The Flora of the Drakensberg Alpine Centre

Carbutt, Clinton; Edwards, T. J.

doi:10.1017/s0960428603000428

Cited by 77 publications

(88 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Increasing efforts have been made to protect and understand the biodiversity of the region. 22 The eastern Lesotho Drakensberg is a deeply dissected plateau, with elevations ranging from 2290 masl to 3482 masl 23 , and all exposed and underlying rock in the eastern Lesotho Drakensberg forms part of the Karoo Supergroup 16 . This includes the Drakensberg Group flood basalts of Upper Triassic to Jurassic age, intruded by finegrained dolerite dykes, underlain by the Stormberg Group of sandstone -including the Clarens Formation, which is exposed to an altitude of ~2500 masl, and the underlying Elliot and Molteno Formations 24 .…”

Section: Lesotho: a Key Site For Palaeoenvironmental Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

multi-disciplinary review of late Quaternary palaeoclimates and environments for Lesotho

Fitchett¹,

Grab²,

Bamford³

et al. 2016

S. Afr. J. Sci.

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Lesotho provides a unique context for palaeoclimatic research. The small country is entirely landlocked by South Africa, yet has considerable variation in topography, climate, and associated vegetation over an approximate east-west transect. The region has been of archaeological interest for over a century, and hosts many Early to Late Stone Age sites with occupation preceding 80 000 years before present. The eastern Lesotho highlands are of interest to periglacial and glacial geomorphologists because of their well-preserved relict landforms and contentious evidence for permafrost and niche glaciation during the late Quaternary. However, continuous proxy records for palaeoenvironmental reconstructions for Lesotho are scarce and hampered by a range of methodological shortfalls. These challenges include uncertain ages, poor sampling resolution, and proxies extracted from archaeological excavations for which there may be bias in selection. Inferences on palaeoclimates are thus based predominantly on archaeological and palaeogeomorphological evidence for discrete periods during the late Quaternary. This review paper presents a more detailed multidisciplinary synthesis of late Quaternary conditions in Lesotho. We simultaneously considered the varying data that contribute to the under-studied palaeoenvironmental record for southern Africa. The collective palaeoenvironmental data for eastern Lesotho were shown to be relatively contradictory, with considerable variations in contemporaneous palaeoclimatic conditions within the study area. We argue that although methodological challenges may contribute to this variation, the marked changes in topography result in contrasting late Quaternary palaeoenvironments. Such environments are characterised by similar contrasting microclimates and niche ecologies as are witnessed in the contemporary landscape. These spatial variations within a relatively small landlocked country are of importance in understanding broader southern African palaeoenvironmental change.

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Section: Lesotho: a Key Site For Palaeoenvironmental Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

multi-disciplinary review of late Quaternary palaeoclimates and environments for Lesotho

Fitchett¹,

Grab²,

Bamford³

et al. 2016

S. Afr. J. Sci.

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“…Conservation International recognizes the area as an Eastern AfroMontane biodiversity hotspot, while Birdlife International sees the Lesotho Highlands and the southern African Grasslands as two endemic bird areas . In addition to this, the majority of the area above 1,800 metres has been documented as the Drakensberg Alpine Centre of plant endemism (Cowling andHilton-Taylor, 1994, Carbutt andEdwards, 2004). Of the 2,520 flowering plant species, 334 (13%) are locally endemic to the area, with a further 594 (23%) being near-endemic.…”

Section: Biodiversitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Parks, peace, and partnership: global initiatives in transboundary conservation

2013

Choice Reviews Online

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“…Only 5.5% (2194 km²) of the entire DAC is protected (Carbutt & Edwards 2004. These habitats, with their complex abiotic and biotic factors, are responsible for generating high species richness (Cowling, Holmes & Rebelo 1992;ed.…”

Section: Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Grassland vegetation of Platberg, eastern Free State, South Africa

Brand

Brown

Preez

2011

Koedoe

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Platberg is an inselberg that presents a refuge for indigenous plants and animals. Uncontrolled human access to this area threatens this sensitive ecosystem. The vegetation of Platberg was investigated to obtain an inventory of the different plant species and communities present in this area. A hierarchical classification, a description and an ecological interpretation of the grassland communities of Platberg are presented. A total of 169 sample plots were placed on a stratified random basis within the study area. From a TWINSPAN classification a total of 27 different plant communities, which can be grouped into two major community types, nine communities, 18 sub-communities and six variants, were identified. A significant difference in species richness was found between the two major communities, with the higher-altitude communities having a higher species richness than the communities on the lower-lying slopes. A total of 26 endemic or near endemic Drakensberg Alpine Centre species were recorded. Conservation implications:Anthropogenic influences are felt globally on ecosystems. Highaltitude habitats and organisms will be affected first. Inselbergs have high levels of endemic organisms and are reservoirs and refugia for unique genetic material. This grassland plant community survey of Platberg provides valuable information on inselberg ecology for conservation planning.

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The Flora of the Drakensberg Alpine Centre

Cited by 77 publications

References 8 publications

multi-disciplinary review of late Quaternary palaeoclimates and environments for Lesotho

multi-disciplinary review of late Quaternary palaeoclimates and environments for Lesotho

Parks, peace, and partnership: global initiatives in transboundary conservation

The Grassland vegetation of Platberg, eastern Free State, South Africa

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