Fire modulates herbivore dynamics in open ecosystems. While extensive work demonstrates the interaction between fire and vertebrate grazers, less research describes how grasshopper herbivory dynamics respond to fire.
AimWe examined how fire increased grass crude protein content and increased the density of and offtake by grasshoppers relative to unburned mixed-grass prairie.
MethodsWe deployed grasshopper exclusion cages to determine grasshopper offtake of aboveground plant biomass, counted grasshopper abundance throughout the study period, and measured crude protein content of aboveground grass biomass.
Key resultsOfftake and density were higher in burned versus unburned plots. Burned plot grasshopper density increased over time, with greater rates of increase in recently burned plots, while density remained constant in unburned locations.
ConclusionsWe present a potential mechanism by which fire interacts with grasshoppers in open ecosystems. It is likely that greater grasshopper offtake and density in recently-burned plots is at least partially attributable to higher crude protein content, as grass in these plots has a much higher proportion of recent growth after fire removed senesced material.
ImplicationsGrasshopper herbivory likely acts as a multiplier of livestock herbivory in burned rangeland. Restoring fire regimes can balance direct negative effects of heating against nutritional benefits.
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