Wildfire Behaviour is Changing: Key Findings from the Dava Moor Study

Rob Beeson
1 day ago
3 min read

A scientific paper analyzing the devastating Dava Moor fire of June 2025 offers critical insights into how changing weather patterns are altering the behaviour of wildfires in the UK.

For generations, moorland managers have acted as custodians of these carbon-rich environments. However, this new research suggests that our traditional understanding of how peatlands burn is being challenged by unprecedented dry conditions.

The Scale of the Event

The research focuses on the Dava Moor fire in the Scottish Highlands, which occurred between 28th June and 1st July 2025. Formed by the merger of two separate fires, it became the largest wildfire in recorded UK history.

The scale was truly significant:

Size: Approximately 10,000 hectares were burned in just four days.
Severity: Nearly 80% of the burned area was classified as "high severity".
Comparison: This single fire was roughly double the size of the next largest UK fire recorded in the last 20 years.

Why Did It Happen?

The study points to a "perfect storm" of conditions that moorland managers should be aware of. While fuel accumulation played a large role, the primary driver was the ground conditions.

Leading up to the fire, Scotland experienced an unusually dry winter and spring. By the time of the fire, soil moisture levels were significantly lower than the ten-year average. Essentially, the landscape was primed to burn.

The researchers noted that while high fuel loads (vegetation) helped the fire spread quickly, it was the extreme dryness of the soil that allowed the fire to bite deep into the ground.

The Hidden Cost: Burning Below the Surface

The most alarming finding is not just the vegetation loss, but the sheer volume of carbon released. Typically, wet peat protects carbon stocks from fire. However, due to the extreme dryness, this fire burned down into the peat itself.

Total Emissions: The fire emitted a massive 39,338 tonnes of carbon.
Peat Loss: A staggering 85% of these total emissions came from burning peat soil, rather than just the surface heather or grass.
Moorland Impact: Shrubland (moorland and heathland) accounted for 83% of the total burned area.
Bogs: Even areas classified as bogs, which are usually too wet to carry fire, burned severely because the water table had dropped so low.

This deep burning is particularly concerning for stewardship. When the peat itself burns, we lose centuries-old soil that takes hundreds or thousands of years to recover.

What This Means for Moorland Management

This research underscores the vital importance of land management. The paper suggests that as summers become hotter and drier, the historical "safety net" of wet peat is becoming less reliable. The authors warn that current fire models often underestimate how much carbon is lost when peat dries out and burns.

This reinforces the need for active management. The study explicitly notes that "fuel accumulation likely contributed to the rapid spread" of the fire. This highlights that managing vegetation loads - a core part of traditional moorland keeping - is critical to reducing wildfire intensity. Furthermore, while peatland restoration and rewetting are essential, this event proves that even restored bogs can be vulnerable during extreme drought.

Takeaway

The Dava Moor fire serves as a "bellwether” for temperate peatlands. As custodians of this land, we must remain vigilant. The combination of dry climatic conditions and high fuel loads presents a challenge that requires adaptive management to protect the biodiversity, carbon stores, and rural livelihoods that depend on these hills.

Traditional moorland management and wildfire prevention are more critical than ever, as drier summers threaten to turn our valuable deep peat soil into fuel.