Post-PhD Research Areas
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Restoration of Sagebrush Steppe Ecosystems
My postdoctoral work at University of Oregon is part of the Joint Fire Sciences Program SageSTEP project with collaborators at Oregon State University and USDA ARS. Using the landscape model LANDIS-II, we are assessing the efficacy of applying different fuel treatments (prescribed fire and mechanical thinning) to restore sagebrush steppe ecosystems in the Great Basin.
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PhD Research Areas
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Bark and Adaptations to Fire
My work evaluates oak bark traits and how bark serves as a protective mechanism against fire. I use field-based quantitative methods to identify the relative vulnerability of different oak species to fire-induced damage and mortality. This is important as fire is increasing in many California oak-dominated landscapes.
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Photo credit: Dan Sousa
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Fire Behavior and Burn Severity
Prescribed fire is a valuable tool in California’s foothill ecosystems to mitigate wildfire risk, yet the impacts of this management practice on oak tree health are not fully understood. To do this, my work measures fire behavior in prescribed fires at different spatial scales, linking this with pre-existing forest structure and composition and post-fire burn severity. By comparing conditions before and after burning, we can form predictions of short-term fire damage to individual trees, and estimate long-term changes to forest structure and health.
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Photo credit: Sedgwick Reserve
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Publications
Brande, Kaili, Frank W. Davis, and Bruce Kendall. (in review). Bark Traits and Expected Vulnerability to Fire-Induced Damage in Three California Foothill Oak Species.
Mayes, Marc, Matthew Shapero, Kaili Brande, Robert Fitch, Nikole Vannest, Roxanne Foss, and Frank W. Davis. (in prep.). Fire behavior responses to grass biomass manipulations simulating grazing intensity in California oak-savanna rangelands.
Fitch, Robert, Matthew Shapero, Marc Mayes, Kaili Brande, and Frank W. Davis. (2023). The Effects of Fuel Load on Prescribed Fire: Implications for Seed Banks in California Annual Grasslands. Grasslands, 34(1).
Brande, Kaili. (2017). Threats to Survival and Recovery Strategies in Endangered Species Act Recovery Plans for California Birds and Mammals. Explorations, Volume 19. UC Davis Undergraduate Research Journal.
Mayes, Marc, Matthew Shapero, Kaili Brande, Robert Fitch, Nikole Vannest, Roxanne Foss, and Frank W. Davis. (in prep.). Fire behavior responses to grass biomass manipulations simulating grazing intensity in California oak-savanna rangelands.
Fitch, Robert, Matthew Shapero, Marc Mayes, Kaili Brande, and Frank W. Davis. (2023). The Effects of Fuel Load on Prescribed Fire: Implications for Seed Banks in California Annual Grasslands. Grasslands, 34(1).
Brande, Kaili. (2017). Threats to Survival and Recovery Strategies in Endangered Species Act Recovery Plans for California Birds and Mammals. Explorations, Volume 19. UC Davis Undergraduate Research Journal.