Distance sampling surveys reveal 17 million vertebrates directly killed by the 2020\u2019s wildfires in the Pantanal, Brazil

Walfrido Moraes Tomás ,Christine Strüssmann,Maxwell Da Rosa Oliveira,Gabriel Paganini Faggioni,Ana Paula Gomes Lustosa,André Restel Camilo,Henrique Santos Gonçalves,Fernando Rodrigo Tortato,Julia Abrantes Rodrigues,Adriana Maria Espinóza Fernando,Diego Francis Passos Viana,Gabriel Oliveira De Freitas,Flávia Regina De Queiroz Batista,Carlos Roberto Abrahão,Rafael Augusto Ducel De Souza,Thainan Silva Bornato,Ana Elisa De Faria Bacellar,Gabriela Do Valle Alvarenga,Alexandre De Matos Martins Pereira,Judite Castedo,Renata Libonati,Luciana Vicente-Silva,Aílton Carneiro De Oliveira ,Thiago Borges Fernandes Semedo,Mariella Butti De Freitas Guilherme,Carolina García ,Viviane Maria Guedes Layme,Rafael Morais Chiaravalloti,Christian Niel Berlinck,Ronaldo Gonçalves Morato

doi:10.1038/s41598-021-02844-5

Abstract

Anthropogenic factors have significantly influenced the frequency, duration, and intensity of meteorological drought in many regions of the globe, and the increased frequency of wildfires is among the most visible consequences of human-induced climate change. Despite the fire role in determining biodiversity outcomes in different ecosystems, wildfires can cause negative impacts on wildlife. We conducted ground surveys along line transects to estimate the first-order impact of the 2020 wildfires on vertebrates in the Pantanal wetland, Brazil. We adopted the distance sampling technique to estimate the densities and the number of dead vertebrates in the 39,030 square kilometers affected by fire. Our estimates indicate that at least 16.952 million vertebrates were killed immediately by the fires in the Pantanal, demonstrating the impact of such an event in wet savanna ecosystems. The Pantanal case also reminds us that the cumulative impact of widespread burning would be catastrophic, as fire recurrence may lead to the impoverishment of ecosystems and the disruption of their functioning. To overcome this unsustainable scenario, it is necessary to establish proper biomass fuel management to avoid cumulative impacts caused by fire over biodiversity and ecosystem services.

Highlights

Anthropogenic factors have significantly influenced the frequency, duration, and intensity of meteorological drought in many regions of the globe, and the increased frequency of wildfires is among the most visible consequences of human-induced climate change
Among the most dramatic wildfire events, stands out the recorded widespread burning that hit the 170,000 k m2 Pantanal wetland, in the center of South America, which may be characterized as an extreme wildfire event (EWE)[15]
While fires burned 16,210 km[2] of the Brazilian portion of the Pantanal in 2019, astonishing 39,030 km[2] burned in 202016.The large quantities of organic matter accumulated in lower, long-lasting flood areas covered by dense aquatic plant communities and floating mats, as well as in the open grasslands subjected to vegetation encroachment, created the scenario for the catastrophic 2020 wildfire in the Pantanal[17,18]

Summary

Introduction

Anthropogenic factors have significantly influenced the frequency, duration, and intensity of meteorological drought in many regions of the globe, and the increased frequency of wildfires is among the most visible consequences of human-induced climate change. The Pantanal case reminds us that the cumulative impact of widespread burning would be catastrophic, as fire recurrence may lead to the impoverishment of ecosystems and the disruption of their functioning. To overcome this unsustainable scenario, it is necessary to establish proper biomass fuel management to avoid cumulative impacts caused by fire over biodiversity and ecosystem services. While fires burned 16,210 km[2] of the Brazilian portion of the Pantanal in 2019, astonishing 39,030 km[2] burned in 202016.The large quantities of organic matter accumulated in lower, long-lasting flood areas covered by dense aquatic plant communities and floating mats, as well as in the open grasslands subjected to vegetation encroachment, created the scenario for the catastrophic 2020 wildfire in the Pantanal[17,18]

Methods

Results

Conclusion