Impact of Fire and Other Environmental Characteristics on Medium‐Sized Fauna in a Protected Palm Savanna of Central Argentina

Abstract

Prescribed burning programs are implemented in some protected areas to reintroduce fire as a disturbance and to control the lignification of palm savannas. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of fires and other environmental factors on medium and large animal species in a protected palm savanna in Central Argentina. Eight seasonal samplings were conducted across 58 sites, including burned and non-burned areas. At each site, a band transect of 400 × 6 m was surveyed to record footprints and feces. Also, for each site, 19 environmental variables were recorded. The association between habitat use by different species and fire and environmental factors was analyzed using generalized linear mixed models. Signs belonging to five species, Rhea americana, Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris, Subulo gouazoubira, Axis axis, and Sus scrofa, and two families, foxes and small felines, were found. Some of the native species, such as R. americana, H. hydrochaeris and foxes were indeed affected in the short term (2–12 months) by the fire. In contrast, the two exotic species, A. axis and S. scrofa, showed no direct relationship with any fire variable. In general terms, fires had evident effects on native fauna, while they are likely to affect exotic species more indirectly by limiting the expansion of shrubland areas, which are most commonly used by these species.