LONG-TERM VEGETATION, FIRE AND GEOMORPHOLOGICAL HISTORY OF A SMALL SIERRA NEVADA WATERSHED

Preliminary results from a reconstruction of vegetation, fire, and geomorphological history of a small watershed over the last 7,000 years based on lake sedimentary charcoal, pollen, and plant macrofossils; as well as evidence from fire scars from throughout the watershed. The purpose of the study is to determine the frequency of fire and associated vegetation within the watershed over the last 7,000 years, as well as the incidence and spatial distribution of individual fires over the past 600 years.