South Africa/BotswanaBiomes 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:

– 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:– 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:– 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:– 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:

– 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:– 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:– 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:– 5700 plants– 532 birds– 167 mammals– 161 reptiles– 57 amphibians

• 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.

Kruger National Park & Tuli Game Reserve

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.

• Kruger National Park has five bushveld types:– Sour lowveld bushveld– Mixed lowveld bushveld– Sweet lowveld bushveld– Lebombo arid mountain

bushveld– Mopane bushveld

Bushvelds of Kruger & Tuli

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.

Mopane Bushveld

• The name describes the most common tree in the area: MOPANE!!!

Why is it called the “Mopane” Bushveld?

Pictures from Tuli Game Reserve

We will delve into more specifics on the biodiversity of the Mopane Bushveld in upcoming lectures….