Showing papers in "Journal of Arid Environments in 1996"

TL;DR: It is at present difficult to predict the net balance of these two opposite consequences or to prophesy which phenomenon would prevail: increased aridity or higher productivity and more efficient water use.

TL;DR: In this paper, three studies were conducted to examine precipitation-vegetation relationships in the multi-stemmed shrubsLarrea tridentata, Prosopis glandulosa andFlourensia cernuain a desert ecosystem.

TL;DR: In this article, a Hiltner-type dew balance was used to measure the amount of dew in the desert at the site of Sede Boker for nearly 6 years.

TL;DR: In this article, the ecological requirements of cacti and particularly of the common and most utilized spineless type, Opuntia ficus-indica forma inermis, were analyzed.

TL;DR: In this paper, the influence of moisture content on the erodibility of sandy loam soils was investigated through wind tunnel simulations, and it was shown that the threshold velocity for soil particle movement by wind increases with increasing soil moisture by a power function.

TL;DR: The most important changes will be induced by increasing human pressure of various kinds: increasing population, both in rural and urban contexts, continuing oil developments, and larger numbers of ambitious water developments as mentioned in this paper.

TL;DR: In this paper, a framework for understanding environmental problems such as drought and land degradation is suggested, which seeks a better definition of environmental problems and aims to better understand the relationship between environment and society.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors measured runoff and interrill erosion in semi-arid rangelands of northern Mexico using simulated rainfall within a shortgrass community in five grass cover classes during the growing and dormant seasons.

TL;DR: A map showing the distribution and status of qanats across Syria presents a picture of widespread abandonment of recently desiccated quanats, implicating ground-water depletion and underscoring the need for coordinated and sustainable aquifer management in Syria as mentioned in this paper.

TL;DR: The phenology of emergence confirms the presence of a drought avoidance syndrome in this semi-arid climate in south-eastern Botswana and the importance of seedlings for the regeneration of grasslands is discussed.

TL;DR: The authors examines the advantages of the traditional cattlepost system against the recent drive towards the fencing of Botswana's rangelands and the establishment of privatised, commercial beef ranches.

TL;DR: Stratigraphic evidence and radiocarbon dating of sediments from the Great Bend Sand Prairie in Kansas indicates that significant deposits of aeolian sand have accumulated in the region during the late Holocene.

TL;DR: Low summer selectivity may reflect the adaptability of the guanaco to the scarcity and unpredictable phenology of plants in arid environments.

TL;DR: In this article, the role of organisms as sources of carbonate material, catalysts of carbon dioxide precipitation and creators of a whole series of fabrics and structures, both constructive and destructive, is discussed.

TL;DR: In this paper, a study was conducted to obtain quantitative information on salt tolerance, water use and salt uptake responses of four halophytes: Atriplex nummulariaLindl,Distichlis palmeriFassett,Batis maritimaL., andSuaeda esteroaFerron & Whitmore.

TL;DR: In this paper, the effects of fire, simulated grazing and native herbivore activity on the performance of black grama (Bouteloua eripoda) and blue grama were investigated in a semi-arid region of New Mexico.

TL;DR: In this paper, the methodological differences between field surveys and remote sensing are analysed and compared with regard to the type of information derived from them, and their relative accuracy and advantages, and four vegetation cover maps were then produced from the Landsat images of the 5 May 1991, 5 April 1992, 23 May 1992 and 10 July 1992.

TL;DR: In this paper, microarthropod populations in surface soil and litter were sampled during different seasons across a range of microhabitats in both heavy- and medium-textured soils.

TL;DR: The results of the study suggest that root and shoot of pearl millet contain water soluble compounds which are autotoxic.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors studied the distribution of 12 rodent species in the Negev Highlands, Israel, and classified rodents into five groups by their habitat preferences: petrophyles ( Acomys spp. and Sekeetamys calurus ), psammophyles ( Gerbillus gerbillus ), inhabitants of densely vegetated wadis ( Psammomys obesus and Eliomys melanurus), inhabitants of open gravel plains ( Jaculus jaculus, GerBILLus henleyi and G. nanus ), and habitat general

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors measured energy balance components of grass and shrub communities in the Chihuahuan Desert in the south-western United States and found that the differences of surface energy balance component of plant communities in this desert environment were generally small and were more related to surface characteristics (e.g. leaf area) and water supply than to photosynthetic pathway or vegetation type.

TL;DR: The influence of the western harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, on the spatial heterogeneity of soil seeds in the semi-arid shrub–steppe of south-western Wyoming suggests that harvesters ants indirectly facilitate B. tectorum near their nests.

TL;DR: Study of the effects of different fire intensities and season of burning on six important grass species in the Caldenal found that Stipa gynerioides and S. speciosa, two grasses not readily consumed by cattle, were sensitive to fire severity.

TL;DR: In this article, environmental influences on the cultivation of Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) plants, which are especially well adapted to arid regions with limited rainfall, were evaluated with respect to two aspects of global climate change.

TL;DR: In this paper, the complex interrelations between elevation, edaphic features, topography, prevailing wind speed and vegetation distribution on Saint Catherine mountains were elucidated by using TWINSPAN.

TL;DR: Part of the Namib Desert receive 19 mm of rain and 35 mm of fog precipitation on average during a year in amounts insufficient for plant germination and establishment, so Stipogrostis sabulicola and Trianthema hereroensis can imbibe fog and continued to contribute biomass to the system while nothing else could grow.

TL;DR: The genus Opuntia Miller includes a number of species which produce nutritious fruits and young joints used as vegetables as discussed by the authors, and they are also used as forage crops in Central/North America.

TL;DR: The results suggest that increased uptake of nutrients by plants with VAMF under field conditions may be a general phenomenon which would have important implications for elemental composition of plants.

TL;DR: The lizard diet proved to be based on nocturnal prey, implying active searching for these groups during the day, or a partially crepuscular-nocturnal activity in the lizard, overlapping with prey activity, suggesting the lack of diurnal sightings of the lizard throughout the summer favours the second option.

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the emission, transport and deposition of Saharan dust in relation to southern Europe, using data obtained from dust traps and data on dust events, with the help of a scenario, the stepwise movement of dust from central Sahara, via the peridesert areas of northern Africa, to Southern Europe is discussed.