Europe funds a project to understand how fire has shaped Mediterranean biodiversity

The FireShifts project aims to identify abrupt changes in the frequency and intensity of fires that had evolutionary consequences for Mediterranean plants, specifically their ability to survive and adapt to fire.

The FireShifts project will study the evolution of different plant lineages (clades) and the characteristics that enable them to survive and regenerate under the influence of recurrent fires. To this end, it combines advanced phylogenomic studies—which allow the evolutionary history of plant groups to be reconstructed through the analysis of large amounts of genetic data—with field and laboratory studies, which will provide information on the different responses of plants to fire. The aim is to detect abrupt changes in fire regimes that occurred in the past.

The study will cover Mediterranean plants from all continents (the so-called ‘Mediterranean biome’), with a particular focus on the northern hemisphere: the Mediterranean basin and California. “The project aims to identify changes in fire regimes – their frequency and intensity – which had evolutionary implications by generating or causing the loss of adaptations, particularly in the various regions of the world with a Mediterranean climate. This will enable us to pinpoint key moments in the history of fire on Earth,” summarises the scientist at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) Juli G. Pausas. “In other words, the project aims to understand the role of fire in shaping biodiversity on a global scale,” he adds.

Transforming the way we understand wildfires
According to the researcher, little research has been carried out into the role of fire as an evolutionary force and a driver of biodiversity. “Very little is known about the evolutionary changes that fire has brought about on our planet. By delving deeper into this ecological disturbance, FireShifts will transform our understanding of forest fires,” says Pausas. “This knowledge will help us predict the biological consequences of the changes in fire regimes that we are observing in many regions of the planet. It will also provide a more appropriate conceptual framework for fire management and the ecological restoration of affected areas.”

The team led by Juli G. Pausas at CIDE has long been studying various aspects of the ecology and evolution of ecosystems characterised by frequent fires. His research focuses on the ecology of dry ecosystems where fire plays an ecological and evolutionary role in shaping species, communities and landscapes. The researcher has worked in different parts of the world, particularly in Mediterranean ecosystems in Europe and Australia. He is the author of hundreds of scientific articles and several books, including the popular science title Incendios Forestales. Una introducción a la ecología del fuego, published in the ¿Qué Sabemos de? series by CSIC and Catarata.

“FireShifts will enable us to make a qualitative leap forward in these studies by analysing more diverse groups with wider geographical distributions, whilst also incorporating innovative techniques. Consequently, the results obtained will serve not only to deepen our understanding of the ecology and evolution of these ecosystems, but also to detect changes in fire regimes that were key to the assembly of biodiversity on our planet,” notes the CSIC researcher.