Effects of Fire Burn Severity on Bromus tectorum in the 2006 Flick Creek Fire Burn Perimeter in the North Cascades National Park of Washington State

Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) is a grass species that has invaded the North Cascades National Park (NCNP), crowding out native species by using the resources they depend on to survive. The presence of invasive species can effectively alter functions in an ecosystem, becoming serious threats to native species and may potentially lead to greater global change (D'Antonio & Peter, 1992). In addition to the effects cheatgrass has on ecosystems, its barbed spikelets have been known to cause serious injury to young livestock, getting into the tender tissues around their mouths (Stewart & A.C., 1949). Unlike native grasses, cheatgrass has a high tolerance for fire and is often found in disturbed areas. It is a winter annual that dies and then dries out in spring, making the grass more conducive to fire, increasing the likelihood of wildfires and resulting in a positive feedback fire cycle and an explosion of cheatgrass (D'Antonio & Peter, 1992 and Baker, 2006). Its seeds can survive fire events and may thrive where fires have removed the native grasses, making room for the aggressive cheatgrass seeds to develop with little competition. The fire ecologists of the NCNP are reintroducing fire into the park’s ecosyste