A prescribed fire is conducted, generally, under ideal conditions and with specific goals and objectives in mind. Factors such as wind speed and direction, relative humidity, temperature, fuel moisture and fuel type, and drought index are all important factors to address prior to conducting a prescribed burn. A prescribed fire may target hazardous fuel loadings to lessen the potential for wildfire, or may aim at habitat restoration for endangered or threatened species such as restoring an early successional vegetative community in sand pine scrub to benefit eastern indigo snakes, Florida scrub jays, or gopher tortoises. Some wildlife may be killed in prescribed burns, but several factors combine to limit losses when compared to uncontrolled wildfires. Prescribed burns are usually small, less intense, slower spreading, and generally create a mosaic pattern of burned and unburned fuels.
Unburned areas serve as refugia for slower moving wildlife such as small rodents and reptiles.
Birds can simply just fly to a more desirable location. Fire is an integral part of most Florida plant communities such as sandhills, pine flatwoods, scrub, and 'Glades. Without fire, unique plants and animals associated with these ecosystems originally maintained by fire are lost forever. Fox squirrels, gopher tortoises, red-cockaded woodpeckers, eastern indigo snakes, Florida pine snakes, Eastern diamondback rattlesnakes, wiregrass, and Florida scrub jays are just a few of the listed species which depend on fire.