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The Eastern Arc Mountains are one of the most important ecosystems that conserve
biodiversity in the world. These ecosystems are threatened by the increasing oc-
currence of wildfires. Nevertheless, there is inadequate information useful for the
development of effective strategies to prevent or respond to future fires. This paper
analyses the current extent of dry season fires, underlying causes and the effective-
ness of the fire management strategy being implemented in and around the Uluguru
Nature Forest Reserve (UNFR) between 2016 and 2021. Differenced Normalised
Burn Ratio derived from Landsat satellite images was applied to determine the extent
of burned areas, and focus group discussions were held to determine the underly-
ing causes of fires and the extent of implementation of fire management strategies.
About 2% (472 ha) of reserved UNFR and 5% (2,854 ha) of unreserved forests were
burned in 2017. Some of the fires impacted on 60% (370 ha) of the grassy Lukwangule
plateau, which is home to a fire-sensitive endemic species. The underlying causes
of fires varied spatially across the mountains but generally, fire escaping from farm
preparation and hunting activities were found to be the most prevalent. On aver-
age, survey participants perceived that fire management strategy objectives were
achieved by only 29% mainly constrained by a shortage of financial and human re-
sources. Our findings suggest that ignitions and fire spread in UNFR could be pre-
vented or controlled through sustainable funding of fire management activities and
the effective engagement of local communities in the management of the reserve. |
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