Abstract

JIMENEZ G, Ana Milena; URREGO G, Ligia Estela  and  TORO R, Luis Jairo. Evaluation of the fire behavior of the vegetation in northern Antioquia (Colombia): Landscape analysis. Colomb. for. [online]. 2016, vol.19, n.2, pp.161-180. ISSN 0120-0739.  https://doi.org/10.14483/udistrital.jour.colomb.for.2016.2.a03.

Wildfires have many causes, they often affect tropical and subtropical areas. They are dynamic in time and space, and generate strong impacts on the environment. To identify the spatial pattern of these in different vegetation covers, maps of the gross susceptibility to fires were generated (GS) (based on the intrinsic characteristics of the vegetation) and the net susceptibility (SN) (more climatic and topographic variable GS), at a regional level. The most affected area is dominated by grasses with very high GS (27.19%) and a SN of (18.38%). The natural forests (north - west zone) and planted (around the Riogrande II reservoir) showed low GS. It is confirmed that the spatial patterns of susceptibility to fires are related to climatic and topographic factors. In areas with high and very high GS, the area of each category decreased including these factors. The relationship between landscape structure and NS showed no clear trend, since the structure at the landscape level of forests and stubble was very variable by degree of susceptibility. The most critical categories of NS were recorded in very homogenous landscapes with small patches of forest and brush (between 0.3 and 2.1 ha), and little variability in the size and shapes of the patches.

Keywords : Spatial analysis; land cover; landscape ecology; fire; susceptibility.

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