Spontaneous succession of riparian fynbos: Is unassisted recovery a viable restoration strategy?

dc.contributor.authorReinecke, M K
dc.contributor.authorPigot, A L
dc.contributor.authorKing, J M
dc.date.accessioned2018-05-17T07:56:36Z
dc.date.available2018-05-17T07:56:36Z
dc.date.issued2008
dc.date.updated2016-01-13T10:27:31Z
dc.description.abstractThe invasion of alien trees is a major threat to the freshwater resources and biodiversity of South Africa. The Working for Water (WfW) Program was initiated in 1995 in order to control the growth and spread of woody alien species in riparian zones, but the extent to which the indigenous vegetation naturally recovers following alien clearance remains poorly understood. In this study spontaneous succession of riparian vegetation following wild fires and alien clearing was monitored over a number of years at two sites on the Cape Peninsula: a pine plantation in an upland plateau and an Acacia spp.-invaded valley floodplain. After clearing, the vegetation at the pine site was successfully recovering along a trajectory towards Afromontane forest and as a result it is suggested that no active restoration is required. By contrast, our results show that areas cleared of Acacia spp. may be less resilient, with extensive regeneration of woody aliens and only a negligible recovery of indigenous trees. We propose that the absence of riparian trees may have been responsible for precipitating the transition to a community dominated by weedy nitrophilous grasses, and find evidence that this may be perpetuated through the continued removal of Acacia spp. It is hypothesized that this grass-dominated state may be resilient to natural restoration and thus represents an additional constraint to the recovery of riparian communities. Under such circumstances, we argue that active restoration would be required in order to re-instate the riparian community.
dc.identifierhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2008.01.171
dc.identifier.apacitationReinecke, M. K., Pigot, A. L., & King, J. M. (2008). Spontaneous succession of riparian fynbos: Is unassisted recovery a viable restoration strategy?. <i>South African Journal of Botany</i>, http://hdl.handle.net/11427/28093en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationReinecke, M K, A L Pigot, and J M King "Spontaneous succession of riparian fynbos: Is unassisted recovery a viable restoration strategy?." <i>South African Journal of Botany</i> (2008) http://hdl.handle.net/11427/28093en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationReinecke, M. K., Pigot, A. L., & King, J. M. (2008). Spontaneous succession of riparian fynbos: Is unassisted recovery a viable restoration strategy?. South African Journal of Botany, 74(3), 412-420.
dc.identifier.ris TY - AU - Reinecke, M K AU - Pigot, A L AU - King, J M AB - The invasion of alien trees is a major threat to the freshwater resources and biodiversity of South Africa. The Working for Water (WfW) Program was initiated in 1995 in order to control the growth and spread of woody alien species in riparian zones, but the extent to which the indigenous vegetation naturally recovers following alien clearance remains poorly understood. In this study spontaneous succession of riparian vegetation following wild fires and alien clearing was monitored over a number of years at two sites on the Cape Peninsula: a pine plantation in an upland plateau and an Acacia spp.-invaded valley floodplain. After clearing, the vegetation at the pine site was successfully recovering along a trajectory towards Afromontane forest and as a result it is suggested that no active restoration is required. By contrast, our results show that areas cleared of Acacia spp. may be less resilient, with extensive regeneration of woody aliens and only a negligible recovery of indigenous trees. We propose that the absence of riparian trees may have been responsible for precipitating the transition to a community dominated by weedy nitrophilous grasses, and find evidence that this may be perpetuated through the continued removal of Acacia spp. It is hypothesized that this grass-dominated state may be resilient to natural restoration and thus represents an additional constraint to the recovery of riparian communities. Under such circumstances, we argue that active restoration would be required in order to re-instate the riparian community. DA - 2008 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town J1 - South African Journal of Botany LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2008 T1 - Spontaneous succession of riparian fynbos: Is unassisted recovery a viable restoration strategy? TI - Spontaneous succession of riparian fynbos: Is unassisted recovery a viable restoration strategy? UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/28093 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/28093
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationReinecke MK, Pigot AL, King JM. Spontaneous succession of riparian fynbos: Is unassisted recovery a viable restoration strategy?. South African Journal of Botany. 2008; http://hdl.handle.net/11427/28093.en_ZA
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Biological Sciencesen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.sourceSouth African Journal of Botany
dc.source.urihttps://www.journals.elsevier.com/south-african-journal-of-botany
dc.subject.otherAlternative stable state
dc.subject.otherBiological invasions
dc.subject.otherNitrophilous grasses
dc.subject.otherRestoration
dc.subject.otherRiparian zones
dc.subject.otherSpontaneous succession
dc.titleSpontaneous succession of riparian fynbos: Is unassisted recovery a viable restoration strategy?
dc.typeJournal Article
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
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