Effects of single and repeat wildfires on forest structure and fuels in the South Fork Flathead watershed within the Bob Marshall Wilderness

Wilderness areas offer value to society as a source of scientific information. In 2011, 2012, and 2015 we collected data on tree stands, seedling and sapling regeneration, fuel loads, and ground cover on up to 30 sites within South Fork Flathead River Valley of the Bob Marshall Wilderness in Montana. All 30 sites had burned within the last decade, which allowed for investigation into the drivers of fire effects that produce heterogeneous post-fire tree and stand-level mortality. Tree survival 8–13 years after fire depended on complex interactions between species, size, and initial burn severity. Following the initial round of data collection, 10 sites reburned. These sites were directly across the Flathead River from 10 sites that remained once-burned, which allowed us to quantify the effects of a recent reburn on forest structure and fuels using a before-after-control-impact study design. Data include tree stand data, regeneration data, fuels, and estimates of ground cover. Managers can use this data set to inform the design and monitoring of forest landscape restoration prescriptions.
To quantify the effects of an initial fire and subsequent reburn on forest structure and fuels, as well as the drivers of tree mortality on an individual tree and community level.