The History of Fire, Human Influence and Climate in Black Pine Forests, Western Anatolia

Wildfire is a dynamic natural phenomenon the causes and consequences have changed for millions of years. We previously found out and discussed the fire history of Western Anatolia to understand the drivers of fires over 600 years. In that study, we find out that simultaneous fires occurred in multiple sites and this period overlapped with the longest and most severe drought period of the past 550 years and the fire frequency decline after 1934 coincided with the period of the first forest protection law in 1937. Dry, as well as prior wet conditions were the main drivers of fires in the black pine forests in western Anatolia. On the other hand, to highlight the direct human influence in a high-risk fire region, we sampled one additional site from Antalya (Türkiye) and collected fire-scarred wood samples from both living trees and remnant woods. In this study, we developed a 519-year-long site-level composite chronology using dendrochronological methods with low frequency and no significant relationship was found between dry and major fire years. The recorded fire years for each individual showed that a fire in one tree did not spread and grow to other neighbouring trees. Despite the high risk of fire, fires occurred less frequently can be interpreted as an intense human influence in the area, also observed axe marks in the catface formations and the nomadic tents right next to the site highlight the human influence. These forests were used extensively by the Turkish tribes also called “Yörüks”, who led a nomadic life in the Taurus Mountains for centuries. Although this area is under a high fire risk, the low fire frequency may be due to the reduced amount of combustible materials by goat grazing. Since goats feed not only on grass but also on fresh sprouts, helps to reduce the frequency of fires by consuming both the combustible material under the forest and the branches of the trees closer to the forest ground. Due to the grazing, shoots close to the ground decrease that also decreases the probability of the shift in fire regime from surface to crown fire. We believe that protecting and promoting the culture of Yörüks in the Taurus Mountains will be an important way to protect not only the culture but also the forests.

This research was funded by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) (Project number: 118O306).