Full Length Research Paper

Fire behavior in Mediterranean shrub species (Maquis)

Bülent Sağlam¹*, Ertuğrul Bilgili¹, Ömer Küçük³ and Bahar Dinç Durmaz²

¹Artvin Çoruh University, Faculty of Forestry, 08000 Artvin, Turkey.

²Karadeniz Technical University, Faculty of Forestry, 61080 Trabzon, Turkey.

³Kastamonu University, Faculty of Forestry, 37200 Kastamonu, Turkey.

*Corresponding author: E-mail: saglambul@gmail.com. Tel: +90-533 6915749. Fax: +90-466 2126951.

Accepted 17 October, 2008

The prediction of fire behavior in fire prone ecosystems is of vital importance in all phases of fire management including fire prevention, presuppression, suppression and fire use. This paper deals with an experimental burning exercise conducted in the Mediterranean region in Turkey. A series of 18 experimental fires were carried out in tall maquis fuels in Asar District, Antalya, southwestern Turkey. The site was selected for its structural homogeneity. But, there was an apparent variation in the fuel loadings in different plots. Weather conditions were within reasonable ranges during the burns. Wind speed ranged from 4.8 to 14.4 km h^-1, relative humidity from 16 to 76% and air temperature from 23.7 to 36°C. Of the fire behavior characteristics, rate of spread ranged from 0.38 to 7.35 m min^-1, fuel consumption from 1.57 to 3.05 kg m^-2, and fire intensity from 188.72 to 5906.48 kW m^-1. Rate of spread was related to wind speed, relative humidity, moisture content of live fuels and vegetation cover. Fuel consumption was related to fuel loading and wind speed, and fire intensity was related to wind speed, moisture contents of live fuels and mean vegetation height and vegetation cover. Results obtained in this study should be invaluable in fire management planning.

Key words: Fire behavior, fuel biomass, Maquis, shrubland, Turkey.