Transcript 2014-Biomes-Biogeography

South Africa/Botswana
Biomes and Biogeography
Ami Flowers
March 9, 2011
FORS 5200 International Issue
in Conservation
Map of
Southern
Africa
Review of a few Ecology Terms
• Individual – a single organism of a particular species.
• Population – a group of interbreeding individuals of the
same species residing in a specific area.
• Community – all populations of different species
residing in a specific area.
• Ecosystem – an ecological community of both biotic
and abiotic components, and their interactions with one
another.
• Biome – a regional ecosystem characterized by distinct
types of vegetation, animals, and microbes that have
developed under specific climatic and soil conditions.
Seven Biomes of South Africa
•
•
•
•
Forest
Fynbos
Thicket
Succulent Karoo
• Nama Karoo
• Grassland
• Savanna
Forest Biome
Forest Biome
• Smallest of the seven biomes, covering less
than .25% of ZA.
• Located on the coastal plains to the high
altitudes of the Drakensburg Mountains.
• These forests are small and isolated, rarely
encompassing areas greater than 1000 ha.
• Occur in areas that receive
high amounts of rainfall
year round, and are frost
free.
Forest Biome
• Vegetation Composition:
– Indigenous evergreen and semi-deciduous plants.
– Reduced light levels from the closed canopy allows
for suitable habitat of tree ferns.
• Associated:
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Rumohra fern
Black stinkwood
Blue Duiker
Samango monkey
Knysna Lourie
Cape Parrot
Pink Velvet worm
Gaboon adder
Thicket Biome
Thicket Biome
• Fragmented band along the southern coast
from KwaZulu-Natal to the Western Cape.
• Receives the most rain during the summer
season.
• Relatively warm winters.
• Five distinguishable
vegetation types:
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Dune thicket
Mesic succulent thicket
Specboom succulent thicket
Valley thicket
Seric succulent thicket
Thicket Biome
• Vegetation Composition:
– Highly fragmented areas.
– Sparse to dense, spiny, evergreen shrubs.
– Tree size and density dependent on location.
• Associated Species:
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–
–
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Kabusi Stream Damsel
Albany Adder
Tree Dassie
Albany Cycad
Addo Dung Beetle
Fynbos Biome
Fynbos Biome
• Occupies 5.3% of ZA.
• Part of the Cape Floral Kingdom
– One of six of the plant kingdoms on Earth
– 8700 species of plants
– 69% endemic
• Rainfall occurs mainly in the winter season.
• Fire sustained environment, where most of the plants
are obligate seeders.
• Many products come from this
region including:
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Rooibos tea
Thatching reed
Grapes
Wheat
Fruit
Olives
Fynbos Biome
• Vegetation Composition:
– Evergreen heathlands and shrublands.
– Fine-leafed low shrubs and leafless grass-like plants.
– Trees are rare.
• Associated species:
– Renosterbos, Heaths, Daisies, Blacktips, Peas,
Jujube, Thyme, Proteas.
– Marsh Rose
– Stag beetle
– Micro frog
– Cape Sugarbird
– Geometric tortoise
– Bontebok
– Protea Canary
– Cape Francolin
– Cape Mountain Zebra
Succulent Karoo Biome
Succulent Karoo Biome
• Located west of the western escarpment
and along the west coast.
• Very low winter rainfall
(cyclonic) with hot-dry
summers.
• Frost rarely occurs and
fog is isolated to coastal
areas.
• Summer easily reaches in
excess of 40ºC.
Succulent Karoo Biome
• Vegetation composition:
– Semi-desert shrubland with dwarf succulent shrubs.
– In spring, mass flowering displays
primarily of daisies.
• Associated Species:
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Toontjies, Vygies, Daisies, Sage
Bastard Quiver tree
Namaqua Pollen wasp
Desert Rain frog
Granulated Thick-tailed scorpion
Lomi’s Blind legless skink
Pale Chanting Goshawk
Gray’s Lark
Springbok
Suricate
Bat-eared Fox
Nama Karoo Biome
Nama Karoo Biome
• Second largest biome in ZA.
• Located on the central plateau region of the Western
and Northern Cape Provinces.
• Transition area between the Fynbos and Savanna
Biomes.
• Rocky or sandy plains with flat-topped mesas.
• Exposed to wind regularly, with hot-dry summers and
very cold winters.
• The limited amount
of rain has
contributed
to the lime-rich,
weakly
developed soils.
Nama Karoo Biome
• Vegetation composition:
– Grasses, dwarf shrubs, succulents, geophytes,
and annual forbs.
– Small trees are present along drainage lines and
hillslopes.
• Associated Species:
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Riverine Rabbit
Fisk’s House Snake
The Karoo Padloper
Namaqua Sandgrouse
Brown locust
Sweet thorn
Kapokbush
Yellow Mongoose
Steenbok
Red Lark
Cinnamon-breasted warbler
Grassland Biome
Grassland Biome
• Occupies 24.1% of ZA.
• Located on the high central plateau, with a
topography of flat plains and rolling hills.
• It receives high
amounts of summer
rainfall, with cold
winters producing frost.
• Maintained by fire,
frost, and grazing.
• Highly diverse in animals
and plants species, with
nearly 3800 species of
the latter.
Grassland Biome
• Vegetation composition:
– Dominated by two types of grasses:
• Sweet – lower fiber content, but remains palatable throughout
winter
• Sour – high fiber content, but are unpalatable during the winter.
• Association species:
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A wide array of grazing antelope species.
Black wildebeest
Blesbok
Mountain Reedbuck
Blue Crane
Redwing Francolin
Giant bullfrog
Karkloof Blue Butterfly
Red Grasses
Star Flowers
Savanna Biome
Savanna Biome
• Largest biome, covering 46% of ZA.
• Occurs from sea level up to 2000m in altitude.
• Rainfall varies from 235 to 1000mm, mainly
falling during the summer months.
• Almost every major
geological and soil type
occur within the Savanna
biome.
• Maintained by frequent
fires, with many grass
species adapted to
survive burning.
Savanna Biome
• Vegetation composition:
– Savannas are described as wooded grasslands.
– Consist of a grassy ground layer and an upper
layer of woody vegetation in the form of trees and
shrubs.
• Associated species:
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–
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–
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5700 plants
532 birds
167 mammals
161 reptiles
57 amphibians
Kruger National Park & Tuli Game Reserve
• Located in Savanna biome.
• This region is known as the
“lowveld”.
– It has lower elevation relative
to the neighboring “highveld”
region.
• The term “veld” describes
an open area of grasses &
shrubs.
– First coined by Acocks (1953)
who defined 70 veld types
within South Africa.
Savanna Veld Types
• Velds are characterized by the vegetation
within the area.
• There are 3 categories of veld types
associated with the Savanna biome:
– Shrubveld
• Height of woody vegetation grows between 1-2 meters
– Woodland
• Dense woody vegetation grows up to 20 meters in height.
– Bushveld
• Intermediate stage where the average woody vegetation
grows between 3-7 meters.
Bushvelds of Kruger &
Tuli
• Kruger National Park has
five bushveld types:
– Sour lowveld bushveld
– Mixed lowveld bushveld
– Sweet lowveld bushveld
– Lebombo arid mountain
bushveld
– Mopane bushveld
Mopane Bushveld
Mopane Bushveld
• Climate:
– Dry winter months from June to September
produce average daytime temperatures of 22ºC.
– Wet summer months from November to April
produce average daytime temperatures of 38ºC.
– Rainfall ranges from 250mm to 500mm.
– Frost is rare but can occur.
• Topography and Geography
– Relatively flat with rolling hills.
– Soils range from clay to loamy sand.
– Bedrock consists of basalt and granite,
interspersed with sandstone and shale.
Why is it called the “Mopane” Bushveld?
• The name describes the most common
tree in the area: MOPANE!!!
Pictures from Tuli Game Reserve
We will delve into more
specifics on the
biodiversity of the Mopane
Bushveld in upcoming
lectures….