Fire and Carbon Dynamics: A Global Review of Knowledge and Gaps Across Biomes

Abstract

Purpose of review Fire is a major driver of terrestrial carbon (C) cycling, rapidly releasing carbon accumulated over decades to millennia and reshaping ecosystem structure and function across biomes. As climate change intensifies fire regimes, understanding fire-induced changes in C stocks and fluxes is increasingly urgent. To address this need, we reviewed fire–C studies published over the past fifteen years, focusing on the geographic and biome distribution of existing research, the effects of prescribed burns and wildfires on C pools and fluxes, and methods used to quantify post-fire C loss and dynamics in terrestrial ecosystems. We extracted 17 attributes of interest from 249 studies spanning bibliographic, geographic, ecological, methodological and C variable categories. Recent findings Our synthesis reveals a strong bias toward temperate forests, with regions such as Africa and systems including savannas, peatlands, and tundra underrepresented despite their importance for global C dynamics. In terms of C pools, more studies measure aboveground rather than belowground biomass, microbial communities, or pyrogenic C; in terms of C variables, combustion emissions receive far more attention than post-fire soil and ecosystem fluxes. Prescribed burns are studied less frequently than wildfires and remain geographically constrained despite their growing role in C-focused management. Advances in remote sensing and modelling have improved estimates of aboveground biomass and emissions, but comparable tools for assessing post-fire regrowth, belowground pools, and pyrogenic C remain limited. Summary Priorities include expanding research beyond forests, improving assessments of belowground and pyrogenic C, clarifying the effects of prescribed burning, resolving and better characterizing post-fire net ecosystem carbon balance and recovery thresholds, and strengthening methodological integration across scales. Addressing these gaps is essential for developing a globally comprehensive, policy-relevant understanding of fire-driven C dynamics under global change.