Studies of the Initial Stages of Pyrogenic Successions and Soil Characteristics in Island Pine Forests of Northern Kazakhstan
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This study assessed early post-fire vegetation succession and soil quality in the Amankaragai pine forest of Northern Kazakhstan after severe fires in September 2022.Field studies were conducted in 2023-2024 on control, burned, and cleared-burned plots using geobotanical descriptions, species activity assessment, soil morphological analysis, agrochemical testing, toxicological analysis, and radionuclide measurements.Vegetation recovery followed the pattern of secondary pyrophytic succession, with strong regeneration of fire-surviving pyrophytes and rapid spread of long-rhizomatous grasses, especially Calamagrostis epigeios.Cleared burned areas showed increased meadow-steppe and weed species, which may hinder natural pine regeneration.Burned soils lost much of the A0 and A1 horizons, but heavy metals, potentially toxic elements, and gamma-radionuclide activity remained within permissible limits.The results provide useful baseline data for monitoring and restoring fire-affected island pine forests.
Source: Agrobiological Records
Language: English
Topic: Fire effects on ecosystems
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Life on land
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7208833695