Ametsitsi, George K.D;
Van Langevelde, Frank;
Logah, Vincent;
Janssen, Thomas;
Medina-Vega, Jose A;
Issifu, Hamza;
Ollivier, Laurianne;
den Hartogh, Koos;
Adjei-Gyapong, Thomas;
Adu-Bredu, Stephen;
Lloyd, Jon;
Veenendaal, Elmar M
Fixed or mixed? Variation in tree functional types and vegetation structure in a forest-savanna ecotone in West Africa
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Medientyp:
E-Artikel
Titel:
Fixed or mixed? Variation in tree functional types and vegetation structure in a forest-savanna ecotone in West Africa
Beteiligte:
Ametsitsi, George K.D;
Van Langevelde, Frank;
Logah, Vincent;
Janssen, Thomas;
Medina-Vega, Jose A;
Issifu, Hamza;
Ollivier, Laurianne;
den Hartogh, Koos;
Adjei-Gyapong, Thomas;
Adu-Bredu, Stephen;
Lloyd, Jon;
Veenendaal, Elmar M
Erschienen:
Cambridge University Press (CUP), 2020
Beschreibung:
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>We analysed thirty-five 400-m<jats:sup>2</jats:sup> plots encompassing forest, savanna and intermediate vegetation types in an ecotonal area in Ghana, West Africa. Across all plots, fire frequency was over a period of 15 years relatively uniform (once in 2–4 years). Although woodlands were dominated by species typically associated with savanna-type formations, and with forest formations dominated by species usually associated with closed canopies, these associations were non-obligatory and with a discrete non-specialized species grouping also identified. Across all plots, crown area index, stem basal area and above-ground biomass were positively associated with higher soil exchangeable potassium and silt contents: this supporting recent suggestions of interplays between potassium and soil water storage potential as a significant influence on tropical vegetation structure. We also found an average NDVI cover increase of ~0.15% year<jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> (1984–2011) with plots dominated by non-specialized species increasing more than those dominated by either forest- or savanna-affiliated species. Our results challenge the traditional view of a simple forest vs. savanna dichotomy controlled by fire, and with our newly identified third non-specialized species grouping also potentially important in understanding ecotonal responses to climate change.</jats:p>