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A model for the explanation of vegetation stripes (tiger bush)
Author(s) -
Lejeune O.,
Tlidi M.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
journal of vegetation science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1654-1103
pISSN - 1100-9233
DOI - 10.2307/3237141
Subject(s) - vegetation (pathology) , arid , ecology , common spatial pattern , population , geography , spatial ecology , range (aeronautics) , geology , physical geography , biology , medicine , pathology , materials science , demography , sociology , composite material
. Regular vegetation patterns appear on aerial views of plateaux in SW Niger where densely and sparsely populated zones alternate with each other. This spatial organization of the vegetation is an endogenous phenomenon which is not limited to specific plants or soils; it is a characteristic landscape of many arid regions throughout the world. The phenomenon is interpreted as the result of a spatial range difference between two biologically distinct interactions operating at the plant population level. The proposed mechanism is independent of external heterogeneities deriving from soil geomorphology or meteorology. We present a model to simulate the genesis of vegetation stripes. In addition, the model predicts the occurrence of vegetation hexagons corresponding to higher or lower density spots arranged in a hexagonal lattice. The distinction between the two spatial symmetries is discussed in terms of their Fourier transforms.