The effect of fire on some biodiversity indicators and determining fire-resistant plant species in Solan rangelands in Hamedan city

A burned area and a homogeneous area without fire (control) were selected in Solan, Hamadan province, to investigate the effects of fire on vegetation and rangeland species diversity. Four transects with a length of 200 m were established using a systematically random method, and ten plots of one square meter were installed on each transect at a distance of 20 m. Vegetation sampling was done for three years in 2018, 2019, and 2010. Biodiversity indicators such as Margalef, Menhinick, Simpson, Shannon Wiener, and Berger-Parker were calculated. The results showed that species such as Astragalus gossypinus, Astragalus verus, Acantholimon bromifolium, and Acanthophyllum crassifolium were sensitive to fire. On the other hand, species like Rosa persica were very resistant to fire due to their rhizome and extensive underground roots. Also, the comparison of biodiversity indicators between control and burned areas showed that the fire in the first year caused a change in plant diversity in the burned area. In this region, after the fire, the diversity of species decreased, and the species richness increased. Moreover, in the second and third years after the fire, there was no significant difference in terms of diversity indicators between control and burned area, which indicates the revival of the burned area after two years.