Natural Disasters Research

Hummingbirds in Wildfires

By: Anya Kasturi

1. What is my natural disaster?

My natural disaster is wildfires.

Learn more about wildfires- National Geographic

2. The cause of the natural disaster:

- Humans cause 90% of the wildfires in the United states and overall. Things like discarded cigarettes, unattended campfires, burning debris, or through equipment malfunctions. Lightning, volcanoes, and extreme weather events may also lead to the natural disaster of a wildfire.

3. Most Dangerous Wildfires In History:

1. Peshtigo Fire
   • The world's deadliest wildfire, which burned 1.2 million acres in Wisconsin and Michigan in October 1871, killing over 1,100 people
     
2. Cloquet snd Moose Lake Fires
   • This wildfire in northern Minnesota in 1918 killed 453 people and destroyed 38 communities
     
3. Maui Wildfires:
   • These wildfires in 2023 destroyed the historic town of Lahaina and left thousands of residents without homes. They are considered the deadliest wildfire in the United States in more than a century
   
   

   ---

   Wildfires in Rainforests:

   • Negative Effects

   
   - Biodiversity Loss: Rainforests are home to a large amount of biodiversity, and wildfires can cause devastating consequences for the entire ecosystem. Native species in rainforests are not adapted to fire, and repeated burning can lead to species becoming extinct - The smoke from these fires can affect weather patterns to reduce rainfall, which creates droughts and more fire-prone conditions in surviving forests. Additional negative effects include lasting for weeks, displacing Indigenous communities, destroying biodiversity and releasing carbon into the atmosphere.
   
   

   • Positive effects

   
   - Wildires can help thin the canopy, allowing sunlight to reach the forest floor. For the soil,the combination of new light, open space, and nutrient-rich ash creates the perfect conditions for new seedlings.
   
   Study About Forest Burning on Amazon Biodiversity

   ---

   Wildfires Impact on Hummingbirds:

   ---

   Wildfires can have both positive and negative affects on hummingbirds.

   • Positive Effects

   
   - Wildfires can create openings in large conifers, which allows more sunlight to reach the ground and for nectar-producing flowers to grow. This can benefit hummingbirds by providing foraging habitat.
   
   

   • Negative Effects

   
   - Wildfires can also have negative affects on hummingbirds such as loss of nesting sites, loss of food sources, smoke inhalation, or declining bird diversity.

   ---

   Sources:

   1. Management,Federal Emergency."Wildfire What." Protective Actions Research, FEMA, 17 Feb. 2022, community.fema.gov/ProtectiveActions/s/article/Wildfire-What.
   
   
   2. Service , National Park. "Wildfire Causes and Evaluations (U.S. National Park Service)." National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 8 Mar. 2022, www.nps.gov/articles/wildfire-causes-and-evaluation.htm.
   
   
   3. Earth.Org, Earth.org. "17 Largest Wildfires in US History." Earth.Org, 3 May 2024, earth.org/worst-wildfires-in-us-history/.
   
   
   4. FA, DW. "Drought Fuels Wildfires in the Amazon." NASA, NASA, 11 Oct. 2023, earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/151965/drought-fuels-wildfires-in-the-amazon.
   
   
   5. DA, US. "USDA." Effects of Fire and Restoration on Habitats and Populations of Western Hummingbirds: A Literature Review, Mar. 2020, www.fs.usda.gov/rm/pubs_series/rmrs/gtr/rmrs_gtr425.pdf.

   ---

   Links to Partner's Webpages :

   Brayden's Program
   Ishan's Program