U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Open-File Report 2015–1034

Prepared in cooperation with Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve

Fire History of Everglades National Park and 

Big Cypress National Preserve, Southern Florida
Cover: An oblique aerial photograph of a part of the fire scar left by the Harney River Prescribed Fire #1 (Everglades National Park fire #09003), 

which burned from January 12 to 23, 2009. The fire covered 3,491 acres. It was set for marsh management purposes and to control invasive plants, 

such as Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius) and Old World climbing fern (Lygodium microphyllum). Photograph taken by Thomas J. Smith III, 

January 14, 2009.
Fire History of Everglades National Park and Big Cypress 

National Preserve, Southern Florida

By Thomas J. Smith III, Ann M. Foster, and John W. Jones

Prepared in cooperation with Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve

Open-File Report 2015–1034

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior

SALLY JEWELL, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Suzette M. Kimball, Acting Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2015 

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Suggested citation:

Smith, T.J., III, Foster, A.M., and Jones, J.W., 2015, Fire history of Everglades National Park and Big Cypress 

National Preserve, southern Florida: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2015-1034, 86 p., 

http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/ofr20151034. 

ISSN 2331-1258 (online)

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endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual 

copyright owners to reproduce any copyrighted material contained within this report.
iii

Contents

Introduction................................................................................................................................................................. 1

Fire in Southern Florida and the Everglades............................................................................................................... 2

Fire Management in Everglades National Park and the Big Cypress National Preserve ........................................ 4

Methods...................................................................................................................................................................... 6

Geodatabase Development .................................................................................................................................... 6

Data Summary ........................................................................................................................................................ 9

Fires, Climate, and Water-Level Data ..................................................................................................................... 9

Results and Discussion ............................................................................................................................................ 10

Overall Patterns and Occurrence of Fire............................................................................................................... 10

Everglades National Park.................................................................................................................................. 10

Big Cypress National Preserve.......................................................................................................................... 14

Comparison of Burned and Unburned Areas of the Parks .................................................................................... 18

Fire Frequencies in the Parks ............................................................................................................................... 19

Fires, Climate, and Water Level in Everglades National Park............................................................................... 21

Potential Future Research Activities ..................................................................................................................... 22

Acknowledgments..................................................................................................................................................... 24

References Cited...................................................................................................................................................... 24

Appendix A. Maps of Fires in Everglades National Park by Year ............................................................................. 29

Appendix B. Maps of Fires in Big Cypress National Preserve by Year..................................................................... 61

Appendix C. Proposed National Park Service Spatial Data Standards for Fire History............................................. 78

Appendix D. Fire Project Information and Data Entry Protocol ................................................................................. 84

Figures

Figure 1. Map showing Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida ............... 3

Figure 2. Aerial photograph showing fire burning on Cape Sable, southern Florida, 1928 ..................................... 4

Figure 3. Examples of methods used to delineate fire perimeters; (A) hand drawn on U.S. Department of the 

Interior fire reporting form (X’s represent the fire ignition points), (B) hand drawn on quadrangle (U.S. Geological 

Survey 7.5-minute topographic map), (C) controlled burn mapped in great detail by fire management staff at BICY 

using Global Positioning System, and (D) digitized from a remotely sensed image................................................... 5

Figure 4. Examples of fires represented as rectangles or circles, north of Lostmans Key, southern Florida .......... 7

Figure 5. Graph showing yearly time series for numbers of “Inside” Suppressed, Natural, and 

Prescribed fires for Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–2010.......................................................... 10

Figure 6. Graph showing yearly time series for numbers of “Outside” Suppressed, Natural, and 

Prescribed fires for Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–2010.......................................................... 11

Figure 7. Graph showing yearly time series of acres burned for “Inside” Suppressed, Natural, and 

Prescribed fires for Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–2010.......................................................... 12

Figure 8. Graph showing yearly time series of acres burned for “Outside” Suppressed, Natural, and 

Prescribed fires for Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–2010.......................................................... 12

Figure 9. Graph showing yearly time series of total fires for “Inside” Suppressed, Natural, and 

Prescribed fires for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010.................................................. 14

Figure 10. Graph showing yearly time series of total fires for “Outside” Suppressed, Natural, and 

Prescribed fires for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010.................................................. 15

Figure 11. Graph showing yearly time series of acres burned for “Inside” Suppressed, Natural, and 

Prescribed fires for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010.................................................. 16
iv

Figure 12. Graph showing yearly time series of acres burned for “Outside” Suppressed, Natural, and 

Prescribed fires for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010.................................................. 16

Figure 13. Maps showing unburned areas of Big Cypress National Preserve (BICY; left) and 

Everglades National Park, (EVER; right), southern Florida, based on combined fire history data 

from BICY (1978–2010) and ENP (1948–2010) ...................................................................................................... 18

Figure 14. Maps showing total fire frequency based on data from fire management staff at Big Cypress

National Preserve, 1978–2010 (left) and Everglades National Park, 1948–2010 (right), southern Florida .............. 19

Figure 15. Maps showing total fire frequency by type based on data provided by fire management staff at

Big Cypress National Preserve, 1978–2010, southern Florida ................................................................................ 20

Figure 16. Maps showing total fire frequency by type based on data provided by fire management staff at 

Everglades National Park, 1948–2010, southern Florida......................................................................................... 20

Figure 17. Graph showing total number of fires compared to March–June water levels at Everglades Depth 

Estimation Network station P33, Everglades National Park, 1948–2010, southern Florida ..................................... 21

Figure 18. Graph showing total area burned compared to March–June water levels at Everglades Depth 

Estimation Network station P33, Everglades National Park, 1948–2010, southern Florida ..................................... 22

Figure 19. Landsat Thematic Mapper satellite images showing study area in 2000 before the fires (upper left), 

in 2004 immediately following the fires (upper right), in 2011 providing evidence for lack of vegetation 

recovery (lower left) ................................................................................................................................................. 23

Tables

Table 1. Percentage of fire scar locations and (or) presence that were verified through visual inspection of Landsat 

satellite imagery by year, southern Florida, 1994–2004 ............................................................................................ 8

Table 2. Sample of information on scar visibility and location determined from visual comparison of database fire 

polygons and Landsat satellite imagery, southern Florida ......................................................................................... 8

Table 3. Summary statistics for all fires documented by staff at Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 

1948–2010............................................................................................................................................................... 11

Table 4. Summary statistics for fires, by type, recorded by staff at Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 

1948–2010............................................................................................................................................................... 13

Table 5. Summary statistics for fires, by type, recorded by staff at Big Cypress National Preserve, southern 

Florida, 1978–2010.................................................................................................................................................. 15

Table 6. Summary statistics for fires, by type, for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 

1978–2010............................................................................................................................................................... 17
v 

Conversion Factors, Datums, and Abbreviations and Acronyms

Conversion Factors

Inch/Pound to SI

Multiply By To obtain

Area

acre 4,047 square meter (m2)

acre 0.4047 hectare (ha)

SI to Inch/Pound

Multiply By To obtain

Length

meter (m) 3.281 foot (ft) 

meter (m) 1.094 yard (yd) 

kilometer (km) 0.6214 mile (mi)

Datums

Vertical coordinate information is referenced to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88).

Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the insert North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83). 

Abbreviations and Acronyms

BICY Big Cypress National Preserve

DI Department of the Interior

EVER Everglades National Park

GPS Global Positioning System 

NINO-3 El-Nino-3 

NPS National Park Service

quad quadrangle (U.S. Geological Survey 7.5-minute topographic map) 

SOI Southern Oscillation Index 

RAWS Remote Automated Weather Stations

R2 coefficient of determination

USGS U. S. Geological Survey 

WFR Wildland Fire Report

1 

Fire History of Everglades National Park and Big Cypress 

National Preserve, Southern Florida

By Thomas J. Smith III, Ann M. Foster, and John W. Jones

Introduction

Fire occurs naturally in the environment on most continents, including Africa (Ryan and 

Williams, 2011), Asia (Kauhanen, 2008), Australia (Kutt and Woinarski, 2007), Europe (Eshel and 

others, 2000), South America (Fidelis and others, 2010), and North America (Van Auken, 2000). 

Antarctica appears to be the only continent that has no reported natural fires, although fire is common in 

grasslands of Patagonia and on islands in the Subantarctic region (Gonzalez and others, 2005; McGlone 

and others, 2007).

Natural fires also have occurred over thousands of years, and the frequencies of these natural 

fires have changed (Power and others, 2008). This has resulted in altered ecosystems at landscape 

scales. Recent evidence suggests that the treeless desert pastures of Tibet once were forests and 

woodlands, and charcoal deposits indicate that fire was more frequent in the past (Miehe and others, 

2006). Human cultural development has been influenced by changes in natural fire frequencies. Zong 

and others (2007) reported that human suppression of fires in coastal areas of China allowed the 

development of rice paddy cultivation and, thus, increased the size of human populations. 

In addition to its almost world-wide occurrence, fire plays a role in a wide variety of ecosystem 

types. Grassland, savanna, steppe, woodland, forest, and wetland ecosystems all have fire as part of their 

natural ecology (Veblen and Lorenz, 1988; Chokkalingam and others, 2007; Miller and others, 2009, 

Keith and others, 2010; Staver and others, 2011). Fires affect these ecosystems in various ways, the 

most obvious of which is the direct effect on plant biomass (for example, Van Wilgen, 1982; Mack and 

others, 2008). However, fire has many other effects on ecosystems. Plant species richness, diversity, and 

functional types can change in response to fire (Peterson and Reich, 2008). All properties of the surface 

soils (such as bulk density, particle size distribution, pH, and organic carbon and nitrogen content) can 

be altered by the frequency and severity of fire (Boerner and others, 2009). Faunal communities will 

respond to fire, with some species increasing (Fuhlendorf and others, 2006) and other species 

decreasing, after the fire (Vasconcelos and others, 2009).The position of the ecotone between differing 

ecosystems also is influenced by fire occurrence (Heisler and others, 2003; Briggs and others, 2005; 

Smith and others, 2013). 
2 

Fire has been used as a management tool in various ecosystems around the world. Prairies, 

grasslands, and savannas are fire-maintained ecosystems where fire is used to deter invasion by shrubs 

and trees (Grant and others, 2009; Scheintaub and others, 2009). Similarly, fire plays an important role 

in woodlands and forests by influencing species composition and succession such, as the use of fire in 

coniferous forests to prevent encroachment by hardwoods (Phillippe and others, 2011). Fire also has 

been used to manage wetland ecosystems for more than 50 years (Lynch, 1941; Frost, 1995). Uses have 

included returning marshes to early successional states, increasing forage for wildlife (Lynch, 1941). In 

all fire-influenced ecosystems, prescribed burns are routinely used to reduce fuel loads, reducing the 

possibility of catastrophic fires. 

Fire in Southern Florida and the Everglades

Fire has always been an integral part of the ecosystems of southern Florida, especially in the 

Everglades (Robertson, 1962; Wade and others, 1980; Cohen, 1984) (fig. 1). Botanists and 

ornithologists who explored the area in the early 1900s commented on fires. Small (1916) reported what 

he considered to be catastrophic fires burning from Madiera Hammock all the way to Cape Sable, a 

distance almost 25 miles. He stated: “... we saw miles of hammock and rolling clouds of black smoke 

skyward. This calamity was not confined to the neighborhood of Madiera Bay but in the Cape Sable 

region three or four vast forest fires were seen.” Following a subsequent trip to southwestern Florida 

near Everglades City Small (1923) reported: “The long drought had turned a large part of the vegetation 

into tinder, and prairies, pinelands, hammocks and cypress strands were food for terrific conflagrations.” 

Holt and Sutton (1926) reported extensive fires burning in the Cape Sable marshes during their 

ornithological explorations of the winter of 1924. A fire is clearly visible burning in the Cape Sables 

marshes in a 1928 aerial photograph (fig. 2). Beard (1938) conducted wildlife surveys during the mid1930s in the region that would become Everglades National Park. He reported: “The Everglades park 

area was badly burned during the winter of 1937–8, and there was no time during the drier part of the 

year that one could not see smoke somewhere on the horizon.” 
3 

Figure 1. Map showing Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida.
4 

Figure 2. Aerial photograph showing fire burning on Cape Sable, southern Florida, 1928. Smoke is indicated by 

the solid black arrow and the fire boundary is indicated by the striped arrow. The photograph was taken March 29, 

1928 by the U.S. Army Air Corps.

Early ecologists of the region thought that man, both aboriginal and immigrant, was the primary 

cause for fires in the Everglades (Small, 1924, 1930; Beard, 1938; Egler, 1952). Many of the fires 

reported from 1900 to 1945 were related to man, owing to the extensive drainage of the northern 

Everglades coupled with drought, especially in the 1930s (Beard, 1938; Phillips, 1940; Dovell, 1942). 

Robertson (1953), in the first review of fire in Everglades National Park, showed that lightning was a 

causative factor for many fires. He noted that, during 18 months in 1951–52, about 53 percent of all 

fires in Everglades National Park were caused by lightning. A 2007 study using the fire history database 

of Everglades National Park showed that lightning fires are a common occurrence in the park (Slocum 

and others, 2007). 

Fire Management in Everglades National Park and the Big Cypress National Preserve

Over the past several decades, the staffs of Everglades National Park (EVER) and Big Cypress 

National Preserve (BICY) have acquired a substantial amount of wildfire history data in the form of 

paper records and tabular data (Klukas, 1973; Bancroft, 1976; Taylor 1980, 1981). Over the years, 

multiple methods were used to delineate fire perimeters: (1) hand drawn on U.S. Department of the 

Interior fire reporting forms, (2) hand drawn on 1:24,000 scale U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 

topographic quadrangle (quad) sheets, (3) demarcated using Global Positioning System (GPS) 

technology (DeVries and others, 1992), or (4) digitized from remotely sensed images (fig. 3). The 
5 

significant role of wildfire on the landscape makes the availability of these data in a readily usable 

format vital for many park planning and operational functions, including ongoing fire management 

activities and fire ecology studies, as well as for addressing various resource management issues related 

to the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan. In this report, we document how these data have 

been incorporated in a user friendly spatial database and present an initial analysis of fire in EVER and 

BICY. 

A B

C D 

Figure 3. Examples of methods used to delineate fire perimeters; (A) hand drawn on U.S. Department of the 

Interior fire reporting form (X’s represent the fire ignition points), (B) hand drawn on quadrangle (U.S. Geological 

Survey 7.5-minute topographic map), (C) controlled burn mapped in great detail by fire management staff at BICY

using Global Positioning System, and (D) digitized from a remotely sensed image. 
6 

Methods

Geodatabase Development

The fire history geodatabases are a collection of data detailing the location and attributes of fires 

that have occurred in Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve. These databases 

were created using 1948–2010 fire records for EVER and 1978–2010 fire records for BICY. The 

geodatabases originally were created in 2003. Attributes for the geodatabases were based on the 

Proposed National Park Service Fire GIS Data Standards (April 2003), as provided by the Southeast 

Regional Fire GIS Specialist and predate the National Wildfire Coordinating Group data standards. 

Subsequent updates by both the USGS and the National Park Service (NPS) maintained this format. As 

identified by Everglades National Park fire specialists, 19 additional attributes were added to the 

standards. These attributes are account number, fire cost, coordinates, 9 weather attributes, fire danger 

rating, staffing class, 3 fire behavior attributes, and the water level at the Everglades Depth Estimation 

Network station NP 44 for all years. These attributes were not available for many fires, especially those 

fires that occurred early in the history of Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve. 

Hard copies of paper fire records recorded on DI-1201, DI-1202, and Wildland Fire Report 

(WFR) Forms were obtained from EVER and BICY, and taken to the Gainesville, Florida, laboratory. 

Information was interpreted from the forms to assign the attributes associated with the fires in the 

geodatabases. The interpretation process was systematized by first examining the DI-1201/2/WFR form 

and assigning a corresponding field in the database to the fields in the form. Where none to one 

correspondence existed, or it was not possible to interpret the attribute data in the DI-1201/2/WFR form 

due to lack of an instructional manual, those data were not included in the geodatabase. The design of 

the form changed over time, and access to the form instructions for earlier versions was not available. 

Therefore, the consistency of the data changed as the ability to interpret the forms changed with the 

versions of the forms. Weather data that were not included in the fire reports were obtained from the 

Western Regional Climate Center Remote Automated Weather Stations (RAWS) USA Climate Archive 

(http://www.raws.dri.edu/index.html).

Spatial data about the fires were derived from various sources, including hand-drawn maps in 

the paper fire records, hand-drawn mylar maps, and digital-data layers. The databases were organized 

into ESRI ArcGISTM feature datasets. Each feature dataset includes a polygon feature class that includes 

a comprehensive table of spatial records extracted from the fire records and a point feature class that

includes records of fire ignition or fire centroid points. In cases where no map existed, coordinate 

information was used in the fire reports to create a spatial record according to a strict set of criteria. This 

was often true for the numerous small fires (for example, <1.0 acre) in the databases. 

The databases were checked to ensure that all fires had both a point and a perimeter. The points 

were used to determine whether the fire was classified as “inside” or “outside” of EVER or BICY 

boundaries. It was not unusual for a part of an “inside” fire to burn outside of EVER or BICY. 

Conversely, an “outside” fire may have crossed a boundary and burned areas inside the park or preserve

perimeter. Boundaries also changed as additional land was acquired. The classification of inside or 

outside the park was based on the location of a boundary at the time of the fire. 
7 

Fire perimeter polygons were constructed using the maps associated with the fire reporting 

forms. In some cases, digital perimeters were available. When digital perimeters were available, they 

were compared to the paper maps associated with the fire reporting forms and checked for accuracy.

Where conflicts in information were apparent, the map in the fire report was assumed to be the most 

correct information source and the final information was taken from the map. In some cases, the 

perimeter shape was correct but spatially displaced. This was most apparent when the fire occurred 

along man-made features in the landscape such as roads or trails. In these cases, the placement of the 

polygons was changed and noted in the comments field of the geodatabase. The total area burned for 

each fire then was calculated using ArcGISTM. 

When a fire did not have a map demarcating a perimeter, standard shapes were used as proxies

for the fire perimeters. Circles were used when the burned acreage estimate from the fire reporting form 

was less than 1.0 acre in size. Rectangles were used for estimated burned acreages larger than 1.0 acre 

and were sized to equal the acreage reported (fig. 4). These circle and rectangle fire “perimeters” were 

positioned geographically based on information obtained from the fire narrative.

All fires were categorized into three types: Natural, Prescribed, and Suppressed. Natural fires 

were those started by natural means, in most cases by lightning strikes. Prescribed fires were those set 

by a park fire team for environmental management purposes. A second purpose of prescribed fires is to 

reduce hazardous fuels to provide increased protection for the wildland–urban interface. Suppressed 

fires were those caused by humans that were not for management purposes and were either accidental 

(for example, an escaped campfire) or intentional (that is, arson) in nature. A fourth fire type was 

encountered occasionally in the database. These were reported as “prescribed natural” or “natural 

prescribed” in the fire narratives. In all cases, these were naturally caused fires that were determined to 

be no threat to life or property when discovered, so they were allowed to burn out with no suppression 

activity. These fires were classed as “natural” in the database.

Figure 4. Examples of fires represented as rectangles or circles, north of Lostmans Key, southern Florida. The 

rectangle is the 3-acre Wood Key Cove fire (number 59008). The circle is the Jimmie’s Hammock fire (number 

54002). The background image is a true color DOQQ from 2006.
8 

Fire perimeters from 1994–2004 were visually compared against Landsat archive satellite 

imagery as part of research on the use of satellite data to map Everglades fire history. Cloud-free 

satellite images following the occurrence of each fire were inspected, noting fire scars large enough to 

be visible in Landsat imagery (that is, 3 or more acres in size) that were in the wrong location. Only a 

small percentage of polygons were misplaced, verifying that the reporting-form polygons were accurate 

(table 1). The placement of the polygons then was corrected in the geodatabase. Fires for which no scar 

was apparent in the imagery also were documented (table 2). All locational errors were noted in the 

database.

Table 1. Percentage of fire scar locations and (or) presence that were verified through visual inspection of Landsat 

satellite imagery by year, southern Florida, 1994–2004.

Year Percentage of

verified polygons

1994 86

1995 91

1996 93

1997 91

1998 100

1999 95

2000 94

2001 93

2002 96

2003 98

2004 98

Table 2. Sample of information on scar visibility and location determined from visual comparison of database fire 

polygons and Landsat satellite imagery, southern Florida. 

[NA = Not applicable] 

Fire date Wrong 

location No scar visible Image date Acres

1994_10_11 NA X 1994_11_11_TM5 1,960

1994_07_05 NA X 1994_11_11_TM5 1,000

1994_07_06 NA NA 1994_11_11_TM5 3,500

1995_07_08 X NA 1996_02_18_TM5 387

1996_07_31 NA X 1997_01_03_TM5 53

1996_08_23 X NA 1997_01_03_TM5 878
9 

Data Summary 

The total number of fires for EVER and BICY were calculated for each year for all inside and 

outside fires by type. Total area burned was calculated from the GIS polygon data for the same 

categories.

Fires, Climate, and Water-Level Data

Previous research has indicated that both number of fires and area burned for natural and 

suppressed fires were related to climate signals such as the El-Nino–Southern Oscillation (ENSO; 

Beckage and others, 2003; Beckage and Platt, 2003). Numerous other climate teleconnection indices 

also have been developed, including the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI; Troup, 1965; Trenberth, 

1984), the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO; Schlesinger and Ramankutty, 1994), the North 

Atlantic Oscillation (NAO; Barnston and Livezey, 1987), El-Nino-3 (NINO-3; Trenberth, 1997), and 

the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO; Mantua and others, 1997). Monthly data for these indices were

obtained from the “Climate Indices” Web site of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

Earth System Research Laboratory (http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/psd/data/climateindices/). Water-level 

data for the Everglades Depth Estimation Network station P33 (hereafter referred to as “P33”) were 

obtained from Everglades National Park. The P33 water-level data were detrended because they show a 

steady rise in water levels over time, as is seen for many Everglades National Park stations 

(Karamperidou and others, 2013). Yearly values for, number of fires and area burned (for natural and 

suppressed inside fires only), climate indices, and P33 water levels were calculated for “water years” 

(October 1 through September 30). Additionally, for the climate indices and P33 water levels, mean 

values were calculated for the March–June period of each year, following Beckage and Platt (2003) and 

Beckage and others (2003). This period is the end of the dry season, so vegetation is particularly 

susceptible to catching fire. 

The number of fires and the area burned for Natural and Natural plus Suppressed fires were 

related to the climate indices and P33 water levels using simple linear regression. Prescribed fires are 

for direct management action and are not related to climate variables. These analyses were done for 

EVER only because most BICY fires are prescribed and are not related to climate.
10

Results and Discussion

Overall Patterns and Occurrence of Fire

Everglades National Park

From 1948 to 2010, a total of 2,588 fires were reported in EVER. Of this total, 1,784 fires were 

Inside, with 533 fires classified as Suppressed, 513 fires classified as Natural, and 738 fires classified as 

Prescribed. A total of 804 Outside fires were reported for EVER over this time period. For Outside fires, 

701 fires were classified as Suppressed, 89 fires were classified as Natural, and 14 fires were classified 

as Prescribed. The numbers and types of Inside (fig. 5) and Outside (fig. 6) fires also varied greatly 

between years. These data are summarized in table3.

Figure 5. Graph showing yearly time series for numbers of “Inside” Suppressed, Natural, and Prescribed fires for 

Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–2010. 
11

Figure 6. Graph showing yearly time series for numbers of “Outside” Suppressed, Natural, and Prescribed fires for 

Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–2010. 

Table 3. Summary statistics for all fires documented by staff at Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–

2010. Statistics are defined as follows, SUM is the summation over all years in the database for that grouping (for 

example, Total, Inside, Number). MIN and MAX are the minimum and maximum for a grouping. AVE is the average 

for a grouping. STDEV, SKEW and KURT are the standard eviation, skewness, and kurtosis for the groupings.

Statistic

Total

Inside Outside Combined

Number Acres Number Acres Number Acres

SUM 1,784 1,032,802 804 775,643 2,588 1,808,445

MIN 0 0 0 0 0 0

MAX 73 110,772 41 192,073 73 192,073

AVE 28.3 16,393 12.8 12,312 20.5 14,352

STDEV 19.7 20,666 10.0 29,994 17.1 25,735

SKEW 0.5 2.5 0.8 4.2 1.0 3.8

KURT -0.9 7.5 0.2 21.4 0.3 19.6

A total of 1,808,445 acres have burned in EVER over the period of record, with many areas (for 

example the pinelands) burning multiple times. Of this acreage, 1,032,802 acres were Inside, with 

493,340 acres classified as Suppressed, 103,307 acres classified as Natural, and 436,156 acres classified 

as Prescribed. For fires classified as Outside, the total was 775,643 acres burned, with 649,701 acres 

classified as Suppressed, 108,956 acres classified as Natural, and 16,986 acres classified as Prescribed.
12

As with total numbers of fires, there was great year-to-year variation in acres burned (figs. 7 and 8).

These data are summarized in table 4. 

Figure 7. Graph showing yearly time series of acres burned for “Inside” Suppressed, Natural, and Prescribed fires 

for Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–2010. 

Figure 8. Graph showing yearly time series of acres burned for “Outside” Suppressed, Natural, and Prescribed 

fires for Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 1948–2010. 
13

Table 4. Summary statistics for fires, by type, recorded by staff at Everglades National Park, southern Florida, 

1948–2010.

Statistic Inside Outside Total

Number Acres Number Acres Number Acres

Suppressed

SUM 533 493,340 701 649,701 1,234 1,143,040

MIN 0 0 0 0 0 0

MAX 38 105,700 39 192,063 39 192,063

AVE 8.5 7,831 11.1 10,313 9.8 9,072

STDEV 8.8 17,948 10.2 29,060 9.6 24,087

SKEW 1.8 3.7 1.0 4.7 1.3 4.9

KURT 2.8 15.7 0.3 25.8 1.1 29.4

Natural

SUM 513 103,307 89 108,956 602 212,264

MIN 0 0 0 0 0 0

MAX 46 20,431 7 40,797 46 40,797

AVE 8.1 1,640 1.4 1,729 4.8 1,685

STDEV 8.5 3,534 1.8 6,506 7.0 5,215

SKEW 2.3 3.5 1.4 4.9 3.1 5.2

KURT 6.8 14.2 1.3 25.4 12.3 31.4

Prescribed

SUM 738 436,156 14 16,986 752 453,141

MIN 0 0 0 0 0 0

MAX 45 48,287 3 4,170 45 48,287

AVE 11.7 6,923 0.2 270 6.0 3,563

STDEV 13.9 9,596 0.6 864 10.8 7,563

SKEW 0.9 2.0 3.0 3.5 1.9 3.1

KURT -0.3 5.0 8.8 11.7 2.8 11.6
14

Big Cypress National Preserve

Although the BICY fire program began in 1978, 30 years after the program in EVER started, 

BICY has had more fires than EVER. During 1978–2010, a total of 2,642 fires were reported for BICY.

Of this total, 2,366 fires were Inside, with 1,257 fires classified as Suppressed, 523 fires classified as 

Natural, and 586 fires classified as Prescribed. A total of 276 Outside fires were reported for BICY over 

this time period. For Outside fires, 200 fires were classified as Suppressed, 66 fires were classified as 

Natural, and 10 fires were classified as Prescribed. As with EVER, the numbers and types of Inside (fig.

9) and Outside (fig. 10) fires varied greatly between years. These data are summarized in table 5.

Figure 9. Graph showing yearly time series of total fires for “Inside” Suppressed, Natural, and Prescribed fires for 

Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010. 
15

Figure 10. Graph showing yearly time series of total fires for “Outside” Suppressed, Natural, and Prescribed fires 

for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010. 

Table 5. Summary statistics for fires, by type, recorded by staff at Big Cypress National Preserve, southern

Florida, 1978–2010.

Statistic

Totals

Inside Outside Combined

Number Acres Number Acres Number Acres

SUM 2,366 1,411,899 276 194,473 2,642 1,606,373

MIN 0 0 0 0 0 0

MAX 144 83,017 46 163,552 144 163,552

AVE 23.9 14,261 2.8 1,964 13.3 8,113

STDEV 22.4 20,330 6.4 16,465 19.6 19,454

SKEW 2.6 1.5 4.2 9.8 3.0 4.0

KURT 9.3 1.5 22.4 97.6 12.8 22.4

A total of 1,606,373 acres have burned in BICY during the period of record. As with EVER, 

many areas have burned multiple times. Of the total burned acreage, 1,411,899 acres were Inside, with 

371,411 acres classified as Suppressed, 11,109 acres classified as Natural, and 1,029,369 acres

classified as Prescribed. For fires classified as Outside, the total was 194,473 acres burned, with 190,939 

acres classified Suppressed, 975 acres classified as Natural, and 2,560 acres classified as Prescribed. As 

with total numbers of fires, there was much year-to-year variation in acres burned (figs. 11 and 12). 

These data are summarized in table 6.
16

Figure 11. Graph showing yearly time series of acres burned for “Inside” Suppressed, Natural, and Prescribed 

fires for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010. 

Figure 12. Graph showing yearly time series of acres burned for “Outside” Suppressed, Natural, and Prescribed 

fires for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010. 
17

Table 6. Summary statistics for fires, by type, for Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida, 1978–2010.

Statistic Inside Outside Total

Number Acres Number Acres Number Acres

Suppressed

SUM 1,257 371,421 200 190,939 1,457 562,360

MIN 0 0 0 0 0 0

MAX 144 64,020 25 163,552 144 163,552

AVE 38.1 1,1255 6.1 5,786 22.1 8,521

STDEV 31.4 16,206 6.5 228,417 27.7 23,118

SKEW 1.6 1.8 1.4 5.7 2.2 5.2

KURT 3.0 3.0 1.4 32.5 5.8 31.8

Natural

SUM 523 11,109 66 975 589 12,084

MIN 2 7 0 0 0 0

MAX 55 1,931 46 382 64 1,931

AVE 15.8 337 2.0 29.5 8.9 183.1

STDEV 12.2 554.9 8.0 87.1 12.4 423.4

SKEW 1.5 2.1 5.5 3.1 1.9 3.1

KURT 2.8 3.0 30.8 9.6 3.5 9.3

Prescribed

SUM 586 1,029,369 10 2,560 596 1,031,929

MIN 0 0 0 0 0 0

MAX 41 83,017 2 1,427 41 83,017

AVE 17.8 31,193 0.3 77.6 9.0 15,635

STDEV 9.8 22,315 0.6 264.5 11.2 22,157

SKEW 0.2 0.5 2.0 4.6 1.0 1.3

KURT -0.2 -0.3 2.7 22.7 -0.2 0.9
18

Comparison of Burned and Unburned Areas of the Parks

There are areas in both EVER and BICY where no fires have been recorded (fig. 13). The deepwatered, central area of Shark Slough is one such area. This region has never burned, even in the 

extreme drought years of 1982–83. Taylor Slough is another region with few or no fires. A third region 

includes the numerous coastal marshes among the mangrove forests along the southwestern coast of 

EVER. It is unclear why these marshes have not burned, as many of them have vegetation types, such as 

sawgrass (Cladium jamaicense), that burn elsewhere in the park. Early in EVER’s history it is 

reasonable to suspect that some fires in these regions were simply missed by Park staff. The mangrove 

and marsh habitat on the southwestern coast of Everglades National Park is particularly remote and 

difficult to access. Another hypothesis is that these regions have different soil and sediment types and, 

therefore, are more resistant to fire.

Figure 13. Maps showing unburned areas of Big Cypress National Preserve (BICY; left) and Everglades National 

Park, (EVER; right), southern Florida, based on combined fire history data from BICY (1978–2010) and ENP 

(1948–2010). 
19

Fire Frequencies in the Parks

Maps of total frequency of fires at both parks (fig. 14) during the study years were produced. 

Additionally, maps of fire frequency by type at each park (figs. 15 and 16) were created. Many areas in 

BICY have burned 10 or more times over the period of record. In EVER, some areas have burned 15 or 

more times. Most of these areas are in the pinelands, which historically were burned to prevent 

hardwood encroachment and, therefore, maintain the ecosystem as pine forest.

Figure 14. Maps showing total fire frequency based on data from fire management staff at Big Cypress National 

Preserve, 1978–2010 (left) and Everglades National Park, 1948–2010 (right), southern Florida. 
20

Figure 15. Maps showing total fire frequency by type based on data provided by fire management staff at Big 

Cypress National Preserve, 1978–2010, southern Florida. 

Figure 16. Maps showing total fire frequency by type based on data provided by fire management staff at

Everglades National Park, 1948–2010, southern Florida. 
21

Fires, Climate, and Water Level in Everglades National Park

No relations between the number of fires and area burned were indicated as a function of the 

climate indices. For Natural fires only, there were no significant relations. However, for Natural plus 

Suppressed fires, the total number of fires was significantly and inversely related to March–June water 

levels at P33 (fig. 17). As water levels rise, the number of fires decreases. Although significant, the 

amount of variation explained was low (R2 = 0.07, F1,55 = 4.04, p <0.05). Additionally, the amount of 

area burned for Natural plus Suppressed fires (natural log transformed) was more strongly, and 

inversely related to water levels (fig. 18; R2 = 0.24, F1,55 =19.96, p <0.001). 

The results of this study contrast with the results of Beckage and others (2003). Beckage and 

others (2003) found significant negative correlations between the number of fires and area burned for 

NINO-3, and significant, positive correlations between the number of fires and area burned and the SOI.

We found no significant relation between these climate indices and the number of fires or area burned. 

This discrepancy in findings probably is a result of the dataset that Beckage and others (2003) used. 

They used an older version of the fire history geodatabase than the version used in this study, and their 

version had numerous errors. 

Figure 17. Graph showing total number of fires compared to March–June water levels at Everglades Depth 

Estimation Network station P33, Everglades National Park, 1948–2010, southern Florida. 
22

Figure 18. Graph showing total area burned compared to March–June water levels at Everglades Depth 

Estimation Network station P33, Everglades National Park, 1948–2010, southern Florida. 

Potential Future Research Activities

The fire databases developed through this work serve as a foundation for additional research on 

fire, ecology, and resource management in the Greater Everglades area. For example, these databases

are proving useful in the monitoring of post-fire vegetation dynamics, recovery, and fuel loads using 

satellite data (Jones and others, 2013; fig. 19). The analyses presented here are fairly narrow in scope.

The Fire History database can be further analyzed to generate more information that will be useful to 

park resource management staff. The following is a short and certainly incomplete list of potential 

future directions for fire ecology research in the parks: 

1. Relate occurrence of fires to habitat. None of the analyses examined marsh type. Do sawgrass 

marshes burn more frequently than bunchgrass marshes? Do low-salinity wetlands burn more 

often than high salinity wetlands in the parks?

2. Is there a spatial pattern to occurrence of fire in the parks? Habitats do not occur randomly, and 

the analyses suggest spatial patterns in the fire data.

3. Is occurrence of fire related to soil or sediment type? Soils and sediment also vary across the 

southern Florida landscape. Soils and sediment can be highly organic, mineral, or marl (Egler, 

1952). Does this have any influence on fire?
23

4. Can cost-effective, automated, remote sensing techniques be developed that refine burn scar 

perimeters, characterize within-perimeter burn variability, and perhaps even identify the 

presence of undiscovered fires in the Everglades region? 

5. In addition to the climate indices and hydrology described in this report, examination of relations 

among fire occurrence and type, climate-related factors (for example, changes in precipitation 

and sea-level rise), extreme events (that is, hurricanes), and water resource management also are 

now possible with greater precision and accuracy. 

Figure 19. Landsat Thematic Mapper satellite images showing study area in 2000 before the fires (upper left), in

2004 immediately following the fires (upper right), in 2011 providing evidence for lack of vegetation recovery (lower 

left). Lower right panel shows Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve, southern Florida. The 

yellow box in the lower right panel shows the location of the fires shown in the other three panels. The site is in 

northeastern Shark Slough. 
24

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the following National Park Service employees for their contributions to this 

work: Jennifer Adams, Rick Anderson, Kevin Ash, Melissa Hood-Julien, Tristan Holland, Savannah 

Howington, Michal Jones, Carly Knoell, Dave Loveland, Roberto Palma, Bob Panko, Michael 

Suharmadji, Maya Vaidya, Kelly Watkins, and Mindy Wright. The authors also thank the following 

U.S. Geological Survey employees for their assistance and comments: Kristy Capobianco, Alisa Coffin, 

Andrew Garfield, Andrew Horan, Ursula Nash, Financial support for this project was provided by 

Everglades National Park under Interagency Agreements #NPSAI2380-99-002 and #F5284050010. 

Additional support came from the Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystems Studies, the Land Remote 

Sensing, and the Land Change Science programs of the U.S. Geological Survey, as well as the U.S. 

Geological Survey National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center. The authors extend a special 

“thanks” to Drs. G. Ronnie Best and T. Douglas Beard, Jr. for their support. 

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Appendix A. Maps of Fires in Everglades National Park by Year
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Appendix B. Maps of Fires in Big Cypress National Preserve by Year
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Appendix C. Proposed National Park Service Spatial Data Standards for Fire 

History

(April 3, 2003)

Layer Name: Polygons -<park>fire_pl (ie. glacfire_pl; shenfire_pl) 

 Points - <park>fire_pt (ie. denafire_pt; sekifire_pt) 

Layer Description: Fire History points represent the location at which fires began. The time span 

represented in the coverage or shapefile should be as complete as possible. 

Fire History polygons represent final mapped wildland fire perimeters. These data are maintained at the 

Park level to track the area affected by fire. In the coverage format, polygon perimeters are stored via a 

regions feature class due to overlapping fire perimeters. 

References: NPS Edited Version, DI-1202, Individual Fire Report (12/1994) “Instructions For 

Completing National Park Service Edited Version of DI-1202, Individual Fire Report.” December 14,

1994. 

 SACS – Shared Applications Computer System 

 FEAT – Fire Effects Application Tool 

Spatial Data Source: Best available source with a target scale of 1:24,000 for Continental U.S., Puerto 

Rico, and Hawaii and 1:63,360 for Alaska. 

Horizontal Accuracy: Targeted to National Map Accuracy Standards (NMAS). 

Projection: Unit appropriate. Include projection information. 

Datum: Unit appropriate. Include projection information. 

Units of Measure: Unit appropriate. Include appropriate units for projection selected. 

Feature Type: Point, Polygon, Region 

Region Subclasses Name: fires 

File Type: Arc/Info coverage or shapefile 

Note: The term Unit applies to a National Park Service Management Unit such as a National Park, a 

National Preserve or a National Monument. 
79

Fire History Points -INFO Attribute Tables (Arc/Info Coverage) 

COLUMN ITEM NAME WIDTH OUTPUT TYPE N.DEC ALTERNATE NAME 

1 AREA 8 18 F 5 

9 PERIMETER 8 18 F 5 

17 <PARK>FIRE# 4 5 B - 

21 <PARK>FIRE-ID 4 5 B -

25 FIRE_ID 17 17 C - 

42 UNIT_ID 7 7 C -

49 YEAR 4 4 I -

53 FIRE_NUM 4 4 C - 

57 FIRE_TYPE 2 2 I -

59 GEN_CAUSE 1 1 I - 

60 SPEC_CAUSE 2 2 I -

62 FIRE_NAME 30 30 C -

92 AREA_NAME 4 4 C - 

96 OWNER 1 1 I -

97 DISC_DATE 8 8 D - 

105 CNTRL_ACRE 10 10 N 2 

115 DECLD_DATE 8 8 D -

Fire History Points -.DBF Tables (Shapefile) 

ITEM NAME WIDTH TYPE N.DEC ALTERNATE NAME

SHAPE 8 SHAPEPOINT

ID 8 N

FIRE_ID 17 C -

UNIT_ID 7 C - 

YEAR 4 N -

FIRE_NUM 4 C - 

FIRE_TYPE 2 N -

GEN_CAUSE 1 N -

SPEC_CAUSE 2 N - 

FIRE_NAME 30 C -

AREA_NAME 4 C - 

OWNER 1 N -

DISC_DATE 8 D -

CNTRL_ACRE 10 N 2

DECLD_DATE 8 D -
80

Fire History Polygons -INFO Attribute Tables (Arc/Info Region Coverage) 

COLUMN ITEM NAME WIDTH OUTPUT TYPE N.DEC ALTERNATE NAME 

1 AREA 8 18 F 5 

9 PERIMETER 8 18 F 5 

17 FIRES# 4 5 B - 

21 FIRES-ID 4 5 B -

25 FIRE_ID 17 17 C - 

42 UNIT_ID 7 7 C -

49 YEAR 4 4 I -

53 FIRE_NUM 4 4 C - 

57 FIRE_TYPE 2 2 I -

59 GEN_CAUSE 1 1 I - 

60 SPEC_CAUSE 2 2 I -

62 FIRE_NAME 30 30 C -

92 AREA_NAME 4 4 C - 

96 OWNER 1 1 I -

97 DISC_DATE 8 8 D - 

105 CNTRL_ACRE 10 10 N 2 

115 DECLD_DATE 8 8 D -

Fire History Polygons -.DBF Tables (Shapefile) 

ITEM NAME WIDTH TYPE N.DEC ALTERNATE NAME

SHAPE 8 SHAPEPOLY

ID 8 N

FIRE_ID 17 C -

UNIT_ID 7 C - 

YEAR 4 N -

FIRE_NUM 4 C - 

FIRE_TYPE 2 N -

GEN_CAUSE 1 N -

SPEC_CAUSE 2 N - 

FIRE_NAME 30 C -

AREA_NAME 4 C - 

OWNER 1 N -

DISC_DATE 8 D -

CNTRL_ACRE 10 N 2

DECLD_DATE 8 D -
81

Domain for INFO tables: NPS Fire History Layer (Polygons) 

ITEM NAME: Description 

Valid Values Value Description 

FIRE_ID: Unique ID for each fire; created by concatenating [UNIT_ID] + [YEAR] + [FIRE_NUM] 

Example: AK-DEP-2001-0001 Description: Unique ID for each fire 

UNIT_ID: Interagency unit identifier; comprised of 2 letter state abbreviation and 3 letter unit abbreviation 

Example: AK-DEP Denali National Park and Preserve 

YEAR: Year in which fire started; Item 3c on NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire Report (12/1994); 

Referenced as CALENDAR YEAR in SACS 

Example: 2001 Description: Year in which fire started 

FIRE_NUM: Local Unit Fire Number; Item 3d on NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire Report 

(12/1994); Referenced as FIRE NUMBER in SACS 

Example: 0001 Description: Fire Number 

FIRE_TYPE: Fire Type (1st digit) concatenated with Protection Type (2nd digit) as recorded on DI-1202 

report; Item 4 on NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire Report (12/1994); Referenced as FIRE TYPE in 

SACS 

Example: 11 Description: See document “Instructions For 

Completing National Park Service Edited 

Version of DI-1202, Individual Fire Report.” 

December 14, 1994. 

GEN_CAUSE: General Cause of fire; Item 5 (first number) on NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire 

Report (12/1994); Referenced as GENERAL CAUSE in SACS 

1

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

Natural

Campfire

Smoking

Debris Burning

Incendiary

Equipment Use

Railroads

Children

Miscellaneous 
82

SPEC_CAUSE: Specific Cause of fire; Item 5 (second number) on NPS edited version, DI1202 Individual Fire 

Report (12/1994); Referenced as SPECIFIC CAUSE in SACS 

Example: 1 Description: See document “Instructions For 

Completing National Park Service Edited 

Version of DI-1202, Individual Fire Report.” 

December 14, 1994. 

FIRE_NAME: Name of fire; Item 9a on NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire Report (12/1994); 

Referenced as FIRE NAME in SACS 

Example: Herron River Description: Name of fire 

AREA_NAME: Four Letter Park/Area Alpha code; Item 9b on NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire 

Report (12/1994); Referenced as AREA NAME in SACS 

Example: DENA Denali National Park and Preserve 

OWNER: Land Owner at the point of origin for the fire; Item 9f on NPS edited version, DI1202 Individual Fire 

Report (12/1994); Referenced as OWNER in SACS 

1

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

BLM

BIA

NPS

FWS

USFS

OTHER FED LAND

STATE

PRIVATE

OTHER 

DISC_DATE: Date the fire was discovered (YYYYMMDD); Item 10a (Date) on NPS edited 

version, DI-1202 Individual Fire Report (12/1994); Referenced as DATE DISCOVERED in 

SACS 

Note: Neither the NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire Report (12/1994) or SACS 

requests the fire’s discover date in (YYYYMMDD) format. Dates recorded on the DI-1202 

report or entered into SACS will have to be reformatted to the (YYYYMMDD) format. 

Example: 20010626 Description: Date fire discovered; 

(YYYYMMDD) 

CNTRL_ACRE: Size in acres, to the nearest tenth acre (rounded up), at the time the fire was 

declared under control; Item 10c (Acres) on NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire 

Report (12/1994); Referenced as ACRES CONTROLLED in SACS 

Example: 6238.20 Size of fire at the time was declared under 

control 

DECLD_DATE: Date the fire was declared out (YYYYMMDD); Item 10d on NPS edited 

version, DI-1202 Individual Fire Report (12/1994); Referenced as DATE DECLARED OUT 

in SACS 
83

Note: Neither the NPS edited version, DI-1202 Individual Fire Report (12/1994) or SACS 

requests the date the fire was declared out in (YYYYMMDD) format. Dates recorded on the 

DI-1202 report or entered into SACS will have to be reformatted to the (YYYYMMDD) 

format. 

Example: 20010812 Description: Date fire was declared out; 

(YYYYMMDD) 
84

Appendix D. Fire Project Information and Data Entry Protocol

Shape:

• SHAPE indicated what kind of a polygon we will be creating in the GIS. 

• If the fire record includes a map denoting an irregular polygon, then that mapped polygon is 

considered to be the record of the Perimeter. Thus, the shape would be IRREGULAR 

POLYGON.

• If there is a map denoting the location of the fire, but the fire is an acre or less, then the shape is 

REGULAR CIRCLE and centered on the ignition point. 

• If there is no map, but the fire is greater than one acre, the shape is a REGULAR SQUARE and 

centered on the ignition point. 

• If there is no map or location information included in the record (no Lat/Long or UTMs or TRS), 

then enter RECORD (NO SHAPE) in the SHAPE column. 

• The Individual Fire Report Instructions can be accessed at found at 

http://nctc.fws.gov/resources/knowledge-resources/Pubs9/fire_rpt_inst.pdf 

Fire Identification:

• FIRE_ID is a combination of the UNIT_ID, YEAR, and FIRE_NUM. Enter a hyphen between 

each of the three name components. 

Unit Identification:

• UNIT_ID will always be FL-EVR for Everglades fires.

Fire Type:

• FIRE_TYPE – This number is a combination of Fire Type (Page 4 of the Individual Fire Report 

Instructions) and Protection Type (Page 5 of the Individual Fire Report Instructions). 

General and Specific Cases:

• GEN_CAUSE – may be listed specifically, but may need to obtain from report narration (Page 

6 of the Individual Fire Report Instructions). 

• SPEC_CAUSE - may be listed specifically, but may need to obtain from report narration (Page 

6 of the Individual Fire Report Instructions). 

Fire Name:

• FIRE_NAME – List the fire name exactly as it appears in the report.

Area Name:

• AREA_NAME – For Everglades fires this will always be EVER. For Big Cypress fires this will 

always be BICY.

Owner:

• OWNER – Owner type (Page 7 of the Individual Fire Report Instructions). 

Discovery or Start Date:

• DISC_DATE – Date the fire started or was discovered. Format as numeric, “YYYYMMDD”, 

with no spaces between the numbers. This is the date used for weather and water elevation data.

Acreage:

• CNTRL_ACRE – Number of acres burned by the fire.

Declared Out or Under Control Date:

• DECLD_DATE – Date the fire is declared out or under control. If there is no “Declared Out” 

date but it is obvious from the narrative that the fire was under control and crews left the scene, 

use the last day of firefighting as the “Declared Out” date.

Park Fire Number:
85

• PARK_FIRE_NUM – If there is another number listed in the record as the fire number, list it 

here. This will help keep track of any discrepancies in the fire numbering or naming. 

Remarks or Comments:

• REMARKS - Any judgment calls you may make about the data need to be noted under the 

REMARKS column. 

• Particularly unusual data about the fire should be entered here. 

• Enter notations about the record, such as if the record is a duplicate or if there are two copies if 

one record.

• Note if the fire record is that of a fire located out of state.

• Note the units of fire cost (per acre, total cost, etc.) 

Account: 

• ACCOUNT – The account to which any charges for the fire were made. May also be listed 

under “Fiscal Data” or similar title.

Fire Cost:

• FIRE_COST – The dollar amount that the fire cost, or was charged to another party. May 

format the column as Numeric with two decimal places. Please note in REMARKS if the cost 

was per acre, total cost of the fire, etc.

NORTHING and EASTING - Projection and Datum Information: 

• Use UTM Zone 17N, NAD83 as the spatial projection and datum. 

Weather Data:

NOTE: Do not enter predicted data, only enter actual recorded observations or data from Web sites that 

include actual data and time data.

• Use the Discovery/Start Date and Time of the fire as the date and time for which you obtain the 

weather data. Also, try to find the actual reported data, as some records include a weather 

forecast.

• RAW_STATION_ID – the ID number of one of the three weather stations in the Everglades 

that is closest to the fire location.

• If weather data not in file, obtain from: http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/wraws/flF.html

• WIND_SPEED – Use the maximum wind speed listed in the report or the Web site.

• TEMP – use dry bulb temperature

• RH – relative humidity

• KDBI - Keetch-Byram Drought Index (http://www.freshfromflorida.com/Divisions-Offices/FloridaForest-Service/Wildfire/Keetch-Byram-Drought-Index-KBDI) 

• WIND_DIR – Wind direction should be entered as text (N, NNE, W, S, etc.). If you are given a 

degree reading for wind direction, use the following list to determine the descriptive direction:

• N--- 0 deg to 11 deg and/or 349 deg to 360 deg 

• NNE--- 12 deg to 33 deg 

• NE--- 34 deg to 56 deg 

• ENE--- 57 deg to 78 deg 

• E--- 79 deg to 101 deg 

• ESE--- 102 deg to 123 deg 

• SE--- 124 deg to 146 deg 

• SSE--- 147 deg to 168 deg 

• S--- 169 deg to 191 deg 

• SSW--- 192 deg to 213 deg 
86

• SW--- 214 deg to 236 deg 

• WSW--- 237 deg to 258 deg 

• W--- 259 deg to 281 deg 

• WNW--- 282 deg to 303 deg 

• NW--- 304 deg to 326 deg 

• NNW--- 327 deg to 348 deg 

Fire Behavior Data:

NOTE: Do not enter predicted data, only enter actual recorded observations. 

• R_SPEED – Rate of fire spread in chains per hour (CPH). Only enter numeric values, do not 

enter descriptive values if that is all that is given. If the rate of spread is given in feet per minute, 

just multiply the value by 60 and then divide by 66. This will give you rate of spread in chains 

per hour...66 feet = 1 chain. 

• DISP_INDEX – Smoke dispersion index

For more info: http://www.fl-dof.com/fire_weather/information/adi.html 

• ONE_HR_FM – One our time lag fuel moisture 

For more info: http://new.forestencyclopedia.net/p/p523

• BURN_INDEX – index of fire severity

• FD_RATING – fire danger rating

• FLAME_LENGTH – use the maximum flame length given in the fire record (FEET). 

• FUEL_MODEL – we will only use two models. Enter the code only. 

• D1P3 - pine forest 

• N1P3 - grassland

Staff Class:

• STAFF_CLASS – if listed in report, 1 is the lowest level, 5 is the highest level.

Water Elevation Data:

• This data is entered into the NP44_H2O_LVL column 

• The data is obtained from the following link: 

http://sofia.usgs.gov/eden/station.php?stn_name=NP44#datalinks

• Use Recent or Historic Hourly Data

• Find the date of your fire record (hint: use the search tool to find the date more quickly) 

• The times are hourly. Use the closest hour to the start time/detection time of your fire. For 

example, if the fire started at 1425, use 1400. If it started at 1545, use 1600. 
Publishing support provided by the U.S. Geological Survey

Science Publishing Network, Tacoma Publishing Service Center

For more information concerning the research in this report, contact the 

 Director, Southeast Ecological Science Center

 U.S. Geological Survey

 7920 NW 71st Street

 Gainesville, Florida 32653

 http://fl.biology.usgs.gov/
Smith and others—Fire History of Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve, Southern Florida—Open-File Report 2015–1034

ISSN 2331-1258 (online)

http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/ofr20151034