Working with Philomath Fire & Rescue (PF&R) I have not had a lot of exposure with prescribed burns. However on Friday, October 16, 2015 PF&R was called into to assist the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) with a prescribed burn on Lupine Meadows, a Greenbelt Land Trust property near Philomath. The purpose of the prescribed burn was to improve habitat for the endangered Fender’s blue butterfly. The area was around seven acres of upland prairie and the prescribed fire was intended to remove the current vegetation so that at another time the area could be reseeded with native flowering plants beneficial to the Fender’s blue butterfly. Before starting the prescribed burn the agencies were divided up with tasks and the overall goal of the project was stated. At the start, apparatus and personnel wetted down the perimeter of the site to create a fuel break since the primary fuels of the fire were dried grasses.

Moore, R. (Photographer). (2015, October 16). Wetting down the mowed fire line to control the perimeter of the fire [digital image].  Retrieved from the Institute for Applied Ecology

The prescribed burn was initiated by drip torches on the north portion of the prairie and with strong wind blowing towards the south the fire created patches of burned and unburned material. It was interesting to see the progression because the wind initially was non-existent and the fire would die leaving majority of the fuels untouched but as soon as the wind picked up providing more oxygen for the fire more vegetation was burned. In the picture below you can see the vegetation type and an ODF firefighter utilize a drip torch to spread the fire. 

Moore, R. (Photographer). (2015, October 16). An ODF fire-fighter lighting the thatch with a drip torch [digital image]. Retrieved from the Institute for Applied Ecology 

In this photo you can see how the fire has not burned uniformly through the landscape leaving patches of burned and unburned fuel. 

Moore, R. (Photographer). (2015, October 16). A Philomath Fire & Rescue fire-fighter lighting thatch with a drip torch [digital image]. Retrieved from the Institute for Applied Ecology

Overall the burn worked compared to our initial parameters and the site has been reseeded. I hope to find that this burn will have had a positive effect on the Fender’s blue butterfly.