News Humans Fewer fires in Africa these days How flames spread, not how frequently people start them, controls burning on the continent By Alexandra Witze December 19, 2011 at 6:23 pm - More than 2 years ago Share this:Share Share via email (Opens in new window) Email Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X Click to print (Opens in new window) Print Africa, whose iconic savanna landscapes were shaped by fire, actually has fewer burns today than thousands of years ago, a new study suggests. BURNING BRIGHT How widely grassland fires spread in Africa depends heavily on how people have used the local landscape, new work suggests.