Human impacts in African savannas are mediated by plant functional traits
© 2018 The Authors New Phytologist © 2018 New Phytologist Trust.
| Veröffentlicht in: | The New phytologist. - 1979. - 220(2018), 1 vom: 28. Okt., Seite 10-24 |
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| 1. Verfasser: | |
| Weitere Verfasser: | , , , , |
| Format: | Online-Aufsatz |
| Sprache: | English |
| Veröffentlicht: |
2018
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| Zugriff auf das übergeordnete Werk: | The New phytologist |
| Schlagworte: | Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't C4 grass climate change degradation ecosystem services rising atmospheric CO2 savanna woody encroachment |
| Zusammenfassung: | © 2018 The Authors New Phytologist © 2018 New Phytologist Trust. Tropical savannas have a ground cover dominated by C4 grasses, with fire and herbivory constraining woody cover below a rainfall-based potential. The savanna biome covers 50% of the African continent, encompassing diverse ecosystems that include densely wooded Miombo woodlands and Serengeti grasslands with scattered trees. African savannas provide water, grazing and browsing, food and fuel for tens of millions of people, and have a unique biodiversity that supports wildlife tourism. However, human impacts are causing widespread and accelerating degradation of savannas. The primary threats are land cover-change and transformation, landscape fragmentation that disrupts herbivore communities and fire regimes, climate change and rising atmospheric CO2 . The interactions among these threats are poorly understood, with unknown consequences for ecosystem health and human livelihoods. We argue that the unique combinations of plant functional traits characterizing the major floristic assemblages of African savannas make them differentially susceptible and resilient to anthropogenic drivers of ecosystem change. Research must address how this functional diversity among African savannas differentially influences their vulnerability to global change and elucidate the mechanisms responsible. This knowledge will permit appropriate management strategies to be developed to maintain ecosystem integrity, biodiversity and livelihoods |
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| Beschreibung: | Date Completed 01.10.2019 Date Revised 30.09.2020 published: Print-Electronic Citation Status MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1469-8137 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/nph.15236 |