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Drought release and post-drought changes in herbaceous composition and diversity in two land uses subjected to selective bush control in a semi-arid Kalahari savanna

Drought release and post-drought changes in herbaceous composition and diversity in two land uses... Land degradation due to bush encroachment and drought threatens the well-being of land users and forage production in the semi-arid savannas of southern Africa. This study aimed to analyse how herbaceous vegetation in the Kalahari savanna can recover from drought, and how this is affected by previously implemented bush control measures. We compared plant species composition and diversity of the herbaceous layer across a drought-release (2021) and post-drought (2022) year within two land use types (game and livestock) in bush-encroached and controlled areas, respectively. Diversity decreased significantly during the post-drought year. Annual species dominated in the drought-release year, which were replaced by perennial forbs and dwarf shrubs in the post-drought year. Selective bush control enhanced herbaceous species abundance and richness due to decreased competition. The species richness was higher in the game ranch compared to the cattle farm during the drought-release year. Herbaceous abundance, however, increased on the cattle farm. The management strategies, feeding behaviour and animal movement may have contributed to these differences in these two contrasting land use types. This study showed that herbaceous plant communities can recover rapidly after a drought period and in areas where bush control was applied. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png African Journal of Range and Forage Science Taylor & Francis

Drought release and post-drought changes in herbaceous composition and diversity in two land uses subjected to selective bush control in a semi-arid Kalahari savanna

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References (57)

Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Copyright
© 2023 NISC (Pty) Ltd
ISSN
1727-9380
eISSN
1022-0119
DOI
10.2989/10220119.2023.2197624
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Land degradation due to bush encroachment and drought threatens the well-being of land users and forage production in the semi-arid savannas of southern Africa. This study aimed to analyse how herbaceous vegetation in the Kalahari savanna can recover from drought, and how this is affected by previously implemented bush control measures. We compared plant species composition and diversity of the herbaceous layer across a drought-release (2021) and post-drought (2022) year within two land use types (game and livestock) in bush-encroached and controlled areas, respectively. Diversity decreased significantly during the post-drought year. Annual species dominated in the drought-release year, which were replaced by perennial forbs and dwarf shrubs in the post-drought year. Selective bush control enhanced herbaceous species abundance and richness due to decreased competition. The species richness was higher in the game ranch compared to the cattle farm during the drought-release year. Herbaceous abundance, however, increased on the cattle farm. The management strategies, feeding behaviour and animal movement may have contributed to these differences in these two contrasting land use types. This study showed that herbaceous plant communities can recover rapidly after a drought period and in areas where bush control was applied.

Journal

African Journal of Range and Forage Science – Taylor & Francis

Published: May 10, 2023

Keywords: bush encroachment; bush-control; cattle management; drought release; game management; land-use systems

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