Example 3
Fire monitoring in northern Australia

Introduction
Fire is a major land management tool in northern Australia. However, it has only been in recent years that researchers have begun to understand the ecological effects of fire, and the role it plays in areas under different management regimes such as national parks and large pastoral properties. In order to record when an area is burnt and what the effects of different fire regimes are, a comprehensive monitoring program has been established, with flora surveys as the primary field-based tool.

Description of project
Combined with the regional management studies, the fire histories of selected sites are being examined in detail and monitored over a number of years. Permanent monitoring plots on conservation, pastoral and Aboriginal lands are exploring relationships between fire regimes and vegetation responses. Comprehensive flora surveys have been carried out at over 280 plots located from the Cape York Peninsula to the northern Kimberley. The sites were stratified on the basis of landform, vegetation type and fire history (derived from historical satellite data).

Outcome of project
The project is currently running, but the primary goal is the development of ecologically and economically sound fire management strategies, relevant to a wide range of land users, and the maintenance of biological diversity.

For more information

	recommended readings Russell-Smith, J., Ryan, P.G., Klessa, D., Waight, G. & Harwood, R. (1998). Fire regimes, fire-sensitive vegetation and fire management of the sandstone Arnhem Plateau, monsoonal northern Australia. Journal of Applied Ecology 35:829-846.
	weblink http://savanna.cdu.edu.au/research/ projects/firsav.html Tropical Savannas CRC project summary of fire monitoring research.