The physical environment and major plant communities of the Karoo National Park, South Africa

Rubin, Francine; Palmer, Anthony R.

doi:10.4102/koedoe.v39i2.293

Cited by 15 publications

(4 citation statements)

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“…Richtersveld is remote and until recently rainfall recording was poor which results in lower confidence in the modelled precipitation data for this park. Further descriptions of the parks are available as follows: Augrabies Falls/Melkbosrand ( Werger & Coetzee, 1977; Bezuidenhout, 1996); Kalahari Gemsbok ( Van Rooyen et al ., 1988; Van Rooyen & Bezuidenhout, 1997 ); Karoo ( Rubin & Palmer, 1996); Richtersveld (van Jaarsveld, 1980; Williamson, 1995) and Vaalbos/Rooipoort ( Bezuidenhout, 1994, 1995).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate change in conservation areas of South Africa and its potential impact on floristic composition: a first assessment

Rutherford

Powrie

Schulze

1999

Diversity and Distributions

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Summary Projected climate change has been suspected of affecting the biota of conserved nature areas in different and significant ways. Nevertheless, strategic management within some nature conservation agencies appears relatively unprepared for the possible consequences of climate change. National level planning of reserve design networks has also tended to skirt the issue, possibly owing to insufficient analysis. This paper provides a first assessment of the possible effects of climate change on plant diversity within the protected area network of South Africa. A climate change scenario of increased temperature but no change in precipitation resulted in derived optimum growth days increasing in some reserves through increased temperature extending the growing season. In some other reserves optimum growth days declined through greater evapotranspiration. We concentrated on the larger reserves of the latter group for which conditions that are more limiting were predicted. Plant species were evaluated in terms of their critical limits in growth days and minimum temperature. Over a third of the species analysed for one reserve (Augrabies Falls National Park and Melkbosrand) was indicated to become locally extinct with climate change. Another reserve in the region showed fewer than 1% local extinctions. It is clear that although a certain magnitude of climate change is a prerequisite for these extinctions, the rate and number of extinctions depend strongly on the different environmental tolerances of the specific biotic components of the conserved area. Potential immigration of other species to Augrabies Falls/Melkbosrand required to balance the projected extinctions with climate change would need migration abilities and conditions that are unlikely to be met. A net decrease in plant diversity may thus be expected. The results confirm that with the climate change scenario used, the concept of sustaining species through fixed protected areas may be fundamentally flawed, at least in certain areas.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate change in conservation areas of South Africa and its potential impact on floristic composition: a first assessment

Rutherford

Powrie

Schulze

1999

Diversity and Distributions

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“…• Savanna: Bezuidenhout (1994), Brown (1997), Gertenbach (1978, Mostert (2006), Stalmans andPeel (2010), Van Rooyen (1983) and Van Staden (2002). • Nama-Karoo: Brown and Bezuidenhout (2000), Cleaver, Brown and Bredenkamp (2005), Rubin and Palmer (1996), Van der Walt (1980) and Werger and Coetzee (1977). • Succulent Karoo: Jurgens (2004) andLe Roux (1984).…”

Section: Selected Examples Includementioning

confidence: 99%

Guidelines for phytosociological classifications and descriptions of vegetation in southern Africa

Brown

Preez

Bezuidenhout

et al. 2013

Koedoe

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Changes in the environment are first observed in changes in the vegetation. Vegetation survey, classification and mapping form the basis on which informed and scientifically defendable decisions on the environment can be taken. The classification and mapping of vegetation is one of the most widely used tools for interpreting complex ecosystems. By identifying different plant communities we are essentially identifying different ecosystems at a particular hierarchical level. Phytosociologists in Europe have been involved in such studies following, in particular, the Braun-Blanquet approach since the early 1900s. In South Africa, such studies were undertaken on a limited basis from the early 1970s and have since then steadily increased. The surveying of the enormous diversity of South African vegetation is one of the objectives of phytosociological studies. The demand for such data has steadily increased over the past few years to guide conservation policies, biodiversity studies and ecosystem management. In South Africa, numerous publications on the vegetation of conservation and other areas in the different biomes have been produced over the last few decades. However, vegetation scientists in South Africa experience unique problems. The purpose of this article is therefore to provide an overview of the history and the specific focus of phytosociological studies in South Africa and to recommend minimum requirements and methods to be followed when conducting such studies. It is believed that the incorporation of these requirements will result in scientifically justifiable research of high quality by phytosociologists in South Africa. Conservation implications: Effective conservation cannot be obtained without a thorough knowledge of the ecosystems present in an area. Consistent vegetation classifications and descriptions form the basis of conservation and monitoring exercises to maintain biodiversity. The incorporation of these guidelines and requirements will facilitate quality phytosociological research in South Africa

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“…Cynodon dactylon (Subfamily: Cynodonteae), on the other hand, grows well and its seedlings can re-establish in areas prone to seasonal flooding as observed in the Fafan valley of the Jijinga rangelands, Ethiopia [46]. Stipagrostis namaquensis (Subfamily: Aristideae) is a typical Nama Karoo riparian grass, which is able to survive maximum disturbance with unpredictable flooding episodes [47].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of Exotic Tamarix Species on Riparian Plant Biodiversity

Setshedi

Newete

2020

Agriculture

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This study investigated the impact of exotic Tamarix species on vascular plant biodiversity in riparian ecosystems in the Western Cape Province, South Africa. Vegetation was sampled, using 5 m wide belt transects, along the Leeu, Swart, and Olifants riparian areas, which had varying invasion intensities. Each transect was split into three zones (Zone 1: 0–15 m; Zone 2: 15–35, and Zone 3: >35 m), which were identified at each site based on species composition across each riparian zone. Woody plant species were identified, counted, and their heights measured within the transects that were laid out from the waterpoint (Zone 1) outwards (Zone 2 and 3). Herbaceous aerial cover (HAC) was determined subjectively and objectified using the Walker aerial cover scale. Leeu River had the highest species richness (Dmg = 2.79), diversity (H′ = 2.17; −lnλ = 1.91; N1 = 8.76 and α = 4.13), and evenness (J′= 0.80). The Swart River had the lowest species richness, which declined from Dmg = 1.96 (Zone 1) to Dmg = 1.82 (Zone 3). Exotic Tamarix species ranked in the top three most abundant woody vascular plant species along the Swart and Olifants rivers, where they ranked first and third, respectively. The Jaccard’s and Sorenson’s coefficients of similarity indicated that species differed greatly between the different sites, x¯ < 27% for both indices. The indices also indicated that the Swart River had the lowest level of species distinctness between zones (x¯ > 80%) while the Leeu River had the highest level of species distinctness (x¯ < 50%) between the different zones. These findings suggest a possible displacement of herbaceous and woody tree species by exotic Tamarix invasion, inter alia, a decrease in ecosystem functions and services associated with the loss in biodiversity, as well as significant bearings on the agricultural ecosystem by reducing the faunal diversity such as crop pollinators, inter alia.

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The physical environment and major plant communities of the Karoo National Park, South Africa

Cited by 15 publications

References 0 publications

Climate change in conservation areas of South Africa and its potential impact on floristic composition: a first assessment

Climate change in conservation areas of South Africa and its potential impact on floristic composition: a first assessment

Guidelines for phytosociological classifications and descriptions of vegetation in southern Africa

The Impact of Exotic Tamarix Species on Riparian Plant Biodiversity

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