The Influence of Cattle Grazing on Plant Species Composition in a Mesic Montane Region of Southern Africa
Subject Areas : Range ManagementGaolathe Tsheboeng 1 , Nkhululeko Matsaba 2 , Khayelihle Gumedze 3 , Marks Ditlhogo 4
1 - Lecturer, University of Botswana, Department of Biological Sciences
2 - Former Bsc Student, University of Eswatini, Department of Biological Sciences
3 - Former Bsc Student, University of Eswatini, Department of Biological Sciences
4 - Senior Lecturer, University of Botswana, Department of Biological Sciences
Keywords:
Abstract :
Angassa, A. and Oba, G., 2010. Effects of grazing pressure, age of enclosures and seasonality on bush cover dynamics and vegetation composition in southern Ethiopia. Journal of Arid Environments, 74(1): 111-120
Atsbha, T., Wayu, S., Gebretsadkan, N., Giday, T. and Gebremariam, T., 2020. Exclosure land management for restoration of herbaceous species in degraded communal grazing lands in Southern Tigray. Ecosystem Health and Sustainability, 6(1): 1-11.
Bardgett, R. D., Hobbs, P. J. and Frostegard, A., 2001. Changes in soil fungal: bacterial biomass ratios following reductions in the intensity of management of an upland grassland. Biology and Fertility of Soils, 22(3): 261–264.
Batey, T., 2009. Soil compaction and management-A review. Soil Use and Management, 25(4): 335-345.
Belovsky, G. E. 1978. Diet optimization in a generalist herbivore: the moose. Theoretical population biology, 14(1): 105-134.Bullock, J. M., Hill, B. C., Silverstown, J. and Sutton, M., 1995. Gap colonization as a source of grassland community change: Effects of gap size and grazing on the rate and mode of colonization by different species. Oikos, 72(2): 273–282.
Chiavegato, M.B., Rowntree, J.E. and Powers, W.J., 2015. Carbon flux assessment in cow-calf grazing systems. Journal of Animal Science, 93: 4189–4199.
Cox, A. H. and Amador, J. A., 2018. How grazing affects soil quality of soils formed in the glaciated northeastern United States. Environmental monitoring and assessment, 190(3): 1-16.
Crawley, M. J., 1997. Plant-herbivore dynamics. In: Crawley, M.J (Ed.), Plant Ecology. Oxford: Blackwell Science, UK.401–474 pp
Davis, F. W. and Goetz, S., 1990. Modelling vegetation pattern using digital terrain data. Landscape Ecology, 4(1): 69–80.
De Groot, P. A., Field-Juma, A. and Hall, D. O., 1992. Reclaiming the land: Re-vegetation in semi-arid Kenya. ACTS Press, Nairobi, Kenya, 105pp.
Desalew, T., 2008. Assessment of feed resources and rangeland condition in Metema district of north Gondar zone, Ethiopia. PhD dissertation, Haramaya University.
Dufrêne, M. and Legendre, P. 1997. Species assemblages and indicator species: the need for a flexible asymmetrical approach. Ecological monographs, 67(3): 345-366.
Ferrero, A. and Lipiec, J., 2000. Determining the effect of trampling on soils in hillslope woodlands. International Agrophysics, 14(1): 9-16.
Fleischner, T. L., 1994. Ecological costs of livestock grazing in western North America. Conservation Biology, 8(3): 629-644.
Gemedo, D. T., Maas, B. L. and Isseltein, J., 2006. Rangeland condition and trend in the semi-arid Borana lowlands, southern Oromia, Ethiopia. African Journal of Range and Forage Science, 23(1): 49-58.
Greenwood, K. L. and McKenzie, B. M., 2001. Grazing effects on soil physical properties and the consequences for pastures: A review. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture, 41(8): 1231–1250.
Grime, J.P. 1979. Plant Strategies and Vegetation Processes. John Wiley, New York, USA.
Grubb, P. J., 1977. The maintenance of species richness in plant communities: the importance of regeneration niche. Biological Reviews, 52: 104–145.
Hayes, G. F. and Holl, K. D., 2003. Cattle grazing impacts on annual forbs and vegetation composition of mesic grasslands in California. Conservation Biology, 17(1):1694-1702.
Haynes, R. J. and Williams, P. H., 1993. Nutrient cycling and soil fertility in the grazed pasture ecosystem. Advances in Agronomy, 49: 119–199.Herbin, T., Hennessy, D., Richards, K. G., Piwowarczyk, A., Murphy, J. J. and Holden, N. M., 2011. The effects of dairy cow weight on selected soil physical properties indicative of compaction. Soil Use and Management, 27(1): 36-44.
Hillel, D.,1992. Out of the Earth: Civilization and the Life of the Soil. University of California Press.
Hiernaux, P., 1998. Effects of grazing on plant species composition and spatial distribution in rangelands of the Sahel. Plant Ecology, 138(2): 191–202.
Humphrey, J. W. and Patterson, G. S., 2000. Effects of late summer cattle grazing on the diversity of riparian pasture vegetation in an upland conifer forest. Journal of Applied Ecology, 37(6): 986-996.
Jones, A., 2000. Effects of cattle grazing on North American arid ecosystems: a quantitative review. Western North American Naturalist, 60(2): 155-164.
Lavorel, S., Oneill, R.V. and Gardner, R. H., 1994. Spatio-temporal dispersal strategies and annual plant species coexistence in structured landscapes. Oikos, 71(1): 75–88.
Legendre, P. and Legendre, L., 2012. Numerical ecology.3rd edn. Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Loeser, M. R., Sisk, T. D. and Crews T. E., 2006. Impact of grazing intensity during drought in an Arizona grassland. Conservation Biology, 21(1):87-97.
Loffler, L. and Loffler, P., 2005. Swaziland Tree Atlas-including selected shrubs and climbers. Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 38, Sabonet, Pretoria, South Africa.
Lohmann, D., Tietjen, B., Blaum, N., Joubert, D. F. and Jeltsch, F., 2012. Shifting thresholds and changing degradation patterns: climate change effects on the simulated long‐term response of a semi‐arid savanna to grazing. Journal of Applied Ecology, 49(4): 814-823.
Manning, J., 2009. Field guide to wildflowers of Southern of South Africa. Struik Publishers PTY (LTD), Cape Town, South Africa.
McCune, B. and Grace, J. B., 2000. Analysis of ecological communities. Gleneden Beach: MJM Software Design, Oregon, USA.
McNaughton, S. J., 1985. Ecology of a grazing ecosystem: The Serengeti. Ecological Monographs, 53(3): 291–320.
Mekuria, W. and Veldkamp, E., 2012. Restoration of native vegetation following exclosure establishment on communal grazing lands in Tigray, Ethiopia. Applied Vegetation Science, 15(1): 71-83.
Mengistu, T., Teketay, D., Hulten, H. and Yemshaw, Y., 2005. The role of enclosures in the recovery of woody vegetation in degraded dryland hillsides of central and northern Ethiopia. Journal of Arid Environments, 60(2):259–281.
Milchunas, D. G., Sala, O. E. and Lauenroth, W. K., 1988. A generalized model of the effects of grazing by large herbivores on grassland community structure. The American Naturalist, 132(1): 87–106.
Montalvo, J., Casado, M. A., Levassor, C. and Pineda, F. D., 1993. Species diversity patterns in Mediterranean grasslands. Journal of Vegetation Science, 4(2): 213–222.
Mueller-Dombois, D. and Ellenberg, H., 1974. Aims and methods of vegetation ecology. 1 edn. John Wiley and Sons, New York, USA.
Oudtshoorn, F. V., 2014. Guide to Grasses of southern Africa.3rd edn. Briza publications, Pretoria, South Africa.
Ormerod, S. J., 2003. Restoration in applied ecology. Journal of Applied Ecology, 40(2): 44-50.
Peco, B., Sánchez, A. M. and Azcárate, F. M., 2006. Abandonment in grazing systems: consequences for vegetation and soil. Agriculture Ecosystems and Environment, 113(1-4): 284-294.
Perevolotsky, A. and Haimov, Y., 1992. The effect of thinning and goat browsing on the structure and development of Mediterranean woodland in Israel. Forest ecology and management, 49(1-2): 61-74.Pettit, N. E., Froend, R. H. and Ladd, P. G., 1995. Grazing in remnant woodland vegetation: changes in species composition and life form groups. Journal of Vegetation Science, 6(1): 121-130.
Qasim, S., Gul, S., Maria Hussain Shah, M. H., Hussain, F., Ahmad, S., Islam, M., Rehman, G., Yaqoob, M. and Shah, Q. S., 2017. Influence of grazing exclosure on vegetation biomass and soil quality. International Soil and Water Conservation Research, 5(1): 62-68.
Roesch, A., Weisskopf, P., Oberholzer, H., Valsangiacomo, A. and Nemecek, T., 2019. An approach for describing the effects of grazing on soil quality in life-cycle assessment. Sustainability, 11(18): 4870.
Rosenthal, G., Schrautzer, J. and Eichberg, C., 2012. Low-intensity grazing with domestic herbivores: A tool for maintaining and restoring plant diversity in temperate Europe. Tuexenia, 32(1): 167-205.
Ruiz-Jaen, M. C. and Aide, T. M., 2005. Restoration success: how is it being measured? Restoration Ecology, 13(3): 569-577.
Rutherford, M. C., Powrie, L. W. and Husted, L. B., 2012. Herbivore-driven land degradation: Consequences for plant diversity and soil in arid subtropical thicket in south-eastern Africa. Land Degradation and Development, 25(6): 541-553.
Schmiedel, U., Jacke, V., Hachfeld, B. and Oldeland, J., 2020. Response of Kalahari vegetation to seasonal climate and herbivory: Results of 15 years of vegetation monitoring. Journal of Vegetation Science, DOI: 10.1111/jvs.12927.
Scott-Shaw, R. and Morris, C. D., 2015. Grazing depletes forb species diversity in the mesic grasslands of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. African Journal of Range and Forage Science, 32(1): 21-31.
Shankar, V. and Singh, J. P., 1996. Grazing ecology. Tropical Ecology, 37(1): 67-78.
Siebert, F., Klem, J. and Van Coller, H., 2020. Forb community responses to an extensive drought in two contrasting land-use types of a semiarid Lowveld savanna. African Journal of Range and Forage Science, 37(1): 53–64.
Szaro, R. C., 1989. Riparian forest and scrubland community types of Arizona and New Mexico. Desert Plants, 9(1): 69- 138.
Zhao, L. P., Su, J. S., Wu, G. L. and Gillet, F., 2011. Long-term effects of grazing exclusion on aboveground and belowground plant species diversity in a steppe of the Loess Plateau, China. Plant Ecology and Evolution, 144(3): 313-320.