Fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of Central India

Abstract Forest fire is one of the prominent factors for soil organic carbon (SOC) stock variation across forest types as well as within the same habitat. Assessing the impacts of current fire frequency will provide useful insight into the extent of potential changes in SOC associated with increasin...

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Main Authors: Pranab Kumar Pati, Priya Kaushik, Dinesh Malasiya, Mohammed Latif Khan, Pramod Kumar Khare
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Springer 2025-06-01
Series:Discover Soil
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1007/s44378-025-00080-1
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author Pranab Kumar Pati
Priya Kaushik
Dinesh Malasiya
Mohammed Latif Khan
Pramod Kumar Khare
author_facet Pranab Kumar Pati
Priya Kaushik
Dinesh Malasiya
Mohammed Latif Khan
Pramod Kumar Khare
author_sort Pranab Kumar Pati
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Forest fire is one of the prominent factors for soil organic carbon (SOC) stock variation across forest types as well as within the same habitat. Assessing the impacts of current fire frequency will provide useful insight into the extent of potential changes in SOC associated with increasing fire frequency as projected for the near future. The present study was carried out to assess the impacts of fire frequency on the soil organic carbon stock by preparing a fire frequency map using Landsat satellite image and collecting data by field sampling and laboratory analysis for each fire frequency class. Results showed that total SOC stock varied from 11.98 ± 2.7 to 26.15 ± 6.4 Mg C ha− 1, being highest in unburned areas and lowest in areas with very high recurrent fires. Further, a strong monotonic decline in total SOC stock with increasing fire frequency was observed, with a significant variation of 54.19% in between unburned and highly burned fire frequency classes, indicating a gradual negative effect of recurrent fires on SOC stock. Structural equation model clearly indicated a fire frequency induced decrease in SOC stock both directly and indirectly and the indirect impact was through taxonomic diversity. In the present study, the loss of SOC stock with increasing fire frequency was more for the 0–10 cm layer of soil rather than 20–30 cm of soil layer. No impact of fire frequency on bulk density was observed in all fire frequency classes. Data generated in the present study would add more to the existing knowledge. It would be helpful for development of more sustainable frameworks and effective management of forests in tropical moist deciduous forests to mitigate the present-day crisis of climate change.
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spelling doaj-art-9e776ad2596547b5b0386935ae93b52e2025-08-20T03:27:11ZengSpringerDiscover Soil3005-12232025-06-012111610.1007/s44378-025-00080-1Fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of Central IndiaPranab Kumar Pati0Priya Kaushik1Dinesh Malasiya2Mohammed Latif Khan3Pramod Kumar Khare4Ecology Laboratory, Department of BotanyEcology Laboratory, Department of BotanyEcology Laboratory, Department of BotanyEcology Laboratory, Department of BotanyEcology Laboratory, Department of BotanyAbstract Forest fire is one of the prominent factors for soil organic carbon (SOC) stock variation across forest types as well as within the same habitat. Assessing the impacts of current fire frequency will provide useful insight into the extent of potential changes in SOC associated with increasing fire frequency as projected for the near future. The present study was carried out to assess the impacts of fire frequency on the soil organic carbon stock by preparing a fire frequency map using Landsat satellite image and collecting data by field sampling and laboratory analysis for each fire frequency class. Results showed that total SOC stock varied from 11.98 ± 2.7 to 26.15 ± 6.4 Mg C ha− 1, being highest in unburned areas and lowest in areas with very high recurrent fires. Further, a strong monotonic decline in total SOC stock with increasing fire frequency was observed, with a significant variation of 54.19% in between unburned and highly burned fire frequency classes, indicating a gradual negative effect of recurrent fires on SOC stock. Structural equation model clearly indicated a fire frequency induced decrease in SOC stock both directly and indirectly and the indirect impact was through taxonomic diversity. In the present study, the loss of SOC stock with increasing fire frequency was more for the 0–10 cm layer of soil rather than 20–30 cm of soil layer. No impact of fire frequency on bulk density was observed in all fire frequency classes. Data generated in the present study would add more to the existing knowledge. It would be helpful for development of more sustainable frameworks and effective management of forests in tropical moist deciduous forests to mitigate the present-day crisis of climate change.https://doi.org/10.1007/s44378-025-00080-1Fire frequencyForest fireSoil organic carbonSoil organic matterTropical moist deciduous forest
spellingShingle Pranab Kumar Pati
Priya Kaushik
Dinesh Malasiya
Mohammed Latif Khan
Pramod Kumar Khare
Fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of Central India
Discover Soil
Fire frequency
Forest fire
Soil organic carbon
Soil organic matter
Tropical moist deciduous forest
title Fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of Central India
title_full Fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of Central India
title_fullStr Fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of Central India
title_full_unstemmed Fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of Central India
title_short Fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of Central India
title_sort fire frequencies negatively impact soil organic carbon stock in tropical moist deciduous forest communities of central india
topic Fire frequency
Forest fire
Soil organic carbon
Soil organic matter
Tropical moist deciduous forest
url https://doi.org/10.1007/s44378-025-00080-1
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