Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2266
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2266
10 Oct 2023
 | 10 Oct 2023

The optimum fire window: applying the fire-productivity hypothesis to Jurassic climate states

Teuntje P. Hollaar, Claire M. Belcher, Micha Ruhl, Jean-François Deconinck, and Stephen P. Hesselbo

Abstract. Present day fire frequency has been suggested to relate to a productivity/aridity gradient on a regional and global scale. Optimum fire conditions occur at times of intermediate productivity and aridity, whereas fire is limited on the high productivity (moisture) and aridity (no fuel) endmembers. However, the current global fire activity pattern is biased by the predominant burning of grasslands. Here we test the intermediate fire-productivity hypothesis for a time period on Earth before the evolution of grasses, the Early Jurassic, and explore the fire regime of two contrasting climatic states: the Late Pliensbachian (LPE) cooling Event and the Sinemurian – Pliensbachian Boundary (SPB) warming. Palaeo-fire records are reconstructed from fossil charcoal abundance, and changes in the hydrological cycle are tracked via clay mineralogy, which allows inference of changes in fuel moisture status. Large fluctuations in the fossil charcoal on an orbital eccentricity time scale indicate two modes of fire regime at the time. Wildfires were moisture limited in a high productivity ecosystem during eccentricity minima for both the SPB and LPE. During eccentricity maxima, fires increased, and an optimum fire window was reached, in which heightened seasonality led to intermediate states of productivity and aridity. The LPE experienced more extreme climatic endmembers compared to the SPB, with the fire regime edging closer to ‘moisture limitation’ during eccentricity minima, and more pronounced seasonality during eccentricity maxima, explained by the overall cooler climate at the time. This study illustrates that the intermediate-productivity gradient holds up during two contrasting climatic states in the Jurassic.

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Journal article(s) based on this preprint

13 Jun 2024
The optimum fire window: applying the fire–productivity hypothesis to Jurassic climate states
Teuntje P. Hollaar, Claire M. Belcher, Micha Ruhl, Jean-François Deconinck, and Stephen P. Hesselbo
Biogeosciences, 21, 2795–2809, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2795-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2795-2024, 2024
Short summary
Teuntje P. Hollaar, Claire M. Belcher, Micha Ruhl, Jean-François Deconinck, and Stephen P. Hesselbo

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-2266', Anonymous Referee #1, 15 Nov 2023
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Teuntje Hollaar, 22 Dec 2023
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-2266', Patrick Bartlein, 05 Dec 2023
    • AC3: 'Reply on RC2', Teuntje Hollaar, 22 Dec 2023
    • AC4: 'Reply on RC2', Teuntje Hollaar, 22 Dec 2023
  • RC3: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-2266', Anonymous Referee #3, 08 Dec 2023
    • AC2: 'Reply on RC3', Teuntje Hollaar, 22 Dec 2023

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-2266', Anonymous Referee #1, 15 Nov 2023
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Teuntje Hollaar, 22 Dec 2023
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-2266', Patrick Bartlein, 05 Dec 2023
    • AC3: 'Reply on RC2', Teuntje Hollaar, 22 Dec 2023
    • AC4: 'Reply on RC2', Teuntje Hollaar, 22 Dec 2023
  • RC3: 'Comment on egusphere-2023-2266', Anonymous Referee #3, 08 Dec 2023
    • AC2: 'Reply on RC3', Teuntje Hollaar, 22 Dec 2023

Peer review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision | EF: Editorial file upload
ED: Reconsider after major revisions (22 Dec 2023) by David McLagan
AR by Teuntje Hollaar on behalf of the Authors (26 Jan 2024)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Referee Nomination & Report Request started (26 Jan 2024) by David McLagan
RR by Anonymous Referee #1 (26 Feb 2024)
RR by Patrick Bartlein (11 Mar 2024)
ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (review by editor) (12 Mar 2024) by David McLagan
AR by Teuntje Hollaar on behalf of the Authors (26 Mar 2024)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Publish as is (27 Mar 2024) by David McLagan
AR by Stephen Hesselbo on behalf of the Authors (05 Apr 2024)  Author's response   Manuscript 

Journal article(s) based on this preprint

13 Jun 2024
The optimum fire window: applying the fire–productivity hypothesis to Jurassic climate states
Teuntje P. Hollaar, Claire M. Belcher, Micha Ruhl, Jean-François Deconinck, and Stephen P. Hesselbo
Biogeosciences, 21, 2795–2809, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2795-2024,https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2795-2024, 2024
Short summary
Teuntje P. Hollaar, Claire M. Belcher, Micha Ruhl, Jean-François Deconinck, and Stephen P. Hesselbo
Teuntje P. Hollaar, Claire M. Belcher, Micha Ruhl, Jean-François Deconinck, and Stephen P. Hesselbo

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Short summary
Fires are limited in year-round wet climates (tropical rainforests, too wet), and in year-round dry climates(deserts, no fuel). This concept, the intermediate-productivity gradient, explains the global pattern of fire activity. Here we test this concept for climate states of the Jurassic (~190 Myr ago). We find that the intermediate-productivity gradient also applies in the Jurassic, despite the very different ecosystem assemblages, with fires most frequent at times of high seasonality.