Spatio-temporal distribution of grass and shrubs at the ecotone between an arid grassland and succulent shrubland : ecological interactions and the influence of soils

• Main Author: Shiponeni, Ndafuda Nangula
• Other Authors: Allsopp, Nicky
• Format: Doctoral Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: University of Cape Town 2014
• Subjects: Botany
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/10663

Includes bibliographical references (p. 110-122). === This thesis presents ecological investigations of vegetation at an ecotone between the Namaqualand shrublands and Bushmanland arid grassland at the climatic transition between the predominantly winter rainfall Succulent Karoo and the predominantly summer rainfall Nama-Karoo biomess. The work focused on the determinants of grass and succulent shrub vegetation characterising the ecotone, and on determining the current and past distribution of this vegetation. A combination of detailed community the current and past distribution of this vegetation. A combination of detailed community level investigations (both observational and experimental), and a variety of remotely sensed data and techniques were applied to capture processes and patterns at different scales. In the first set of investigations, I have investigated the role of soil and competition on vegetation patterns. Secondly, field data were combined with remote sensing technology to establish the current distribution of grasses and shrubs along the ecotone, and to determine how this vegetation has changed over the past 20 years.