Adapted to Fire
Regina Sievert, Naida Lefthand and Julie Cajune
Flathead Indian Reservation, Pablo, MT

Summary
Students learn about forest species' adaptations to fire by participating in a scavenger hunt and mapping a burned forest.

Grade level
Fourth

Time required
Three 45 - minute class periods, plus a fieldtrip

Materials
Burn Area Map and Hunt sheet
Satellite image of the Flathead Reservation - see Resources
Student science journals
Books on Montana wildlife and plant life

Goals
By completing this lesson, students will

1. •  be introduced to the concept of species' adaptations to their environment,
2. •  become aware of how some indigenous species are adapted to living with fire,
3. •  gain experience in making maps and
4. •  gain experience in using science process skills.

Science standards addressed
National Science Standards

• Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry
• Organisms and environments
• Life cycles of organisms
• Changes in Earth and sky
• Changes in environments

American Indian Science Standards

• Various forms of scientific and technological work currently engaged in by American Indian men and woman and in what ways their fields require the process of problem identification, design and solution
• Changes in Earth's surface, weather fluctuations and movements of celestial objects and how they affected historical American Indian community locations, annual migrations, and agricultural and ceremonial cycles.
• Observations and understandings of nature and ecological relationships traditionally formed an essential base of knowledge among American Indian cultures

Teacher tips
This lesson would be a natural follow up to the "After the Fire" lesson.   If you do not choose to use both lessons, it would be valuable to discuss with students the history of fire in the Northwest, its traditional use by Native people for managing the environment (see Resources), and how Tribal Fire Control uses fire as a management tool today.

When you invite the Tribal forester and wildlife manager, ask them to bring many visual aids, such as serotinous cones, tree rounds, woodpecker mounts, deer scat, slides and photos, etc.   This will help familiarize students with some of the items they will be searching for during the burn site scavenger hunt.

Ask the Tribal Fire Control personnel and wildlife managers about a good location for the burn site fieldtrip.   Find a site that has many of the features listed on the attached Burn Hunt List.

Teach or review basic map making skills before going on the fieldtrip

Students maps should consist of drawings of the area showing the relative position of features like snags, stumps, rocks, woodpecker holes, etc.

On the field trip, warn students to avoid walking too close or touching burned trees, which can be unstable and may fall.

Background information
Fires, both natural and unnatural, are a common occurrence in the semiarid environment of the Flathead Reservation.   Fire is used today as a land management tool by the CS and K tribes, and was used historically by many native people of the Plateau region.   According to elders of the Salish, Kootenai and Pend d' Oreille tribes, tribal members historically used fire to improve grazing for horses and browse for big game animals, to reduce insects and disease in trees, to clear areas for settlement and to reduce enemy cover, to enhance the growth of berry bushes, to make travel and food gathering easier, to corral deer for hunting, as signals for long distance communication, and to reduce fuel loads that could result in large fires.   For further information on the use of fire by native people review the items cited in the Resources section.

Many species on the Flathead Reservation are adapted to living with fire; some are even fire dependent.   The tree species Western Larch, Ponderosa Pine and Douglas Fir, for example, have thick bark that provides protection from all but the hottest fires.   They also have deep roots, protected beneath the soil, providing stability after the fire when many charred trees fall.   Larch is especially fire resistant, since it contains little resin (which is very flammable) and has high open branches.

Redstem ceanothus and lodgepole pine are examples of plants that have reproductive mechanisms that are adapted to fire.   Lodgepole pine contains serotinous cones.   The resin on the cones seals them shut. The heat of fire opens the cone's scales allowing the release of their seeds.   Redstem ceanothus has seeds that germinate only following fire.   Some fungus species also appear to favor burned areas.

Some wildlife species benefit from fire, appearing right after a burn.   Bark beetles are some of the first animals on the scene, feeding on the cambium of injured trees whose resistance is weakened to insect attacks.   Woodpeckers are also an early arrival, coming to the burn site to feed on the beetles, and nesting in the cavities produced in trees as a result of fire.   Predators that feed on small mammals also become more abundant, as they feed on the voles and other mammals whose homes and cover have been destroyed by the fire.

A fire's intensity influences how quickly vegetation reappears in a burned area.   After a very hot fire, for example, plants may not return for two years, generally beginning with the "pioneer species" of the grasses, herbs and shrubs.   The nutrients released into the soil after a burn and the increased sunlight due to vegetation loss assists in the reestablishment of plants.   The establishment of the pioneer species is generally followed by the appearance of small trees, up to five years after the fire.   The tender young plant growth in a burn area attracts grazers and browsers, such as deer, elk and moose, as well as seed eating birds and mammals.   The production of shrubs and trees provides nesting spots for birds and small mammals.   Again, the presence of these species attracts predators such as fox, coyotes, hawks, owls and weasels.

Procedure
Engagement

1. Invite a Tribal forester and wildlife manager to visit your class to talk about how fire affects the forest and forest species, and how some trees and wildlife are adapted to fire.   Have them show and talk about related items, such as serotinous cones, fire scarred tree rounds, etc., that students will be looking for during the burn area scavenger hunt.
2. Tell students that the class will be visiting a forested area that burned a few years ago.   Show them the site on the satellite image.   Ask them to list in their journals species that they would expect to be using the burn site .

Exploration

1. At the burn site, ask student pairs to draw a map of the area in their journals, noting landmarks such as burned trees, stumps, etc.
2. Ask students to find as many items on the Burn Area checklist as they can, and to draw and label on their map where they found them.

Explanation

1. Back in the classroom, ask student pairs to explain their maps to the class.   Ask them to hypothesize why specific species are able to live in or use the burn site.
2. Make a large data table.   List the species students found and the adaptations that allow them to live with fire.

Elaboration

1. •  Brainstorm a list of other indigenous species found on the Flathead Reservation.   Challenge student pairs to use books, the Internet, etc., to discover at least one adaptation for as many of the species as they can in thirty minutes.   Have them record their answers in their journals in a data table they create.
2. •  Play charades, in which students act out one of the species they researched.   Ask student to explain the adaptation of each to its environment.

Evaluation

1. Examine student made maps for proficiency in the process skills of observation and data recording.
2. Review student journals for evidence of understanding of the concept of adaptation in the data table students created during the challenge activity.

Vocabulary

Follow up activities

• Depending on your students' abilities, the mapping activity could be made more complex to include many math skills.   Students could pace off the area, use compasses, take measurements of trees, draw the map to scale, etc.
• Heat lodgepole pine cones in a low temperature oven to make them open and reveal their seeds.

Resources
Barrett, Stephen W. (1980).   "Indians and Fire."   Western Wildlands, Vol. 6, #3 (Spring): 17-21. - An excellent article with specific information from elders of the Flathead Reservation on the historical use of fire by tribal people of the area. "References on the American Indian Use of Fire in Ecosystems" - A good article from the USDA Forest Service, with many references to other articles on the historical use of fire by American Indians. individual. utoronto.ca/kevin_kim/Indian_Fire_113001.html