Fire in Rangelands and its Role in Management

Fire is a prevalent feature of most rangelands, whereas not all fire-prone ecosystems are rangelands. The major rangeland ecosystems at a global scale (savanna, grasslands, steppe and grassy woodlands) generally occur in regions of intermediate rainfall, are dominated by grasses and experience regular fire (annually to one every few years). In broad transitional zones with both drier and wetter regions, long-term rainfall deviations are largely responsible for fire in vegetation which otherwise doesn't carry fire. Consequently fire is relatively infrequent in these transitional zones.