Publication Details |
| Category | Text Publication |
| Reference Category | Journals |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.jaridenv.2006.06.001 |
| Title (Primary) | Large trees, acacia shrubs, and the density of Thallomys nigricauda in the Thornveld savannah of South Africa |
| Author | Meyer, J.; Steinhauser, J.; Jeltsch, F.; Brandl, R. |
| Source Titel | Journal of Arid Environments |
| Year | 2007 |
| Department | BZF |
| Volume | 68 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Page From | 363 |
| Page To | 370 |
| Language | englisch |
| Keywords | black-tailed tree rat; hierarchical partitioning; Manly's alpha; selection index |
| Abstract | We investigated the density of Thallomys nigricauda (acacia rat or black-tailed tree rat) in correlation to habitat characteristics at the Molopo Nature Reserve (S 25 degrees 50'; E 22 degrees 55', South Africa). Data on nest trees and vegetation were sampled on 15 study sites along a transect of 25 km. Abundance of acacia rats was estimated using a combined count of nests and scat accumulations. Large live trees of Boscia albitrunca (> 5 m) were preferred for nesting. Nests with offspring had significantly more often food plants (Acacia mellifera or A. luederitzii) close to the nest tree than nonreproductive nests or controls. Hierarchical partitioning revealed the density of large B. albitrunca trees and Acacia erioloba of various size classes were positively correlated to the abundance of the acacia rats. The significance of medium sized A. erioloba disappeared when we used only nests as a measure of acacia rat abundance. Density of food plants showed no significant effect on the abundance of acacia rats. Overall our results differ greatly from observations in other areas, where the acacia rat prefers Acacia trees for nesting. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved |
| Persistent UFZ Identifier | https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=2067 |
| Meyer, J., Steinhauser, J., Jeltsch, F., Brandl, R. (2007): Large trees, acacia shrubs, and the density of Thallomys nigricauda in the Thornveld savannah of South Africa J. Arid. Environ. 68 (3), 363 - 370 10.1016/j.jaridenv.2006.06.001 |
|