Jennifer Barnes

Jennifer Barnes

About Jennifer

Jennifer is the regional fire ecologist for the National Park Service in Alaska. She has also worked with the BLM Alaska Fire Service and US Forest Service in fire. She has an interest in how burn severity effects plant communities, ecosystem function, and wildlife habitat. Her work has taken her throughout Alaska – with studies in the boreal forests of interior and south-central Alaska to studies in tundra ecosystems. Recent studies have focused on understanding fire regimes and fire effects in tundra ecosystems in north-western Alaska. The Alaska NPS fire ecology program monitors wildfires and fuels treatments in order to understand changes that occur as a result of fire and fuels treatments. Part of the monitoring is designed to assess how vegetation and fuels impact fire behavior. In addition, Jennifer collaborates with researchers to enhance the knowledge of fire in Alaska and the potential impacts of climate change on the landscape.