FLAMITS: A global database of plant flammability traits

Abstract

AbstractMotivationThe propensity of plant tissues to burn (i.e. their flammability) is a key trait to understand fire regimes in many ecosystems across the globe. Measuring plant flammability under laboratory conditions allows us to improve both our understanding of plant evolutionary processes and modelling tools for simulating fire hazard and behaviour. Plant flammability has been studied from different but complementary disciplines (e.g. physics, chemistry, ecology, evolution, forestry). However, information is scattered and standardized terminology is lacking, which slows down the progress of research on plant flammability. Here we provide an open access global database on plant flammability traits measured under laboratory conditions aiming to: (a) identify the diversity of methodologies to measure plant flammability under laboratory conditions; (b) standardize the associated terminology; and (c) find geographical, ecological, and taxonomic gaps in our knowledge on plant flammability. We hope this database will stimulate transdisciplinary research and provide useful information to better cope with an increasingly flammable planet.Main Types of Variables ContainedThe FLAMITS database contains 19,972 records of 40 flammability variables (classified according to the measured component of flammability). For each record, relevant details of the flammability experiment are given, such as the burning device, the ignition source, and the burnt plant part. In addition, FLAMITS compiles taxonomic and functional data of the studied species and information on the study site (i.e. locality, geographic coordinates, biome, biogeographic realm, and fire activity).Spatial Location and GrainWe compiled data from 295 studies in 39 countries and distributed across 12 biomes worldwide.Time Period and GrainThe last 62.5 years (1961 to 15th May 2023).Major Taxa and Level of Measurement1790 plant taxa from 186 families, 883 genera, and 1784 species.Software FormatFive text files (.csv), relationally linked.