ABSTRACT

Estimating the resilience time of an ecosystem may lead to different values depending on the compartment or function of interest and the measurement method. We sought to estimate the resilience of a cork oak (Quercus suber L.) stand – a typical west Mediterranean forest type – 8 years after a wildfire, using three independent indicators. Each represents a function or a characteristic of the ecosystem: (i) the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a remote sensing-based proxy of photosynthetic activity, (ii) the vegetation profile, based on an estimation of the vegetation cover at different heights above ground, and (iii) the avifauna composition, a component of animal biodiversity. The NDVI seems to have recovered a value close to its pre-fire value about 9 years after the fire. Recovering a vertical vegetation profile similar to that before the fire requires a longer time, tentatively estimated to not less than a dozen years. Recovery of the pre-fire avifauna is likely to require an even longer time, which could not be estimated from our 8-year monitoring period. The indicator based on avifauna appears to be the most discriminating indicator, among the three compared here, for estimating the time required for full recovery of the ecosystem over the long term.

摘要

根据感兴趣的区室或功能以及测量方法，估计生态系统的恢复时间可能会导致不同的值。我们试图估计软木橡树（栎木suber）的回弹力。L.）立场-一种典型的西地中海森林类型-发生野火八年后，使用三个独立的指标。每个代表生态系统的功能或特征：（i）归一化植被指数（NDVI），一种基于遥感的光合作用代理，（ii）基于不同植被覆盖度的估计的植被概况高度；以及（iii）航空动物的组成部分，是动物生物多样性的组成部分。NDVI似乎在大火后大约9年恢复了接近大火前的值。恢复类似于大火之前的垂直植被剖面需要更长的时间，初步估计不少于十二年。恢复射击前的鸟类可能需要更长的时间，根据我们的8年监控期无法估算。在此处比较的三个指标中，以鸟类为基础的指标似乎是最有区别的指标，用于估算长期生态系统完全恢复所需的时间。