Organismal impacts of a flammable future: response of the Western Fence Lizard (Sceloporus occidentalis) in wildfire-affected habitats
Ruck, Stephanie E.
Putman, Breanna J
Department of Biology
California State University
San Bernardino, California USA
Wildfire activity is growing globally with increased frequency, intensity, and duration. After a fire occurs, organisms across a range of taxonomic levels are impacted by altered habitats, including reduced resources and increased predation risk. Although there are studies assessing post-fire effects on organisms, these typically address population abundances and densities after a fire. To better understand how organisms are affected at the individual level after a wildfire, we collected male and female Western Fence Lizards (Sceloporus occidentalis) from unburned (> 100 years since last known burn), recently burned (< 1 year since last burn), and older burned habitats (< 2 years since last burn) within Southern California. We conducted Flight Initiation Distance (FID) trials to better understand how animals assess risk in fire-disturbed habitats. Our results show that habitat type did not significantly affect FID. However, lizards were significantly easier to spot higher up in burned habitats as well as at farther distances. Additionally, we analyzed morphological data, baseline plasma corticosterone (CORT), and ectoparasite counts in order to assess the effects of habitat type on lizard health. We found that lizards from older burned habitats had significantly reduced body condition and increased CORT compared to lizards from unburned habitats. We also found that recently burned habitats had a higher proportion of lizards with less ticks compared to unburned and older burned habitats. Conducting post-fire studies at the individual organismal level can be used to inform conservation management decisions for species that are found in fire-prone areas across the globe.