scholarly journals Typology of the woody plant communities of the Ethiopian Nech Sar National Park and an assessment of vegetation-environment relations and human disturbance impacts

2020 ◽  
Vol 153 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yonas U. Utaile ◽  
Kenny Helsen ◽  
Seyoum G. Aydagnehum ◽  
Bart Muys ◽  
Simon C. Shibru ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Community Composition ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Human Disturbance ◽  
National Park ◽  
Woody Plant ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Vegetation Types ◽  
Species Richness And Diversity ◽  
Acacia Polyacantha

Background and aims – Deforestation and forest degradation have hugely affected the Southern Ethiopian Rift Valley, jeopardizing biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service provisioning. Quantifying the impacts of human activities on the remaining woody plant communities and recognizing vegetation–environment relationships provide the basis for targeted conservation and rehabilitation.Material and methods – The study was performed in the Nech Sar National Park (NSNP). Based on a large systematic vegetation survey of 104 plots, we quantified the woody vegetation composition, and we provided a vegetation classification based on Non Metric Multidimensional Scaling, cluster analysis and indicator species analysis. Furthermore, we evaluated vegetation – environment relationships and the effects of human disturbance on community composition and woody plant species richness and diversity.Key results – Our analyses revealed three very distinct woody vegetation types (Acacia mellifera-Combretum aculeatum; Lecaniodiscus fraxinifolius-Deinbollia kilimandscharica and Acacia polyacantha-Ficus sycomorus) which were significantly differentiated by soil pH, electrical conductivity, available soil phosphorus and organic matter, and by elevation. Human disturbance, as quantified by a compound Human Disturbance Index (HDI) significantly affected community composition, species richness and diversity, and was significantly positively correlated with species richness and diversity. The latter is likely due to intermediate levels of disturbance and encroachment of disturbance affiliated shrubs such as Dichrostachys cinerea, Lantana camara, and Acalypha fruticosa. Furthermore, the demographic structure of key woody species such as Acacia polyacantha, Acacia tortilis, Balanites aegyptiaca, Diospyros abyssinica, Lecaniodiscus fraxinifolius and Terminalia brownii, showed impacts of human disturbance.Conclusion – Our results provide a baseline for further conservation actions in the NSNP which should be differentially targeted on the different plant community types. Overall, human disturbance seems not to have resulted yet in species richness declines, although it has started to affect the integrity of the delineated vegetation types and resulted in small scale succession.

scholarly journals Human Disturbance, Plant Species Composition, Diversity and Community Types of Kafta-Sheraro National Park, Tigray Region, Ethiopia

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fitsum Temesgen Hailemariam ◽  
Bikila Warkineh Dullo ◽  
Addisu Asefa Mitiku
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Species Composition ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Human Disturbance ◽  
Anthropogenic Disturbance ◽  
National Park ◽  
Livestock Grazing ◽  
Strongly Correlated ◽  
Species Richness And Diversity ◽  
Community Types

Abstract Background: Ethiopia is rich in woodland natural forest although of increasingly subjected to deforestation and forest degradation with extensive expansion of settlement and agricultural practices. In developing countries like Ethiopia forest is one of the vital resources that determine the livelihood of the local communities. Consequently, woodlands’ of the country’s are under heavy pressure by shifting cultivation and charcoal production. Kafta-sheraro national park is newly established woodland area which lacks documented vegetation diversity and human disturbance on the forest. The study was conducted to quantify plant species richness and diversity along altitude; and identify anthropogenic disturbance on vegetation composition and community diversity of the park. Methods: a Systematic sampling method was used to determine species composition, abundance, and diversity. 161 quadrats each (400 m2) lying 200 m far apart for trees and shrubs while sub-plots (1 m2) for herbs and grasses along transects were established over an altitudinal gradient of 539-1111 m.a.s.l. All vascular plant species were collected and brought to National Herbarium, Addis Ababa University for identification.The degree of disturbance data as (low, moderate and heavy) were visually estimated for each plot. Result: a total of 182 plant species: 63 (34.6%) herbs,46 (25.3%) trees, 38 (20.9%) grasses, 18(9.89%) shrubs, 11 climbers (6.04%), and 6 (3.3%) tree ̸ shrub), belonging to 142 genera and 53 families, were identified. Fabaceae was represented by the highest number of species (37 species; 20.3%) followed by Poaceae (36 species; 19.8%) and Asteraceae, 10 species (5.49%). Three plant communities’ types were identified: Acacia mellifera-Balanites aegyptiaca (1); Hyphaene thebaica-Ziziphus spina-christi (2); Combretum hartmannianum-Terminalia brownii-Boswellia papyrifera (3). Species richness was highest in community 1 (mid-altitude: 607-640 m.a.s.l.).The highest Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H`=2.82) for the forest was in community 2 (low altitude: 539-610 m.a.s.l.) while evenness (J=0.72) was highest in community 3 (high altitude: 674-1111 m.a.s.l.) There was a significant correlation between species richness (p=0.024) and altitude per plot while species diversity was non significant (p>0.05) over altitude. Human activities also strongly correlated with species richness and diversity of specific community type. Conclusion: the site has pronounced floristic composition and diversity. Altitudinal difference and the degree of human disturbance determine variation in species composition and richness among communities. Altitude is significantly correlated with species richness of all community types while it is more strongly correlated with community type1.Crop cultivation, illegal fire, and overpopulation of livestock grazing are the main threats in community types 2 and 3. However, this document is a baseline to vegetation information of the park. detailed study on conservation challenges (anthropogenic disturbance) of the park vegetation and prioritize their mitigation measures should be arranged.

scholarly journals Arctiinae moths (Lepidoptera, Erebidae) of the Emas National Park, Goiás, Brazil

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Moreno ◽  
Viviane G Ferro
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
National Park ◽  
New Records ◽  
Vegetation Type ◽  
Sensu Stricto ◽  
Vegetation Types ◽  
Semideciduous Forest ◽  
Cerrado Biome ◽  
Center Of Diversity ◽  
High Species Richness

Arctiinae are a species-rich subfamily of moth, with approximately 1,400 species in Brazil and 723 recorded in the Cerrado biome. A list of species of these moths was compiled during three years of sampling in four vegetation types within the Emas National Park. A total of 5,644 individuals belonging to 149 species were collected. About 67% of these species are new records for the Emas National Park, 31% for the State of Goiás and 9% for the Cerrado biome. Cerrado sensu stricto and semideciduous forests have higher species richness, followed by campo cerrado and campo sujo. The vegetation type with the highest number of exclusive species was the semideciduous forest, followed by cerrado sensu stricto, campo cerrado and campo sujo. The high species richness and the high proportion of new species records for Goiás and Cerrado reinforce the importance of the Emas National Park region as a center of diversity for this group of moths. The conservation of areas not yet cleared around the Park, including the creation of new protected areas, and the establishment of ecological corridors between these areas and the Park would be strategies to preserve the fauna of these moths.

scholarly journals Structural, physiognomic and aboveground biomass variation in savanna-forest transition zones on three continents. How different are co-occurring savanna and forest formations?

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 4591-4636 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. M. Veenendaal ◽  
M. Torello-Raventos ◽  
T. R. Feldpausch ◽  
T. F. Domingues ◽  
F. Gerard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South America ◽  
Woody Plant ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Canopy Closure ◽  
Forest Transition ◽  
Vegetation Types ◽  
Forest Species ◽  
Stable States ◽  
Transition Zones

Abstract. Through interpretations of remote sensing data and/or theoretical propositions, the idea that forest and savanna represent "alternative stable states" is gaining increasing acceptance. Filling an observational gap, we present detailed stratified floristic and structural analyses for forest and savanna stands mostly located within zones of transition (where both vegetation types occur in close proximity) in Africa, South America and Australia. Woody plant leaf area index variation was related in a similar way to tree canopy cover for both savanna and forest with substantial overlap between the two vegetation types. As total woody plant canopy cover increased, so did the contribution of middle and lower strata of woody vegetation to this total. Herbaceous layer cover also declined as woody cover increased. This pattern of understorey grasses and herbs being progressively replaced by shrubs as canopy closure occurs was found for both savanna and forests and on all continents. Thus, once subordinate woody canopy layers are taken into account, a less marked transition in woody plant cover across the savanna-forest species discontinuum is observed compared to that implied when trees of a basal diameter > 0.1m are considered in isolation. This is especially the case for shrub-dominated savannas and in taller savannas approaching canopy closure. An increased contribution of forest species to the total subordinate cover is also observed as savanna stand canopy closure occurs. Despite similarities in canopy cover characteristics, woody vegetation in Africa and Australia attained greater heights and stored a greater concentration of above ground biomass than in South America. Up to three times as much aboveground biomass is stored in forests compared to savannas under equivalent climatic conditions. Savanna/forest transition zones were also found to typically occur at higher precipitation regimes for South America than for Africa. Nevertheless, coexistence was found to be confined to a well-defined edaphic/climate envelope consistent across all three continents with both soil and climate playing a role as the key determinants of the relative location of forest and savanna. Taken together these observations do not lend support the notion of alternate stable states mediated through fire-feedbacks as the prime force shaping the distribution of the two dominant vegetation types of the tropical lands.

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.

scholarly journals Online appendix 1:Exploring an extensive dataset to establish woody vegetation cover and composition in Kruger National Park for the late 1980s

Koedoe ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory A. Kiker ◽  
Rheinhardt Scholtz ◽  
Izak P.J. Smit ◽  
Freek J. Venter
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
National Park ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Plant Cover ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Woody Species ◽  
Kruger National Park ◽  
Tree Cover ◽  
Woody Vegetation

Woody plant cover and species composition play an important role in defining the type and function of savanna ecosystems. Approximately 2000 sites in the Kruger National Park (KNP) were surveyed by F.J. Venter over a period from 1985 to 1989, recording vegetation, soil and topological characteristics. At each of these sites (approximately 20 m × 20 m each), woody vegetation cover and species were recorded using a rapid, Braun-Blanquet classification for three height classes: shrub (0.75 m – 2.50 m), brush (2.50 m – 5.50 m) and tree (> 5.50 m). The objective of this study was to re-analyse the vegetation component of the field data, with a specific focus to provide a spatially explicit, height-differentiated, benchmark dataset in terms of species occurrence, species richness and structural canopy cover. Overall, 145 different woody species were recorded in the dataset out of the 458 species documented to occur in the park. The dataset describes a woody layer dominated by a relatively small number of widely occurring species, as 24 of the most common woody species accounted for all woody species found on over 80% of all sites. The less common woody species (101) were each recorded on 20 sites or less. Species richness varied from 12 to 1 species per site. Structural canopy cover averaged 9.34%, 8.16% and 2.89% for shrub, brush and tree cover, respectively. The dataset provides a useful benchmark for woody species distribution in KNP and can be used to explore woody species and height class distributions, as well as comparison with more recent or future woody vegetation surveys.Conservation implications: The results provided evidence that large-scale, woody vegetation surveys conducted along roads offer useful ecosystem level information. However, such an approach fails to pick up less common species. The data presented here provided a useful snapshot of KNP woody vegetation structure and composition and could provide excellent opportunities for spatio-temporal comparisons.

A comparison of Mopaneveld vegetation in South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe

Bothalia ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Siebert ◽  
G. J. Bredenkamp ◽  
S. J. Siebert
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Alpha Diversity ◽  
Environmental Data ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Vegetation Types ◽  
Rainfall Events

Data from fifteen phytosociological studies were merged and classified to describe and compare the vegetation of geo­graphically separated and climatically different Mopanev eld types in South Africa. Namibia and Zimbabw e. Seven v egetation types and ten major plant communities were identified using TW INSPAN. Vegetation types were separated according to geo­graphical regions. There were significant floristic affinities even though there w ere geological and climatic differences between the regions. Plant communities were described according to vegetation structure, habitat and floristic composition. Although environmental data were not adequate for a detailed ordination. DECORANA reflected the distribution of vegetation types and major plant communities along environmental gradients. Limitations of large phytosociological syntheses were also addressed. Species richness (alpha diversity) was calculated for each geographical region. The Musina (Messina) region north of the Soutpansberg. South Africa, has the highest species richness, and Kaokoland. Namibia, the lowest Due to irregular annual rainfall patterns in semi-arid Mopaneveld, it is suggested that variance in species richness is associated with temporal vegeta­tion states induced by rainfall events. Species richness of Mopaneveld was further compared w ith other sav anna types.

scholarly journals Effects of plant species diversity on nematode community composition and diversity in a long-term biodiversity experiment

Oecologia ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Dietrich ◽  
Simone Cesarz ◽  
Tao Liu ◽  
Christiane Roscher ◽  
Nico Eisenhauer
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Community Composition ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Resource Quality ◽  
Plant Feeding ◽  
Shoot Mass

AbstractDiversity loss has been shown to change the soil community; however, little is known about long-term consequences and underlying mechanisms. Here, we investigated how nematode communities are affected by plant species richness and whether this is driven by resource quantity or quality in 15-year-old plant communities of a long-term grassland biodiversity experiment. We extracted nematodes from 93 experimental plots differing in plant species richness, and measured above- and belowground plant biomass production and soil organic carbon concentrations (Corg) as proxies for resource quantity, as well as C/Nleaf ratio and specific root length (SRL) as proxies for resource quality. We found that nematode community composition and diversity significantly differed among plant species richness levels. This was mostly due to positive plant diversity effects on the abundance and genus richness of bacterial-feeding, omnivorous, and predatory nematodes, which benefited from higher shoot mass and soil Corg in species-rich plant communities, suggesting control via resource quantity. In contrast, plant-feeding nematodes were negatively influenced by shoot mass, probably due to higher top–down control by predators, and were positively related to SRL and C/Nleaf, indicating control via resource quality. The decrease of the grazing pressure ratio (plant feeders per root mass) with plant species richness indicated a higher accumulation of plant-feeding nematodes in species-poor plant communities. Our results, therefore, support the hypothesis that soil-borne pathogens accumulate in low-diversity communities over time, while soil mutualists (bacterial-feeding, omnivorous, predatory nematodes) increase in abundance and richness in high-diversity plant communities, which may contribute to the widely-observed positive plant diversity–productivity relationship.

scholarly journals RARE FOREST PLANT COMMUNITIES OF THE NATIONAL PARK «PRIPYSHMINSKY BORY» (SVERDLOVSK REGION)

ÈKOBIOTEH ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 370-378
Author(s):  
A.S. Tretyakova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Communities ◽  
Rare Species ◽  
National Park ◽  
Calluna Vulgaris ◽  
Endangered Plant ◽  
The Status ◽  
Rare And Endangered ◽  
Protected Plants ◽  
Birch Forests

The article deals with rare forest plant communities of the National Park «Pripyshminsky Bory» in the Sverdlovsk Region. Rare forest plant communities include valuable areas of spruce, pine and birch forests. Among the unique and rare, we propose to include communities with Dianthus krylovianus and communities with Calluna vulgaris. The authors gave the phytocenotic characteristic of each community and the composition of rare and protected plants. These communities can be classified as rare based on a set of criteria, which includes species richness, the presence of rare species, and scientific importance. This information can become the basis for monitoring the status of rare and endangered plant species in the region.

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