234 M. E. González et al.


PLATE 1 (a) Nothofagus alessandrii second-growth forest. (b) N. alessandrii forest burnt with high severity in the private protected area El Desprecio and sprouting from burnt N. alessandrii trees (note in the background, left, an adult pine Pinus radiata). (c) Dense post-fire recruitment of P. radiata from seeds. Photos: (a) M.E. González; (b,c) C. Becerra-Rodas.


trees, which frequently displayed protuberances as evidence of re-sprouting following past fire events. Pinus radiata trees died in this mega-fire event because of their greater flam- mability (González et al., 2019). Species of the genus Pinus are highly invasive in the


Southern Hemisphere, where they are used extensively in plantations for industrial timber production (Richardson et al., 1994; Simberloff et al., 2009; Langdon et al., 2010; Cóbar-Carranza et al., 2014; Pauchard et al., 2016; Raffaele et al., 2016). These introduced pines are pioneer species adapted to regenerate after high-severity fires (e.g. from the serotinous cones of P. radiata) or to survive fires and provide seed sources for post-fire regeneration (Williams &Wardle, 2007;Veblen et al., 2011). In the coastal Maule re- gion, fire has been a key disturbance process promoting the invasion of P. radiata into native forest remnants. Fires that affect the matrix dominated by this exotic conifer stimulate the release of large amounts of viable wind-dispersed seeds from the serotinous cones of surrounding plantations, which facilitates their invasion of N. alessandrii and other native forest stands (Williams & Wardle, 2007). After the 2017 mega-fire the fire-prone pines demonstrated rapid post-fire recruitment within the N. alessandrii forests be- cause of the abundant seeds stored in the serotinous cones of killed pines within these forest fragments (Veblen et al., 2011; González et al., 2019, 2022). Pine density was particu- larly high in forests burnt with high severity. Considering that 85%(147 ha) of the N. alessandrii forests were burnt with moderate or high severity, a potentially dense invasion of exotic pines would be expected, which would reduce the resilience of these forests to fire disturbances.


Since 2010, forest fire activity has increased in south-central


Chile. The increase in large wildfires and area burnt, and the extension of the fire seasons, have been associated with in- creased drought conditions and heatwaves (González et al., 2018;Bowmanetal., 2018). Furthermore, pine plantations have been heavily affected (in terms of area and severity) under the extreme fire conditions facilitated by drying and warming climatetrends(Garreaud et al., 2017; González et al., 2018;McWethy et al., 2018), leading to positive feedback between wildfires and invasions (Taylor et al., 2016). Thus, P. radiata invasion afterwildfires converts N. alessandrii forests into areas of fire-prone pyrophytic vegetation (a condi- tion also favoured by invasions of exotic shrubs such as Teline monspessulana and Cytisus scoparius;Pauchardetal., 2014; García et al., 2015;Kitzberger etal., 2016; Raffaele et al., 2016). Major changes in landscape spatial patterns (i.e. massive industrial plantations of P. radiata) and feedback processes (i.e. increased fire activity and invasions of exotic species) are lead- ing N. alessandrii forests into a landscape trap (sensu Lindenmayer et al., 2011). Most examples of landscape traps in- volve a modified disturbance regime and forest structure and composition, invasion processes and climate change as key dri- vers of ecosystem change, which can shift the forested land- scape into an altered and irreversible state that is ecologically impaired (Cochrane & Laurance, 2008;Lindenmayer et al., 2011;Bowman etal., 2014; Cóbar-Carranza et al., 2014; Fairman et al., 2015;Kitzberger etal., 2016; Tepley et al., 2017; González et al., 2021). Recognition of the processes that could lead to a land-


scape trap requires the use of diverse approaches and tools (Lindenmayer et al., 2011). Remote-sensing technologies are


Oryx, 2023, 57(2), 228–238 © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Fauna & Flora International doi:10.1017/S0030605322000102


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