Effect of Fire on Vegetation Cover in Acacia seyal Forests at Blue Nile State - Sudan

Abstract

This study was carried out in Acacia seyal forests, in Elnour forest, east of Eldamazeen in the Blue Nile State, Sudan where seasonal fires occur to examine the effect of fire on vegetation cover richness and density. In savannahs, the main short term impact of fires is to prevent the replacement of herbaceous strata by woody biomass and to enhance the production of some graminaceous species and fires may also induce long-term changes in vegetation cover through their impact on soil nutrients. The most common causes of forest fires in Sudan were honey collectors, cleaning of agricultural lands, conflicts between farmers and nomads and smokers. Grass fire with three intensities (light, moderate and severe) was applied for three consecutive seasons. The results showed that the fire had no effect on vegetation cover richness and density, but both of them affected through time they were decreased significantly in the third season. The study showed some species as fire resistance; they were not affected with fire with its three intensities through three seasons, while they were species were disappearing after two seasons. One of these species was one of the dominant species (Cymbobogon nrvatus).there were species that appear in the site after fire.