Abstract

FERREIRA-LEITE, Flora et al. Large Forest Fires in Portugal Mainland as a Result of Fire Disturbances in Fire Regime in Mediterranean World. Silva Lus. [online]. 2013, vol.21, n.Especial, pp.127-142. ISSN 0870-6352.

Although the fire has shaped the Mediterranean ecosystems, the occurrence of fire regimes, i.e., their frequency and intensity, have changed, and contributed to a scenario where fires have become not only more likely to occur, but also more difficult to extinguish. In Portugal, the number of large fires (=100ha), although statistically irrelevant when compared with the total occurrences representing the past 3 decades only 0.8% of cases, is, however, responsible for the majority of area burned annually, representing 73% of the total area burned during the same period. Although in recent years, there is no statistically significant increase in their number, there is still a slight tendency in the increase of the size of the greater large forest fires, much more marked the larger its greatness.

Keywords : Fire regimes; global changes; large forest fires; burnt area.

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