Journal ArticleDOI
Implications of climate warming on seedling emergence and mortality of African savanna woody plants
Reads0
Chats0
TLDR
Temperature significantly influenced seedling mortality in all the studied species such that under a warmer climate, mortality was predicted to increase in A. sieberana and D. cinerea and Z. abyssinica.Abstract:
Seedling emergence from scarified seeds and mortality of different seedling cohorts of five African savanna woody species (Acacia
polyacantha, A. sieberana, Bauhinia
thonningii, Dichrostachys
cinerea and Ziziphus
abyssinica) were studied under field conditions at a site in central Zambia. The study was conducted over a 4-year period, from 2003 to 2007. The objectives of the study were to determine climate factors that significantly influence seedling emergence rate and mortality in order to assess likely responses of the studied species to a warmer climate. Mean seedling emergence rate was 12% in D. cinerea and Z. abyssinica, 17% in B. thonningii, 47% in A. poyacantha and 62% in A. sieberana. Climate factors did not significantly affect seedling emergence in A. sieberana while temperature significantly influenced seedling emergence rate in the other species. Under a 1° warmer climate, seedling emergence rate was predicted to decline in A. polyacantha, B. thonningii and Z. abysssinica but is likely to increase slightly in D. cinerea. Time of seedling emergence during the wet season did not appear to affect seedling survival. Temperature also significantly influenced seedling mortality in all the studied species such that under a warmer climate, mortality was predicted to increase in A. sieberana and D. cinerea but decrease in A. polyacantha, B. thonningii and Z. abyssinica. As the studied species exhibited differential optimum temperature conditions for seedling emergence and seedling survival, they are likely to respond to climate warming in different but predictable ways. The results of the study are useful to forest management and development of climate change adaptation strategies in southern Africa.read more
Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
Climate change and plant regeneration from seed
TL;DR: Increased research in understudied ecosystems, on key issues related to seed ecology, and on evolution of seed traits in nonweedy species is needed to more fully comprehend and plan for plant responses to global warming.
Journal ArticleDOI
The effects of climate change and land-use change on demographic rates and population viability.
TL;DR: This work reviewed how demographic rates are affected by the major anthropogenic pressures, changed landscape condition caused by human land use, and climate change and found that, on average, climate variables had equally strong effects on demographic rates in plant and animal populations.
Book
The Dry Forests and Woodlands of Africa: Managing for Products and Services
TL;DR: In this paper, a comparative analysis of management experiences from different geographic regions, emphasizing the need to balance the utilization of dry forests and woodland products between current and future human needs.
Journal ArticleDOI
Determinants of woody encroachment and cover in African savannas.
TL;DR: It is postulated that woody encroachment is most likely driven by CO2 enrichment and a two-system conceptual framework is proposed, whereby mechanisms of wooded encroachment differ depending on whether the savanna is a wet or dry system.
Journal ArticleDOI
Climate warming delays and decreases seedling emergence in a Mediterranean ecosystem
TL;DR: Investigation of how temperature and moisture affect these early stages of plant development in four Banksia species collected from a longitudinal climate gradient in southwest Western Australia concludes that among-population differences in traits are not easy to predict, and caution the use of simple rules for choosing seed populations for conservation and restoration.
References
More filters
Biometery: The principles and practice of statistics in biological research
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a model for the analysis of variance in a single-classification and two-way and multiway analysis of Variance with the assumption of correlation.
Book
Biometry: The Principles and Practice of Statistics in Biological Research
Robert R. Sokal,F. James Rohlf +1 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a model for the analysis of variance in a single-classification and two-way and multiway analysis of Variance with the assumption of correlation.
Book
Climate Change 2001: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors set the stage for impact, adaptation, and vulnerability assessment of climate change in the context of sustainable development and equity, and developed and applied scenarios in Climate Change Impact, Adaptation, and Vulnerability Assessment.
Book
Climate Change 1995: The Science of Climate Change
TL;DR: The most comprehensive and up-to-date assessment available for scientific understanding of human influences on the past present and future climate is "Climate Change 1995: The Science of Climate Change" as mentioned in this paper.