Fire Disturbance in Tropical Forests of Myanmar—Analysis Using MODIS Satellite Datasets

In this study, we quantified the relationship between fires and vegetation disturbance at varied spatial scales using moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) datasets for the period 2003-2012. We report satellite-derived fire characteristics (frequency, extent, seasonality, and type of vegetation burnt) in Myanmar, the extent of fire disturbance, and the impact of the fires on gross primary productivity (GPP) at multiple scales. Results suggested March as the peak fire season with burnt areas (BAs) of 12900 km2 and 95000 fire counts. Forests accounted for 41.3% of the total BAs followed by shrub lands (33.6%) and agriculture (24.7%). The “low” vegetation disturbance category accounted for 9.2% of total fires, whereas the medium and high categories accounted for about 89.7%. We found relatively higher negative correlation between BA and GPP for deciduous forests (r = 0.49, p ~ 0) than for evergreen forests (r = 0.36, p ~ 0). A maximum decrease in 29% of original GPP (2007-2012) was observed in the evergreen forest patches. The scale-dependent correlation analysis suggested significant BA-GPP correlation at 1 × 1 degree compared to finer resolutions. Our results highlight the impact of fire disturbance on vegetation greenness and GPP in tropical forests of Myanmar.