Abstract Fire events have increased in scale and severity due to hotter, drier conditions brought on by climate change and fire suppression. Extreme fire events can be detrimental to forest specialists, especially populations at the edge of the species range, where conditions can vary from those within the core of the range. The San Bernardino flying squirrel (Glaucomys oregonensis californicus) is the southernmost subspecies of Humboldt’s flying squirrel and occurs only in the San Bernardino Mountains of southern California after apparent extirpation from the nearby San Jacinto Mountains. We used non-invasive methods to assess how fire affects flying squirrel occupancy. We surveyed for flying squirrels in burned and unburned areas of the San Bernardino Mountains, and measured habitat features to construct occupancy models. Our top models indicated that flying squirrels occupy lower burn severities but could still occur at higher burn severities if canopy cover remained intact, forest duff remained deep, and tree mortality remained low, especially on steeper slopes. Our study illustrates the ability of San Bernardino flying squirrels, and the potential for other flying squirrels, to survive major fire events and maintain their role in the forest ecosystem. Such results are especially important for species management and understanding how parts of an ecosystem can react as fire frequency and severity increases.

中文翻译：

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偏远山地森林森林专家对火灾的反应

摘要 由于气候变化和灭火带来的更热、更干燥的条件，火灾事件的规模和严重程度有所增加。极端火灾事件可能对森林专家不利，尤其是物种分布范围边缘的种群，其条件可能与范围核心内的情况不同。圣贝纳迪诺飞鼠 (Glaucomys oregonensis californicus) 是洪堡飞鼠的最南端亚种，在从附近的圣哈辛托山脉明显灭绝后，仅出现在南加州的圣贝纳迪诺山脉。我们使用非侵入性方法来评估火灾如何影响飞鼠的入住率。我们调查了圣贝纳迪诺山脉燃烧和未燃烧地区的飞鼠，并测量了栖息地特征以构建居住模型。我们的顶级模型表明，飞鼠的烧伤严重程度较低，但如果树冠覆盖保持完整、森林覆盖层仍然很深、树木死亡率仍然很低，尤其是在较陡峭的斜坡上，则仍可能发生在较高的烧伤严重程度。我们的研究说明了圣贝纳迪诺飞鼠的能力，以及其他飞鼠在重大火灾事件中幸存下来并保持其在森林生态系统中的作用的潜力。这样的结果对于物种管理和了解生态系统的各个部分如何随着火灾频率和严重程度的增加而做出反应尤为重要。我们的研究说明了圣贝纳迪诺飞鼠的能力，以及其他飞鼠在重大火灾事件中幸存下来并保持其在森林生态系统中的作用的潜力。这样的结果对于物种管理和了解生态系统的各个部分如何随着火灾频率和严重程度的增加而做出反应尤为重要。我们的研究说明了圣贝纳迪诺飞鼠的能力，以及其他飞鼠在重大火灾事件中幸存下来并保持其在森林生态系统中的作用的潜力。这样的结果对于物种管理和了解生态系统的各个部分如何随着火灾频率和严重程度的增加而做出反应尤为重要。