
The international team of researchers, including two Penn State astrophysicists, published their results ...
Avian influenza virus is adapting to spread to marine mammals
2024-02-28
The highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1 has adapted to spread between birds and marine mammals, posing an immediate threat to wildlife conservation, according to a study from the University of California, Davis, and the National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA) in Argentina.
The study, published in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases, is the first genomic characterization of H5N1 in marine wildlife on the Atlantic shore of South America.
For the study, scientists collected brain samples from four sea lions, one fur seal and a tern found dead at the most affected sea lion rookery in Argentina. All ...
Study reveals accelerated soil priming under climate warming
2024-02-28
A first-of-its-kind study led by researchers at the University of Oklahoma highlights a crucial biosphere feedback mechanism and its effects on releasing soil carbon into the atmosphere.
Jizhong Zhou, the director of the Institute for Environmental Genomics and George Lynn Cross Research Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at OU, is the corresponding author of, “Experimental warming accelerates positive soil priming in a temperate grassland ecosystem,” recently published in Nature Communications. Zhou said the study is the first to utilize laboratory and field experimental ...
Improving children’s access to care could mitigate the health consequences of exposure to neighborhood violence
2024-02-28
A new collaborative study between Boston Medical Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston Children’s Hospital, Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute, University of Pennsylvania, and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia finds exposure to neighborhood violence among children was associated with unmet health needs and increased acute care utilization. Published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine and based on nationally representative data on violence exposure and gold standard access to care measures from the National Health Interview Survey, this study shows that evidence-based interventions to improve access to care in communities ...
Molecular clusters on glial cells show they are more than our brain’s ‘glue’
2024-02-28
Neuroscientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center have found that an often-overlooked type of brain cell called glia has more of a role in brain function than previously thought.
In the journal Cell Reports, Fred Hutch neuroscientist Aakanksha Singhvi, PhD, and her team report that a single glial cell uses different molecules to communicate with different neurons. Careful clustering of these molecules ensures that the glial cell can conduct a distinct “conversation” with each neuron. Through these molecular facilitators, glia can influence how neurons respond to environmental cues like ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Insulin resistance is linked to over 30 diseases – and to early death in women, study of people in the UK finds
Innovative semaglutide hydrogel could reduce diabetes shots to once a month
Weight loss could reduce the risk of severe infections in people with diabetes, UK research suggests
Long-term exposure to air pollution and a lack of green space increases the risk of hospitalization for respiratory conditions
Better cardiovascular health in early pregnancy may offset high genetic risk
Artificial intelligence method transforms gene mutation prediction in lung cancer: DeepGEM data releases at IASLC 2024 World Conference on Lung Cancer
Antibody–drug conjugate I-DXd shows clinically meaningful response in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer
IASLC Global Survey on biomarker testing reveals progress and persistent barriers in lung cancer biomarker testing
Research shows pathway to developing predictive biomarkers for immune checkpoint inhibitors
Just how dangerous is Great Salt Lake dust? New research looks for clues
Maroulas appointed Associate Vice Chancellor, Director of AI Tennessee
New chickadee research finds cognitive skills impact lifespan
Cognitive behavioral therapy enhances brain circuits to relieve depression
Terasaki Institute awarded $2.3 Million grant from NIH for organ transplantation research using organs-on-a-chip technology
Atoms on the edge
Postdoc takes multipronged approach to muon detection
Mathematical proof: Five satellites needed for precise navigation
Scalable, multi-functional device lays groundwork for advanced quantum applications
Falling for financial scams? It may signal early Alzheimer’s disease
Integrating MRI and OCT for new insights into brain microstructure
Designing a normative neuroimaging library to support diagnosis of traumatic brain injury
Department of Energy announces $68 million in funding for artificial intelligence for scientific research
DOE, ORNL announce opportunity to define future of high-performance computing
Molecular simulations, supercomputing lead to energy-saving biomaterials breakthrough
Low-impact yoga and exercise found to help older women manage urinary incontinence
Genetic studies reveal new insights into cognitive impairment in schizophrenia
Researcher develops technology to provide cleaner energy and cleaner water
Expect the unexpected: nanoscale silver unveils intrinsic self-healing abilities
nTIDE September 2024 Jobs Report: Gains in employment for people with disabilities appear to level off after reducing gaps with non-disabled workers
Wiley enhances NMR Spectral Library Collection with extensive new databases
[Press-News.org] Study finds drought fuels invasive species after wildfiresUCI biologists highlight critical link between drought, wildfires and coastal ecosystem transformations