Measurement of soil microbial biomass and abundance offers a means of assessing the response of all
microbial populations to changes in the soil environment after a fire. We examined the effects of wildfire
on microbial biomass C and N, and abundance of bacteria and fungi 2 months after a fire in a pine
plantation. Soil organic carbon (Corg), total nitrogen (Ntot), and electrical conductivity (EC) increased
following the fire. In terms of microbial abundance, the overall results showed that burned forest soils
had the most bacteria and fungi. Microbial biomass C and N from soil in the burned forest were not
significantly different from their unburned forest counterparts. However, microbial indices indicated
that fire affects soil microbial community structure by modifying the environmental conditions. The
results also suggested that low-intensity fire promotes microorganism functional activity and improves
the chemical characteristics of soils under humid climatic conditions.