Utilisation and aspects of management of the Willem Pretorius Game Reserve
The Willem Pretorius Nature Reserve, Orange Free State, is briefly described, and aspects of management and utilisation with particular reference to game animals are discussed. Habitat management is the one aspect needing a great deal more attention and it would appear that the capture of game for live sale and relocation is a satisfactory way […]
Evaluating Population Persistence of Censused and Unmanaged Herbivore Populations from the Kruger National Park, South Africa
The application of the Dennis et al. (Ecol. Monogr., 61, 1991) model to data from 12 herbivore populations from the Kruger National Park, South Africa, introduces “risk assessment’ procedures into the conservation management of free-ranging species. The model enables one to predict the probability of reaching an arbitrarily defined threshold population size using census figures […]
The role of water abundance, thermoregulation, perceived predation risk and interference competition in water access by African herbivores
In African savannas, surface water can become limiting and an understanding of how animals address the trade-offs between different constraints to access this resource is needed. Here, we describe water access by ten African herbivore species in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe, and we explore four possible determinants of the observed behaviours: water abundance, thermoregulation, perceived […]
Fire history and management as determinant of patch selection by foraging herbivores in western Serengeti, Tanzania
Although the use of fire as a management tool has increased during the past decades in East African savannas, there is insufficient knowledge about herbivores’ utilization of areas with different fire history. We therefore examined large mammal herbivores’ preference for patches that differed in fire history to test whether herbivores would non-randomly select patches according […]
Factors affecting habitat use by Masai Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi L) in Athi-Kapiti Plains ecosystem, Kenya
Increased human settlement, land use changes, loss of migration corridors, habitat loss and fragmentation have affected habitat use by Masai giraffe in Athi-Kapiti plains ecosystem. The purpose of the study was to assess the factors affecting habitat use by Masai giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) in the Athi-Kapiti plains ecosystem and to generate information for giraffe […]
Holocene vegetation change and the mammal faunas of South America and Africa
Aim: Although sharing many similarities in their vegetation types, South America and Africa harbour very dissimilar recent mammal faunas, not only taxonomically but also in terms of several faunistic patterns. However late Pleistocene and mid-Holocene faunas, albeit taxonomically distinct, presented many convergent attributes. Here we propose that the effects of the Holocene climatic change on […]
Browsing Lawns? Responses of Acacia Nigrescens to Ungulate Browsing in an African Savanna
We measured browsing-induced responses of Acacia trees to investigate ‘‘browsing lawns’’ as an analogy to grazing lawns in a semiarid eutrophic African savanna. During the two-year field study, we measured plant tolerance, resistance, and phenological traits, while comparing variation in leaf nitrogen and specific leaf area (SLA) across stands of Acacia nigrescens, Miller, that had […]
Why do some African thorn trees (Acacia spp.) have a flat-top: a grazer-plant mutualism hypothesis?
The quintessential African savanna tree is the flat-topped Acacia. However, the reason for the architecture occurring in sparse-canopied small-leafed tree species from well-lit, often mesic, environments is unclear. Brown (1960) suggested that it reduced feeding by the distinctly African herbivore, the giraffe. Escaping recaptured herbivore and/or fire damage is crucial for palatable savanna trees such […]
Community-level interactions between ungulate browsers and woody plants in an African savanna dominated by palatable-spinescent Acacia trees
We studied the composition of a savanna woody plant community across a natural herbivory gradient maintained by both browsing and grazing ungulates in an arid part of the Kruger National Park, South Africa. We focused on (1) short-term browsing effects on reproductive and morphological traits of a dominant-palatable woody species, Acacia nigrescens, Miller, (2) the […]
Effects of resource limitation on habitat usage by the browser guild in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, South Africa
Resource depletion and association increases in interspecific competition are likely to influence differential habitat usage amongst a guild. We tested some prominent theoretical concepts using observed differenced in seasonal habitat use amongst the savannah browser guild (elephant, giraffe, impala, kudu and nyala) in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, South Africa. Herbivore locations (n= 3108) were recorded over 2 […]