Chaparral

Front 1

occurrence

Back 1

-occurs in the mediterranean climate of california, with similar vegetation types occurring in Australia, Chile, South Africa, and the Mediterranean
-dominated by shrubs

Front 2

landscape

Back 2

-very little is able to grow in the chaparral besides shrubs
-shading, herbivores, and phytotoxins (plant toxins) prevent germination and growth of small herbs

Front 3

fire frequency

Back 3

-The longer the time since a fire, the higher the probability of a fire
this is because:
1) biomass (fuel) accumulates
2) shrubs begin to branch prolifically at their tips, essentially creating a tinderbox
3) non-wettable compounds accumulate in the soil, preventing it from getting wet

Front 4

effects of fire

Back 4

-destroys the non-wettable compounds
-releases a pulse of nutrients into the soil and destroys phytotoxins

Front 5

fugitive species

Back 5

-species that only grow after a fire and depend on periodic fires to grow and reproduce
-in many of these species smoke induces seed germination

Front 6

auto-successive

Back 6

-because virtually all of the recovery after a fire is endogenous, chaparral is described as succeeding itself