The Fire Ecology of Pines and Oaks 
in the Chiricahua Mountains, AZ

The pine-oak forests of the mountains (or "sky islands") of the Arizona-Mexico borderlands are naturally maintained by lightning-caused fire. Dr. Barton continues his long-term research on the fire ecology of these pines and oaks at the American Museum of Natural History's Southwestern Research Station in the Chiricahua Mountains. His most recent work focuses on how anomalous high-severity fires (resulting from decades of fire suppression) transform these ecosystems. 

For more information, contact Dr. Drew Barton