Effects of a large wildfire on the community composition of medium and large mammals in a neotropical savannah

Background. The Cerrado is a neotropical savannah with high mammalian diversity where wildfires are rather common and highly relevant to its ecological patterns and processes. The effects of fire on Cerrado mammals, however, are poorly understood.Aims. We investigated the effects of an unplanned large wildfire (burned area similar to 66 000 ha) on medium and large mammals in a Cerrado area in Brazil, focusing on fire-driven changes in community composition up to 3 years after fire.Methods. We evaluated burned and unburned sites before and after the wildfire, using 54 camera traps between 2017 and 2020. Total trap effort was 6334 days (unburned areas) and 7670 days (burned areas).Key results. We recorded 25 species in burned and 19 in unburned areas. Fire markedly affected the community up to 3 years after burning. A canonical correspondence analysis indicated that herbivores (tapirs and pampas deer) were common in the burned areas, with an increase in the relative abundance of carnivores the second year after fire.Conclusions. Community-level responses were complex, with guild-dependent changes and effects still detected 3 years after fire.Implications. Management strategies that include patch mosaic burns (with areas unburned and burned 1 and 2 years earlier) could contribute to maintenance of local mammal diversity.

Automated summary

This study investigated the effects of a large unplanned wildfire on medium and large mammals in the Cerrado area of Brazil. The results showed that the wildfire led to changes in community composition, particularly affecting the abundance of herbivores and carnivores for up to three years after the fire.