Factors maintaining plant diversity in degraded areas of northern Kuwait

Brown, Gary M.

doi:10.1006/jare.2001.0880

Cited by 40 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Over past decades, the problems of land degradation (which leads to a significant reduction of the productivity due to human activities) (Eswaran et al ) in arid regions such as Kuwait have accelerated throughout the world, leading to loss of vegetation cover and topsoil fertility, increasing the intensity of desertification (also called desertization, which is the process by which natural or human causes reduce the biological productivity of drylands such as arid and semiarid lands) (Brown ; Reynolds et al ; Omar ). The military activities in the first Gulf War in 1990–1991 have further damaged the degraded desert ecosystem.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The use of remote sensing to develop a site history for restoration planning in an arid landscape

Abdullah

Feagin

Musawi

et al. 2015

Restoration Ecology

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Developing a site history and ecological site description is one of the critical steps in restoration planning for arid landscapes. This study focuses on Umm Nigga, Northeast of Kuwait, which was damaged by various human activities. The northern portion of Umm Nigga falls within the boundaries of the demilitarized zone (DMZ) adjacent to Iraq, and was fenced off to restrict public access since 1994. The central objective of this project was to use remote sensing, field assessment, and Geographical Information System (GIS) spatial data to develop a site history for restoration planning of Umm Nigga. Field observation and GIS analysis indicated that the landscape could be divided into three units along a gradient ranging from the coast to inland locations, based on geology, soil properties, and dominant vegetation. Reference sites in the DMZ were also matched for each unit. Remote sensing was used to compare vegetation cover between damaged and reference sites at selected units. Results showed that vegetation cover increased in the unfenced damaged site after the 1991 Gulf War from 2% in 1988 to 37% in 1998, but then it decreased to 23% in 2013. In the DMZ reference site, the vegetation cover also increased from 0% in 1988 to 40% in 1998, but it continued increasing through 2013 to 64%. We conclude that overgrazing and destructive camping are the major source of disturbance in the damaged areas.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The use of remote sensing to develop a site history for restoration planning in an arid landscape

Abdullah

Feagin

Musawi

et al. 2015

Restoration Ecology

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“…Harvester ants appear to be very sensitive to disturbances and ecosystem degradation that are now commonplace in the deserts of north-eastern Arabia, as ant nests are rarely seen outside of protected areas. Degradation has been caused primarily by massive overgrazing and off-road driving, leading to widespread vegetation destruction, soil erosion and soil compaction (Brown, 2003). The absence of harvester ants could have far-reaching consequences for ecosystems processes in natural vegetation communities in the region, especially as Dregne (1986) states loss of soil fertility as one of the key features of desertification.…”

Section: Possible Role Of Harvester Ant Nests As Refugia In Years Of mentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of harvester ant (Messor ebeninus Forel) nests on vegetation and soil properties in a desert dwarf shrub community in north-eastern Arabia

Brown

Scherber

Ramos

et al. 2012

Flora - Morphology, Distribution, Functional Ecology of Plants

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“…Volume of nabka was calculated using half the volume of the cone: { 1 2 0:33 Ã pr 2 h ð Þ } where r denotes the nabka height at the crest and h the nabka length (Dougill and Thomas 2002). Identification, nomenclature, and growth form of plant species were according to Daoud and AlRawi (1985), Boulos (1988), and Omar et al (2007).…”

Section: Vegetation and Soil Surveymentioning

confidence: 99%

Species richness, structure, and conservation of Nitraria retusa communities in the coastal salt marshes of Kuwait

El-Wahab

2015

Reg Environ Change

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Although the coastal salt marshes of Arabian Gulf have been altered extensively by human development activities, there is a paucity of data describing changes in the distribution and abundance of native coastal plant communities. The main objectives of this study are to determine vegetation condition, size structure, and conservation status of Nitraria retusa, a medicinal and salttolerant shrub, in disturbed and non-disturbed coastal salt marshes of Kuwait. Size measurements of Nitraria shrubs and nabkas, which are mounds of sediment developed around shrubs, were carried out in 50 quadrats (20 9 20 m 2 ), randomly selected inside and outside Sabah Al-Ahmad Natural Reserve. Species richness and soil properties of nabkas and interspaces, the open areas between the nabkas, were also measured. The results revealed that nabkas of Nitraria in non-disturbed sites are more stable and rich in plant diversity than those in disturbed sites. Mean height and mean canopy diameter of Nitraria shrubs, total plant cover, and species richness are significantly higher in non-disturbed sites than disturbed sites, which indicate the positive influences of conservation for long term on vegetation structure and species richness. The results of soil analyses indicate the important role of nabkas in providing refuges for plant life and species diversity. The present study indicates that more than 50 % of the N. retusa community has been lost during the last few decades. Therefore, N. retusa should be considered an endangered species in Kuwait. The reduction in vegetation cover, a decline in species richness, and the overall degradation of salt marshes are attributed to human development activities along the coast of Kuwait. Effective conservation actions for threatened species in degraded coastal salt marshes of this region include establishment of protective enclosures, prohibitions on development that adversely affects native plant communities, and the planting native salt-tolerant shrubs to facilitate regeneration.

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Factors maintaining plant diversity in degraded areas of northern Kuwait

Cited by 40 publications

References 32 publications

The use of remote sensing to develop a site history for restoration planning in an arid landscape

The use of remote sensing to develop a site history for restoration planning in an arid landscape

The effects of harvester ant (Messor ebeninus Forel) nests on vegetation and soil properties in a desert dwarf shrub community in north-eastern Arabia

Species richness, structure, and conservation of Nitraria retusa communities in the coastal salt marshes of Kuwait

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