Threatened Limestone Fynbos plant communities of Andrew’s Field and Tsaba-Tsaba Nature Reserve, Western Cape

Bothalia ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-102
Author(s):  
M. M. Zietsman ◽  
G. J. Bredenkamp
Keyword(s):  
Plant Communities ◽  
Endemic Species ◽  
Nature Reserve ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Cape Floristic Region ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Floristic Data ◽  
The Relationship

The vegetation of inland plains and hills of the Andrew’s Field and Tsaba-Tsaba Nature Reserve, Bredasdorp District, Western Cape was classified using TWINSPAN and Braun-Blanquet procedures. The resulting four plant communities and nine subcommunities were described and interpreted ecologically. The vegetation was sampled using 97 randomly stratified plots. The floristic composition, Braun-Blanquet cover-abundance of each species, and various environmental variables were recorded in each sample plot. The relationship between the vegetation units and the associated environmental gradients was confirmed by ordination, using the DECORANA computer program, applied to the floristic data set. The conservation priority of each vegetation unit was determined by taking the occurrence of Red Data List species, limestone endemic species and Cape Floristic Region endemic species into consideration. TTie distribution of the plant communities can mainly be ascribed to differences in the clay/sand content of the soil and the degree of exposure of the vegetation to the dominating winds (southeastern and northwestern) of the area.

scholarly journals Plant communities of the uMlalazi Nature Reserve and their contribution to conservation in KwaZulu-Natal

Koedoe ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nqobile S. Zungu ◽  
Theo H.C. Mostert ◽  
Rachel E. Mostert
Keyword(s):  
Plant Community ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Nature Reserve ◽  
Abiotic Factors ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Environmental Drivers ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Species Analysis ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
The Relationship

Vegetation research is an important tool for the simplified and effective identification, management and conservation of the very complex ecosystems underlying them. Plant community descriptions offer scientists a summary and surrogate of all the biotic and abiotic factors shaping and driving ecosystems. The aim of this study was to identify, describe and map the plant communities within the uMlalazi Nature Reserve. A total of 149 vegetation plots were sampled using the Braun-Blanquet technique. Thirteen plant communities were identified using a combination of numeric classification (modified Two-way-Indicator Species Analysis) and ordination (non-metric multidimensional scaling). These communities were described in terms of their structure, floristic composition and distribution. An indirect gradient analysis of the ordination results was conducted to investigate the relationship between plant communities and their potentially important underlying environmental drivers. Based on the results, the floristic conservation importance of each plant community was discussed to provide some means to evaluate the relative contribution of the reserve to regional ecosystem conservation targets.Conservation implications: The uMlalazi Nature Reserve represents numerous ecosystems that are disappearing from a rapidly transforming landscape outside of formally protected areas in Zululand. The descriptions of the plant communities of these relatively pristine ecosystems provide conservation authorities with inventories and benchmarks with which the ecological health of similar ecosystems in the region can be measured.

scholarly journals Dune vegetation and coastal thicket plant communities in threatened limestone fynbos of Andrew’s Field and Tsaba-Tsaba Nature Reserve, Struisbaai, Western Cape

Koedoe ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M.M. Zietsman ◽  
G.J. Bredenkamp
Keyword(s):  
Plant Communities ◽  
Nature Reserve ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Ammophila Arenaria ◽  
Dune Vegetation ◽  
Grassland Community ◽  
Shrub Community ◽  
Dune Grassland

The coastal thicket and dune vegetation of Andrew’s Field and Tsaba-Tsaba Nature Reserve was classified using Braun-Blanquet procedures and TWINSPAN. The vegetation was sampled using 74 randomly stratified sample plots. The floristic composition, cover- abundance of each species, and several environmental variables were recorded in each sample plot. Six plant communities were identified, namely, Rhus glauca - Euclea racemosa low to tall closed thicket community; Chrysanthemoides monilifera - Solanum africanum low closed dune shrub community; Chrysanthemoides monilifera - Ehrharta villosa var. maxima low to high closed dune shrub community; Ehrharta villosa var. maxima low to short closed dune grassland community; Ammophila arenaria low to short closed dune grassland community; and Arcthotheca populifolia - Thinopyrum distichum low to short open beach community. These were subdivided into eight subcommunities and four variants. All communities, sub-communities and variants were described and ecologically interpreted. The distribution of the communities, sub-communities and variants can mainly be ascribed to differences in landform, rockiness of the soil surface the degree of protection / exposure of the vegetation to the dominating winds of the area.

Minimal clustering and species delimitation based on multi-locus alignments vs SNPs: the case of the Seriphium plumosum L. complex (Gnaphalieae: Asteraceae)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zaynab Shaik ◽  
Nicola Georgina Bergh ◽  
Bengt Oxelman ◽  
Anthony George Verboom
Keyword(s):  
Species Delimitation ◽  
Bayes Factor ◽  
Cape Floristic Region ◽  
Parametric Models ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽  
Sequence Alignments ◽  
Separate Species ◽  
Multiple Sequence ◽  
Data Set

We applied species delimitation methods based on the Multi-Species Coalescent (MSC) model to 500+ loci derived from genotyping-by-sequencing on the South African Seriphium plumosum (Asteraceae) species complex. The loci were represented either as multiple sequence alignments or single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and analysed by the STACEY and Bayes Factor Delimitation (BFD)/SNAPP methods, respectively. Both methods supported species taxonomies where virtually all of the 32 sampled individuals, each representing its own geographical population, were identified as separate species. Computational efforts required to achieve adequate mixing of MCMC chains were considerable, and the species/minimal cluster trees identified similar strongly supported clades in replicate runs. The resolution was, however, higher in the STACEY trees than in the SNAPP trees, which is consistent with the higher information content of full sequences. The computational efficiency, measured as effective sample sizes of likelihood and posterior estimates per time unit, was consistently higher for STACEY. A random subset of 56 alignments had similar resolution to the 524-locus SNP data set. The STRUCTURE-like sparse Non-negative Matrix Factorisation (sNMF) method was applied to six individuals from each of 48 geographical populations and 28023 SNPs. Significantly fewer (13) clusters were identified as optimal by this analysis compared to the MSC methods. The sNMF clusters correspond closely to clades consistently supported by MSC methods, and showed evidence of admixture, especially in the western Cape Floristic Region. We discuss the significance of these findings, and conclude that it is important to a priori consider the kind of species one wants to identify when using genome-scale data, the assumptions behind the parametric models applied, and the potential consequences of model violations may have.

scholarly journals Vegetation of the Witbank Nature Reserve and its importance for conservation of threatened Rocky Highveld Grassland

Koedoe ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
C.M. Smit ◽  
G.J. Bredenkamp ◽  
N. Van Rooyen ◽  
A.E. Van Wyk ◽  
J.M. Combrinck
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Nature Reserve ◽  
Soil Depth ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Diversity Indices ◽  
Moisture Gradient ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Soil Moisture Gradient ◽  
Great Escarpment

A vegetation survey of the Witbank Nature Reserve, comprising 847 hectares, was conducted. Phytosociological data were used to identify plant communities, as well as to determine alpha and beta diversities. Eleven plant communities were recognised, two of these are subdivided into sub- communities, resulting in 14 vegetation units. These communities represent four main vegetation types, namely grassland, woodland, wetland and disturbed vegetation. Grassland communities have the highest plant diversity and wetland vegetation the lowest. Floristic composition indicates that the vegetation of the Rocky Highveld Grassland has affinities to the grassland and savanna biomes and also to the Afromontane vegetation of the Great Escarpment. An ordination scatter diagram shows the distribution of the 14 plant communities or sub-communities along a soil moisture gradient, as well as along a soil depth/surface rock gradient. The sequence of communities along the soil moisture gradient is used for calculating beta-diversity indices. It is concluded that the relatively small size of the Witbank Nature Reserve is unlikely to have significant negative effects on the phytodiversity of the various plant communities. This nature reserve is therefore of considerable importance in conserving a representative sample of the Rocky Highveld Grassland.

Vegetation and vegetation-environment relationships at Grootbos Nature Reserve, Western Cape, South Africa

Bothalia ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Mergili ◽  
S. Privett
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Nature Reserve ◽  
Soil Depth ◽  
Vegetation Type ◽  
Cape Floristic Region ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Floristic Diversity ◽  
Rock Cover ◽  
Scrub Forest ◽  
Fire Incidence

The private Grootbos Nature Reserve is located at the Western edge of the Agulhas Plain in the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa, an area characterized by high habitat and floristic diversity. The Reserve is covered in near-natural fynbos shrublands with a few patches of forest and wetland. The main objective of this study was to classify the vegetation into discrete units and relate them to the prevailing environmental conditions. The vegetation was analysed by numerical means (TWINSPAN, DC A, CCA) and mapped on GIS. At the vegetation type level. Forest Thicket and Fynbos formed distinctive clusters, whereas the wetland releves were intermixed, but without relationships to one of these units. Fire incidence served as the major determinant of the forest-fynbos boundary. The Forest Thicket grouping was separated into Thicket (as transitional to fynbos), Afromontane Forest and Milkwood Scrub Forest. Two broad complexes were distinguished within the Fynbos grouping, the Alkaline Sand Fynbos Complex corresponding to Coastal Fynbos. and the Acid Sand Fynbos Complex corresponding to Mountain Fynbos. They discriminated along gradients of pH. soil depth and rock cover. The complexes were further subdivided into formations by using one or a few subjectively chosen dominant species as indicators. The transitions between these formations were rather continuous than discrete. The vegetation type and complex levels correspond well to existing fynbos-wide classifications. Comparing the formations to the results of other vegetation studies is problematic even on the scale of the Agulhas Plain, due to the high regional plant diversity in the Fynbos Biome.

scholarly journals The vegetation types and management units of Goedverwacht farm in the mixed bushveld of the Northern Province, South Africa

Koedoe ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Breebaart ◽  
M. Deutschlander
Keyword(s):  
Plant Communities ◽  
Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Canonical Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Environmental Gradient ◽  
Detrended Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Northern Province ◽  
Computer Programme ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Management Units ◽  
Floristic Data

An analysis of the vegetation of Goedverwacht farm in the mixed bushveld of the Northern Province is presented. Releves were compiled in 33 stratified random sample plots. Eight distinct plant communities were identified by means ofBraun-Blanquet pro-cedures. Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) was applied to the floristic data set using the computer programme DECORANA (Detrended Correspondence Analysis) to determine a probable environmental gradient and to facilitate in the identification of management units. The computer programme CANOCO (Canonical Correspondence Analysis) was used to apply canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) to the floristic data set. Two management units were determined by means of vegetation ordinations and soil data. A classification, description and ecological interpretation of the plant communities as well as a description of the management units are presented.

scholarly journals Plant communities of the forests, woodlands and thickets in northern KwaZulu-Natal

Koedoe ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
H.C. Eckhardt ◽  
N. Van Rooyen ◽  
G.J. Bredenkamp
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Random Sample ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
Twinspan Classification ◽  
Floristic Data

An analysis of the woody vegetation of northern KwaZulu-Natal is presented. Releves were compiled in 102 stratified random sample plots. A TWINSPAN classification, refined by Braun-Blanquet procedures, revealed 24 plant communities, also referred to as vegetation units. For each of these vegetation units, the species richness was determined. Four associations were identified which have a conservation importance. An ordination (DECORANA), based on floristic data, revealed the position of the syntaxa on environmental gradients.

Diversity of subalpine and alpine vegetation of the eastern part of the Nízke Tatry Mts in Slovakia: major types and environmental gradients

Biologia ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 64 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucia Sekulová ◽  
Michal Hájek
Keyword(s):  
Plant Communities ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Detrended Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Dwarf Shrub ◽  
Soil Reaction ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Entire Data ◽  
Second Gradient ◽  
One Year

AbstractChanges in composition and structure of alpine and subalpine plant communities in relation to ecological factors were analysed in the Nízke Tatry Mts, Slovakia. Species cover values of vascular and non-vascular plants in each vegetation plot were recorded on the nine-degree scale. A data set of 156 relevés of alpine and subalpine vegetation was sampled recently during one year in the eastern part of the Nízke Tatry National Park. The data set was analysed by cluster analysis and Detrended Correspondence Analysis. analyses were carried out on the entire data set, including the subset of short grassland and dwarf-shrub vegetation. Major gradients and clusters were ecologically interpreted using Ellenberg indicator values. In the entire data set, the major gradient in species composition was associated with nutrient availability and the second most important gradient with light. In the case of short grassland and dwarf-shrub vegetation, the gradients were different. The first one was associated with soil reaction and the second gradient was associated with moisture. Clusters proposed by numerical classification reproduced many traditional phytosociological associations, namely Seslerietum distichae, Sphagno capillifolii-Empetretum nigri, Junco trifidi-Callunetum vulgaris, Juncetum trifidi, Dryopterido dilatatae-Pinetum mugo, Luzuletum obscurae, Agrostio pyrenaiceae-Nardetum strictae, while some other associations were less clearly differentiated (communities of the alliances Calamagrostion villosae, Adenostylion alliariae, Trisetion fusci, Cratoneuro filicini-Calthion laetae or Salicion herbaceae). The next clusters included Vaccinium and Festuca supina dominated communities and artificial roadside grasslands sown 50 years ago. Bryophytes and lichens were highly represented among diagnostic species of particular associations. Distribution pattern of particular plant communities was strongly influenced by site position either on northern or southern slope of the mountains.

scholarly journals Plant Community Analysis along Environmental Gradients in Moist Afromontane Forest of Gerba Dima, South-western Ethiopia

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abyot Dibaba Hundie ◽  
Teshome Soromessa Urgessa ◽  
Bikila Warkineh Dullo
Keyword(s):  
Cluster Analysis ◽  
Species Diversity ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Community ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Regional Government ◽  
Community Types ◽  
Western Ethiopia

Abstract Background This study was carried out in Gerba Dima Forest, South-Western Ethiopia, to determine the floristic composition, species diversity and community types along environmental gradients. Ninety sample plots having a size of 25 × 25 m (625 m2) were laid by employing stratified random sampling. Nested plots were used to sample plants of different sizes and different environmental variables. All woody plant species with Diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 2.5 cm and height ≥ 1.5 m were recorded in 25 m X 25 m plots. Within the major plots, five 3 m x 3 m subplots (9 m2) was used to collect shrubs with dbh < 2.5 cm and > 1.5 m height. Within each 9 m2subplots, two 1 m2 subplots were used to collect data on the species and abundance of herbaceous plants. Hierarchical (agglomerative) cluster analysis was performed using the free statistical software R version 3.6.1 using package cluster to classify the vegetation into plant community types. Redundancy Analysis (RDA) ordination was used in describing the pattern of plant communities along an environmental gradient. Result One hundred and eighty plant species belonging to 145 genera, 69 families and comprising of 15 endemic species were recorded. Cluster analysis resulted in five different plant communities and this result was supported by the ordination result. RDA result showed altitude was the main environmental variable in determining the plant communities. The ANOVA test indicated that the five community types differ significantly from each other with regard to EC and K. Conclusions The studied forest can play a significant role in biodiversity conservation since it harbours high species diversity and richness. Thus, all Stakeholders including Oromia Forest and wildlife enterprise (OFWE) and the regional government should work to designate the forest as a biosphere reserve and being registered under UNESCO.

scholarly journals Distribution and status of populations of some endemic representatives of Syrdarya Karatau and Western Tien-Shan flora

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 213-220
Author(s):  
A. A. Ivashchenko
Keyword(s):  
Detailed Analysis ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Endemic Species ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Tien Shan

The article presents the results of the author’s research on the distribution and status of populations of 6rare endemic species of the Karatau mountains and Western Tien-Shan – Tanacetopsis popovii Kovalevsk., Trichanthemisradiata Krasch. et Vved., Hypacanthium echinopifolium (Bornm.) Juz., Lepidolopha karatavica Pavl., L. talassica Kovalevsk.et Safral., Tulipa lemmersii Zonn., Peterse et J. de Groot. Specific points of growth of the listed species, a detailed analysis ofthe floristic composition of plant communities with their participation, as well as an assessment of the level of endemism,brief additions to morphological descriptions, and for two species (Trichanthemis radiata, Tulipa lemmersii) – informationon the results of the experience of primary introduction under conditions Almaty city are given in this article.

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