All Hands Ecology’s Fire Forward program on Saturday conducted a 27-acre controlled burn of annual grassland and oak savannah at Bouverie Preserve near Glen Ellen. Ecological objectives for this event were timed to reduce non-native and invasive plants, promote native bunchgrasses and native wildflowers and to offer a ‘live fire’ cooperative training opportunity for regional fire fighters, land managers and private landowners.

These acres were the first to be treated at Bouverie Preserve with a controlled burn since the 2017 Nuns Fire, and were selected for treatment under the new regional plan for fire and vegetation management developed by the Sonoma Valley Wildlands Collaborative, of which All Hands Ecology is a member.

En la quema controlada participó una amplia gama de socios regionales, incluidos miembros de la Colaboración, el Cuerpo de Bomberos Voluntarios de Mayacamas, el Cuerpo de Bomberos Voluntarios de Bodega, el Cuerpo de Bomberos Voluntarios de Geyserville, el Área Recreativa Nacional Golden Gate y la Fundación Laguna de Santa Rosa. Además, se emparejó a miembros del público que acababan de terminar un curso básico de incendios forestales con instructores experimentados para que tuvieran la oportunidad de participar en su primer "fuego real".

Prior to the burn, All Hands Ecology’s avian ecologists and stewardship staff conducted a survey, identifying all birds within the burn units and looking for nesting behavior, in particular, of certain sensitive species, including: Olive-sided Flycatcher, Grasshopper Sparrow, Purple Martin, and Yellow Warbler.

The acres treated will continue to be monitored under a protocol developed by All Hands Ecology’s stewardship staff.
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For more coverage of this controlled burn, see The Press Democrat article >