The feeding biology and potential impact of introduced giraffe (giraffa camelopardalis) in the Eastern Cape province, South Africa
Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) are extralimital (non-native) to the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa yet they have and continue to be introduced to the region. Financial gain has arguably been the driving force behind these introductions as foreign tourists associate giraffe with Africa and the African wildlife experience. This raises a number of ethical, ecological and […]
Impacts of military training on the distribution and abundance of small versus large wildlife herbivores on Mpala Ranch, Laikipia, Kenya
Since the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq began, Kenya’s training grounds have become increasingly relevant to the British Army Training Unit in Kenya (BATUK). This has seen ranches hosting the army in Laikipia increase to eleven in 2009 from one in 1964 when training began on Mpala Ranch. This was necessitated by the need for […]
Effect of low rainfall and browsing by large herbivores on an enclosed savannah habitat in Kenya
Savannah ecosystems in East Africa are rarely stable and can experience rapid local changes from dense woodlands to open plains. In this 3-year study there was a reduction of 16.3% in a height-stratified sample of nearly 1000 individually marked Acacia drepanolobium trees. The study was carried out in an enclosed fire-free wooded grassland habitat in […]
Regrowth and palatability of acacia shoots following pruning by African savanna browsers’
Stands of two species of African Acacia were monitored for 1 yr in a natural savanna ecosystem, to compare shoot regrowth and leaf chemistry in lightly browsed and heavily browsed trees. Where ungulates concentrated at a seasonal waterhole, A. nigrescens was more severely browsed than the thornier and finer leafed A. tortilis. Shoot regrowth in […]