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Browsing by Author "Pillay, Deena"

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Aspects of the spatial and behavioural ecology of Hippopotamus amphibious in the Saint Lucia Estuary, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Author: Prinsloo, Alexa Simone Date: 2016 The common hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) is endemic to Africa but threatened by range restriction, exploitation and competition with humans and domestic livestock for access to critical resources such as fresh water and grazing. ... Read more
Benthic metrics as indicators of human disturbance in a marine-dominated lagoon

Author: Jones, Amy M Date: 2018 Expanding anthropogenic developments along with the added stress of climate change, are negatively influencing coastal ecosystems. Because of their many benefits to mankind, it is important to identify key bioindicators that can detect ... Read more
Drivers of burrow symbiont distribution in a softsediment system: host abundance or burrow trophic environment?

Author: Wright, Amy G Date: 2013 The Langebaan Lagoon sandflats are dominated by the burrowing activities of thalassinid shrimps. Their burrows are home to various burrow symbionts including a commensal shrimp (Betaeus jucundus), a six-legged crab (Spiroplax spiralis) and a ... Read more
Ecology and behaviour of burrowing prawns and their burrow symbionts

Author: Moyo, Ropafadzo Kelebuhile Date: 2014 Ecosystem engineers play important roles as determinants of community dynamics by modulating resource availability for other species. Marine soft-sediment ecosystems are dominated by burrowing engineers which indirectly create biogenic ... Read more
The effects of the macroalga Gracilaria gracilis and increasing temperatures on the performance of the endemic Cape eelgrass Zostera capensis

Author: Beltrand, Maeva Mereana Marion Date: 2017 Rising temperature caused by global warming alters physiology, phenology and/or distribution in a wide array of plant and animal species, which has dramatic knock-on effects at different levels of organisation. This study investigates the ... Read more
Environmental determinants of greater flamingo foraging behaviour in an estuarine intertidal sandflat

Author: Liang, Andrea Yankee Date: 2014 The impact of flamingo predation on the benthic community has been well researched through the use of caging and exclusion experiments. However, there is still very little known about flamingo spatial foraging preferences and the environmental ... Read more
Flamingo foraging activity as a driver of spatial heterogeneity in Langebaan Lagoon, South Africa

Author: Payne, Robyn Date: 2013 Numerous studies have attempted to quantify the effect of epifaunal predation and its co-occurring disturbance on macrofaunal communities with the aid of exclosure experiments. However, no attention has been paid to the possible impacts of ... Read more
Flamingo foraging plasticity: ecological drivers and impacts

Author: Gihwala, Kirti Narendra Date: 2017 The consequences of predation have become a central focus of marine ecological research. Numerous studies have emphasized the importance of apex predators in structuring assemblages at various organisational levels and in determining how ... Read more
Flamingo predation impacts on benthic communities: effects of spatial gradients

Author: Gihwala, Kirti Narendra Date: 2014 Biological disturbances on marine soft sediment ecosystems have been well researched. However, little attention has been paid to the potential ecological role that iconic shore bird predators may have on marine ecosystems. This paper tests ... Read more
Genetics and ecosystem effects of the invasive mussel Semimytilus algosus, on the West Coast of South Africa

Author: Zeeman, Susanna Catharina Franzina Date: 2016 Invasive species can radically affect community composition and ecosystem processes, and human traffic has accelerated their spread. On the South African coast, 86 invasive species have been recorded, although until recently only the Mediterranean ... Read more
Influences of the abalone Haliotis midae on subtidal benthic communities

Author: Zeeman, Susanna Catharina Franzina Date: 2010 The South African abalone Haliotis midae is a commercially exploited species that is seriously threatened by overfishing and poaching. This not only affects the species itself but also the integrity and functionng of the ecosystem through ... Read more
The interactive effect of sandprawn (Callichirus kraussi) stebbing bioturbation and nutrients on macrofaunal communities

Author: Cooper, Rachel Date: 2011 My thesis combined an observational study and field and laboratory experiments to investigate how nutrients and bioturbation by C. kraussi interact to structure macrofaunal communities and how ambient temperatures influence these factors. Read more
Interactive effects of pH, temperature and exposure period on native and invasive mussels from the West Coast of South Africa

Author: Emanuel, Martin Phillippe Date: 2013 Global warming and ocean acidification due to an increase in anthropogenic carbon dioxide can impact marine calcifying organisms. Shells of marine calcifying organisms protect their internal soft tissue and may be key in determining the ... Read more
Interactive effects of temperature and grazing by seagrass limpets (Siphonaria compressa and Fissurella mutabilis) on seagrass (Zostera capensis)

Author: Waspe, Christopher Themba Date: 2015 Climate change is a reality. One of the main ecological concerns regarding climate change is the predicted increase in atmospheric and sea temperatures. The latter is expected to rise by roughly 2.5°C by the end of 2050 with dramatic impacts ... Read more
Physico-chemical factors influencing the spatial and temporal distribution of the seagrass Zostera capensis in Langebaan lagoon

Author: Arendse, Brittany Date: 2011 Seagrass meadows have important ecological roles in coastal ecosystems and provide high-value ecosystems services compared to other marine and terrestrial habitats. Despite this, there is growing evidence that this key ecosystems is declining ... Read more
Seeing our world through the Life Sciences

Author: Hoffman, Timm ; Pillay, Deena Date: 29 Sep 2014 For the second year running, the Science Faculty offers a composite course, this time from the field of the biological sciences, from disciplines which share a way of ‘seeing’ and interpreting the living world. The first lecture will take ... Read more c b n d
Temporal interactions with flamingo foraging plasticity: ecological effects on basal resources and benthic heterogeneity

Author: du Plessis, Darren Scott Date: 2018 The role of predation as a structuring agent of communities has been a focal area of research in marine ecology. Conversely, studies focusing on foraging plasticity, particularly by shorebirds, and consequences for benthic community structure, ... Read more