Table 1 Summary of management history and weather conditions on the day of the most recent burn for the study sites. Timber harvesting activities included overstory removal (OSR), commercial thinning (Thin), and establishment dates of new pine plantations (Est). Daily weather conditions were obtained from the Salisbury Airport, located approximately 6.5 km northeast of the study areas. RH = relative humidity; Temp = maximum temperature. The magnitude of the rain event that reset the count of the rain-free days variable is given in centimeters, in parenthesis. Variables entered into the feature selection algorithm are indicated by an asterisk (*)
Site name | Sample (n) | Area (ha) | Cover type | Harvest type (yr) | Date burned | Number of prior burns* | Minimum RH* (%) | Temp* (°C) | Average wind speed* (km hr−1) | Rain-free days* (n) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BU-9 | 29 | 11.9 | Hardwood–pine regrowth | OSR (2008) | 20 May 2015 | 2 | 44 | 22.2 | 16.1 | 1 (0.8) |
BU-16 | 41 | 23.9 | Pre-commercial pine | Est (2004) | 24 Feb 2017 | 1 | 57 | 23.3 | 11.3 | 7 (0.7) |
BU-2 | 64 | 33.9 | Hardwood–pine regrowth | OSR (2007) | 24 Feb 2017 | 1 | 57 | 23.3 | 11.3 | 7 (0.7) |
BU-FT | 30 | 2.4 | Closed-canopy pine | Est (1998) | 23 Mar 2017 | 0 | 17 | 8.3 | 9.7 | 3 (0.4) |
BU-10 | 20 | 41.7 | Open-canopy pine | Thin (2007) Thin (2016) | 10 Apr 2017 | 2 | 31 | 25 | 16.1 | 3 (1.0) |
BU-8 | 16 | 2.3 | Open-canopy pine | Thin (2008) Thin (2016) | 20 Apr 2017 | 0 | 52 | 27.2 | 9.7 | 13 (1.0) |
BU-7 | 28 | 21.1 | Hardwood–pine regrowth | OSR (2008) | 20 Apr2017 | 2 | 52 | 27.2 | 9.7 | 13 (1.0) |