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Environmental and management determinants of vegetation state on protected areas in the eastern Lowveld of South Africa
Author(s) -
Peel M. J. S.,
Kruger J. M.,
Zacharias P. J. K.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
african journal of ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.499
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1365-2028
pISSN - 0141-6707
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2028.2005.00590.x
Subject(s) - ordination , vegetation (pathology) , herbaceous plant , geography , perennial plant , abundance (ecology) , stocking , ecology , limiting , grazing , herbivore , land cover , land use , forestry , biology , engineering , pathology , medicine , mechanical engineering
Principal driving determinants (rainfall, geology, soil, tree density and canopy cover, animal numbers and feeding classes, and fire) of vegetation structure and function in the Lowveld savanna in South Africa were grouped for a 7‐year period to establish their influence on the limiting herbaceous layer. Grass type, abundance and cover were examined (450 sites; approximately 4000 km 2 ). Using ordination, the variation and differences in the herbaceous‐response variables viz. perennial composition and cover allowed for the broad environmental grouping of areas of similar ecological potential. We demonstrate that areas of higher ecological potential carried higher densities of large herbivores without detrimentally affecting herbaceous composition and cover. The results have implications for land users and policy makers in terms of setting animal stocking density guidelines.