Fire season effects on orthopteran populations at Hunkah and Bogart prairies at Prairie State Par

Research on responses of tallgrass prairie insects to fire is needed to ensure that this widely used management technique will not alter the probability of survival of species that are restricted to remnants. Effects of prescribed fire timing on Orthoptera (grasshoppers, crickets and katydids) at Prairie State Park in Missouri is evaluated. Data were analyzed to determine the effects of different burn seasons (summer, fall, winter and spring) on orthopteran abundance, richness and diversity.;The only significant changes found due to fire timing were an increase in abundance of adults in the sweep samples in summer, fall and winter burn plots and an increase in diversity in summer and fall burn plots. Detectable changes occurred in other variables between the July and August post treatment data, yet these were not correlated with burn season. These changes instead reflect seasonal variation. There were no detectable changes in remnant-dependent species.