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ARS Home » Plains Area » Miles City, Montana » Livestock and Range Research Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #395595

Research Project: Development of Management Strategies for Livestock Grazing, Disturbance and Climate Variation for the Northern Plains

Location: Livestock and Range Research Laboratory

Title: The Dunn Ranch Academy: Developing wildland fire literacy through hands-on experience with prescribed fire science and management

Author
item McGranahan, Devan
item MAIER, CRAIG - University Of Wisconsin
item GAUGER, RYAN - The Nature Conservancy
item WOODSON, CHRISTOPHER - Us Fish And Wildlife Service
item Wonkka, Carissa

Submitted to: Fire
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/16/2022
Publication Date: 8/18/2022
Citation: Mcgranahan, D.A., Maier, C.M., Gauger, R.P., Woodson, C.A., Wonkka, C.L. 2022. The Dunn Ranch Academy: Developing wildland fire literacy through hands-on experience with prescribed fire science and management. Fire. 5(4). Article 121. https://doi.org/10.3390/fire5040121.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/fire5040121

Interpretive Summary: There is a lack of robust wildland fire science due to a lack of training in essential research methods in the wildland fire profession. ARS personnel worked alongside federal and non-profit partners to collect fuels, fire weather, and fire behavior data during burns at The Nature Conservancy's Dunn Ranch Prairie, a series of burns intended to provide hands-on experience for cooperators while achieving TNC management goals. In addition to increasing knowledge about fuels and fire behavior in the Great Plains, these activities helped develop research and management capacity among cooperators and stakeholders in the region.

Technical Abstract: Wildland fire literacy is the capacity for wildland fire professionals to understand and communicate fundamentals of fuel and fire behavior within the socio-ecological elements of the fire regime. While wildland fire literacy is best developed through education, training, and experience in wildland fire science and management, too often development among early-career professionals is deficient in one or more aspects of full literacy. We report on a hands-on prescribed fire methods workshop designed to provide training and experience in measuring and conducting prescribed fire, with a focus on grassland ecosystems. The workshop was held March 2022 at The Nature Conservancy’s Dunn Ranch Prairie in northern Missouri. It consisted of hands-on training and experience in measuring fuels, fire weather, and fire behavior. Prescribed fire operations training facilitated both hands-on learning and vicarious learning by rotating squad roles among several small sub-units on the first day of live fire exercises. Participants then gained experience as crewmembers for two larger prescribed burns (60 and 200 ha). We report here on the successes and lessons learned from perspectives of both participants and the instructor cadre for what was widely regarded as a successful workshop.