Ward, David Mercer

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","63"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","1"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","72"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","10"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Moustakas, Aristides"],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:44:38Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:44:38Z"],["dc.date.issued","2007"],["dc.description.abstract","Coexistence of trees and grasses in savannas should be possible if competition between the woody and the grassy components is less intense than the competition within each component. Although several studies have investigated competition between trees and grasses, little is known about tree-tree interactions. We used a multi-proxy approach to examine the spatial pattern of Acacia mellifera and other savanna woody species in a semi-arid savanna in South Africa. Spatial analysis of the point patterns of young and reproductively mature shrubs detected decreasing aggregation with size/age over all spatial scales. This indicated the prevalence of competition although the overall spatial shrub pattern was aggregated. In contrast to point pattern statistics that detect changes only when competition has led to the death of the inferior competitor, we also applied methods identifying the competitive effect on sizes of individual trees. Competition should lead to a negative spatial autocorrelation in size, which we observed in half of the studied cases. Quantile regressions show that nearest-neighbour distance increased steeply with combined size of the target shrub and its neighbours indicating strong competitive effects. The medians of the distributions of maximum root lengths of A. mellifera, of the scale of regular patterns, and of negative autocorrelations were not significantly different, suggesting that overlapping root systems mediate competitive interactions. A competitor removal experiment did not lead to increased shrub sizes, which may be due to the limited duration of the experiment. From the nearest neighbour and autocorrelation analyses, we conclude that competition had a strong impact on growth rates of savanna woody species. Competition-induced mortality only becomes obvious when analysing the shift towards less aggregated spatial patterns when shrubs become reproductively mature. As the overall clustered spatial pattern masks the perceptible effect of competition, a time component should always be included in spatial pattern-based inference of competition."],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1016/j.ppees.2007.09.002"],["dc.identifier.gro","3148942"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5584"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.intern","Wiegand Crossref Import"],["dc.notes.status","public"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","1433-8319"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.subject.gro","Acacia mellifera"],["dc.subject.gro","Competitor removal experiment"],["dc.subject.gro","Nearest-neighbour distance"],["dc.subject.gro","Quantile regression"],["dc.subject.gro","Spatial autocorrelation"],["dc.subject.gro","Spatial point pattern analysis"],["dc.title","Multi-proxy evidence for competition between savanna woody species"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","47"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","2"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","Frontiers of Biogeography"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","53"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","2"],["dc.contributor.author","Moustakas, Aristides"],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.contributor.author","Sankaran, Mahesh"],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:50:52Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:50:52Z"],["dc.date.issued","2010"],["dc.identifier.doi","10.21425/F5FBG12335"],["dc.identifier.gro","3147839"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5165"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.status","final"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","1948-6596"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.title","Learning new tricks from old trees: revisiting the savanna question"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","440"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","3"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","African Journal of Ecology"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","442"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","46"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.contributor.author","Moustakas, Aristides"],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:50:51Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:50:51Z"],["dc.date.issued","2007"],["dc.description.abstract","Shrub encroachment, i.e. the increase in density of woody species, is threatening tree-grass coexistence in savannas worldwide (see e.g. Smit, 2004; Wiegand, Ward {\\&} Saltz, 2005; Wiegand, Saltz {\\&} Ward, 2006). In addition to ecological problems, shrub encroachment creates economic problems, because it reduces the extent of areas suitable for grazing of livestock. In recognition of the importance of spatial and temporal scales for savannas, Wiegand et al. (2005, 2006) proposed patch-dynamics as the driving mechanism of tree-grass coexistence in savannas including a naturally shrub encroached phase. In patch-dynamic landscapes, patches are asynchronously cycling between woody and grassy dominance. Evidence for patch-dynamic savannas is accumulating (e.g. Gillson, 2004; Wiegand et al., 2006), but simple methods for the determination of the spatial scale of patches are still lacking. In the present study, we propose a method for estimating patch sizes based on the canopy diameter and the spatial location of individuals and apply it to an example data set from a semi-arid savanna in South Africa."],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1111/j.1365-2028.2007.00834.x"],["dc.identifier.gro","3147837"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5163"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.status","public"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","0141-6707"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.title","Determining patch size"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","491"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","6"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","Basic and Applied Ecology"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","499"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","10"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:44:39Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:44:39Z"],["dc.date.issued","2009"],["dc.description.abstract","Many mechanisms have been suggested to explain the coexistence of woody species and grasses in savannas. However, evidence from field studies and simulation models has been mixed. Patch dynamics is a potentially unifying mechanism explaining tree-grass coexistence and the natural occurrence of shrub encroachment in arid and semi-arid savannas. A patch-dynamic savanna consists of a spatial mosaic of patches. Each patch maintains a cyclical succession between dominance of woody species and grasses, and the succession of neighbouring patches is temporally asynchronous. Evidence from empirical field studies supports the patch dynamics view of savannas. As a basis for future tests of patch dynamics in savannas, several hypotheses are presented and one is exemplarily examined: at the patch scale, realistically parameterized simulation models have generated cyclical succession between woody and grass dominance. In semi-arid savannas, cyclical successions are driven by precipitation conditions that lead to mass recruitment of shrubs in favourable years and to simultaneous collapse of shrub cohorts in drought years. The spatiotemporal pattern of precipitation events determines the scale of the savanna vegetation mosaic in space and time. In a patch-dynamic savanna, shrub encroachment is a natural, transient phase corresponding to the shrub-dominated phase during the successional cycle. Hence, the most promising management strategy for encroached areas is a large-scale rotation system of rangelands. In conclusion, patch dynamics is a possible scale-explicit mechanism for the explanation of tree-grass coexistence in savannas that integrates most of the coexistence mechanisms proposed thus far for savannas."],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1016/j.baae.2008.12.003"],["dc.identifier.gro","3148935"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5576"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.intern","Wiegand Crossref Import"],["dc.notes.status","public"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","1439-1791"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.subject.gro","Competition"],["dc.subject.gro","Cyclical succession"],["dc.subject.gro","Grasses"],["dc.subject.gro","Mosaic cycles"],["dc.subject.gro","Shrub encroachment"],["dc.subject.gro","Shrubs"],["dc.subject.gro","Simulation models"],["dc.subject.gro","Spatiotemporal scales"],["dc.subject.gro","Woody species"],["dc.title","Patch dynamics integrate mechanisms for savanna tree–grass coexistence"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","1272"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","8"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","Animal"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","1281"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","8"],["dc.contributor.author","Accatino, Francesco"],["dc.contributor.author","Sabatier, Rodolphe"],["dc.contributor.author","Michele, Carlo de"],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:44:40Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:44:40Z"],["dc.date.issued","2014"],["dc.description.abstract","Rangelands provide the main forage resource for livestock in many parts of the world, but maintaining long-term productivity and providing sufficient income for the rancher remains a challenge. One key issue is to maintain the rangeland in conditions where the rancher has the greatest possibility to adapt his/her management choices to a highly fluctuating and uncertain environment. In this study, we address management robustness and adaptability, which increase the resilience of a rangeland. After reviewing how the concept of resilience evolved in parallel to modelling views on rangelands, we present a dynamic model of rangelands to which we applied the mathematical framework of viability theory to quantify the management adaptability of the system in a stochastic environment. This quantification is based on an index that combines the robustness of the system to rainfall variability and the ability of the rancher to adjust his/her management through time. We evaluated the adaptability for four possible scenarios combining two rainfall regimes (high or low) with two herding strategies (grazers only or mixed herd). Results show that pure grazing is viable only for high-rainfall regimes, and that the use of mixed-feeder herds increases the adaptability of the management. The management is the most adaptive with mixed herds and in rangelands composed of an intermediate density of trees and grasses. In such situations, grass provides high quantities of biomass and woody plants ensure robustness to droughts. Beyond the implications for management, our results illustrate the relevance of viability theory for addressing the issue of robustness and adaptability in non-equilibrium environments."],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1017/s1751731114000913"],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1017/S1751731114000913"],["dc.identifier.gro","3148934"],["dc.identifier.pii","S1751731114000913"],["dc.identifier.pmid","24780528"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5575"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.intern","Wiegand Crossref Import"],["dc.notes.status","public"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","1751-7311"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.subject.gro","adaptability"],["dc.subject.gro","herding strategy"],["dc.subject.gro","resilience"],["dc.subject.gro","robustness"],["dc.subject.gro","viability"],["dc.title","Robustness and management adaptability in tropical rangelands: a viability-based assessment under the non-equilibrium paradigm"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","273"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","291"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","17"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin Mareike"],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.contributor.editor","Hill, Michael J."],["dc.contributor.editor","Hanan, Niall P."],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:44:38Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:44:38Z"],["dc.date.issued","2010"],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1201/b10275-19"],["dc.identifier.gro","3148939"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5581"],["dc.notes.intern","Wiegand Crossref Import"],["dc.notes.status","public"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.publisher","CRC Press"],["dc.relation.isbn","978-1-4398-0470-4"],["dc.relation.ispartof","Ecosystem Function in Savannas: Measurement and Modeling at Landscape to Global Scales"],["dc.title","Spatially Explicit Modeling of Savanna Processes"],["dc.type","book_chapter"],["dc.type.internalPublication","unknown"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","1306"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","6"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","Journal of Ecology"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","1315"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","95"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.contributor.author","Moustakas, Aristides"],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:44:41Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:44:41Z"],["dc.date.issued","2007"],["dc.description.abstract","1. Patch dynamics is a new, potentially unifying mechanism for the explanation of tree-grass coexistence in savannas. In this scale-explicit paradigm, savannas consist of patches in which a cyclical succession between woody and grassy dominance proceeds spatially asynchronously. The growing ecological and economic problem of shrub encroachment is a natural transient phase in this cycle. 2. An important step towards understanding patterns at the landscape scale is achieved by investigating mechanisms at a smaller scale. We developed the spatially explicit individual-based simulation model SATCHMO to test the null hypothesis that cyclical succession cannot emerge from a realistic patch scale simulation model of the population dynamics of savanna woody species. 3. We calculated the partial temporal autocorrelation coefficient for 100 simulated time series of shrub cover over 500 years for time lags of up to 200 years to establish the existence and duration of successional cycles. We found a significant positive autocorrelation indicating the existence of cycles with a typical duration of about 33 years. 4. The shrub size frequency distributions over the course of a cycle showed shifts from dominance of small shrub sizes towards larger sizes during the increasing phase of a cycle and the reverse in the declining phase. This supports the three phase explanation as follows: (i) an initial phase when spatially and temporally overlapping favourable conditions lead to mass recruitment of shrubs; (ii) a build-up phase when the shrub cohort grows; and (iii) a break-down phase when increased competition due to crowding and unfavourable conditions lead to the break-down of the shrub cohort. The frequency distribution of shrub age at death over 10 simulations was also in agreement with this explanation. 5. We investigated the relationship between shrub cover, annual precipitation and time-lagged shrub cover to identify the driver of the cyclical successions. More than 90{\\%} of the variation in shrub cover was explained by shrub cover of the previous year, precipitation, and their interaction. 6. With the demonstration of precipitation-driven cyclical succession at the patch scale, we show that the mechanistic, temporal component of patch dynamics can be used to explain tree-grass coexistence in semi-arid savannas."],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1111/j.1365-2745.2007.01289.x"],["dc.identifier.gro","3148951"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5594"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.intern","Wiegand Crossref Import"],["dc.notes.status","final"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","0022-0477"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.subject.gro","Acacia mellifera"],["dc.subject.gro","Cyclical succession"],["dc.subject.gro","Individual-based simulation model"],["dc.subject.gro","Patch scale"],["dc.subject.gro","Scale"],["dc.subject.gro","Shrub encroachment"],["dc.subject.gro","Size-frequency distributions"],["dc.subject.gro","Temporal autocorrelation"],["dc.subject.gro","Tree-grass coexistence"],["dc.title","The rhythm of savanna patch dynamics"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.artnumber","473"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","4"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","Journal of Vegetation Science"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","17"],["dc.contributor.author","Moustakas, Aristides"],["dc.contributor.author","Guenther, Matthias"],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Mueller, Karl-Heinz"],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.contributor.author","Jeltsch, Florian"],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:44:42Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:44:42Z"],["dc.date.issued","2006"],["dc.description.abstract","Question: Is there a relationship between size and death in the long-lived, deep-rooted tree, Acacia erioloba, in a semi-arid savanna? What is the size-class distribution of A.erioloba mortality? Does the mortality distribution differ from total tree size distribution? Does A. erioloba mortality distribution match the mortality distributions recorded thus far in other environments? Location: Dronfield Ranch, near Kimberley, Kalahari, South Africa. Methods: A combination of aerial photographs and a satellite image covering 61 years was used to provide long-term spatial data on mortality. We used aerial photographs of the study area from 1940, 1964, 1993 and a satellite image from 2001 to follow three plots covering 510 ha. We were able to identify and individually follow ca. 3000 individual trees from 1940 till 2001. Results: The total number of trees increased over time. No relationship between total number of trees and mean tree size was detected. There were no trends over time in total number of deaths per plot or in the size distributions of dead trees. Kolmogorov-Smirnov tests showed no differences in size class distributions for living trees through time. The size distribution of dead trees was significantly different from the size distribution of all trees present on the plots. Overall, the number of dead trees was low in small size classes, reached a peak value when canopy area was 20-30m2, and declined in larger size-classes. Mortality as a ratio of dead vs. total trees peaked at intermediate canopy sizes too. Conclusion: A.erioloba mortality was size-dependent, peaking at intermediate sizes. THe mortality distribution differs from all other tree mortality distributions recorded thus far. We suggest that a possible mechanism for this unusual mortality distribution is intraspecific competition for water in this semi-arid environment."],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1111/j.1654-1103.2006.tb02468.x"],["dc.identifier.gro","3148953"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5596"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.intern","Wiegand Crossref Import"],["dc.notes.status","public"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","1100-9233"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.subject.gro","competition"],["dc.subject.gro","long-term data"],["dc.subject.gro","remote sensing"],["dc.subject.gro","savanna"],["dc.subject.gro","size dependent mortality"],["dc.subject.gro","size distribution"],["dc.subject.gro","tree"],["dc.title","Long-term mortality patterns of the deep-rooted Acacia erioloba: The middle class shall die!"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","1038"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","6"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","Journal of Vegetation Science"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","1048"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","22"],["dc.contributor.author","Schleicher, Jana"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.contributor.author","Schurr, Frank M."],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:44:34Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:44:34Z"],["dc.date.issued","2011"],["dc.description.abstract","Question: How can we disentangle facilitation and seed dispersal from environmental heterogeneity as mechanisms causing spatial associations of plant species? Location: Semi-arid savanna in the Kimberley Thorn Bushveld, South Africa. Methods: We developed a two-step protocol for the statistical differentiation of association-promoting mechanisms in plants based on the Acacia erioloba-Grewia flava association. Individuals of the savanna shrub G. flava and the tree A. erioloba were mapped on four study plots. Disentangling the mechanism causing the association of G. flava and A. erioloba involved tests of three spatial and one non-spatial null model. The spatial null models include homogeneous and heterogeneous Poisson processes for spatial randomness based on the bivariate spatial point patterns of the four plots. With the non-spatial analysis, we determined the relationship between the canopy diameter of A. erioloba trees and presence or absence of G. flava shrubs in the tree understorey to find whether shrub presence requires a minimum tree canopy diameter. Results: We first showed a significant positive spatial association of the two species. Thereafter, the non-spatial analysis supported an exclusion of environmental heterogeneity as the sole cause of this positive association. We found a minimum tree size under which no G. flava shrubs occurred. Conclusions: Our two-step analysis showed that it is unlikely that heterogeneous environmental conditions caused the spatial association of A. erioloba and G. flava. Instead, this association may have been caused by seed dispersal and/or facilitation (e.g. caused by hydraulic lift and/or nitrogen fixation by the host tree)."],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1111/j.1654-1103.2011.01310.x"],["dc.identifier.gro","3148928"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5569"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.intern","Wiegand Crossref Import"],["dc.notes.status","public"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","1100-9233"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.subject.gro","Acacia erioloba"],["dc.subject.gro","Grewia flava"],["dc.subject.gro","Plant interactions"],["dc.subject.gro","Spatial association"],["dc.subject.gro","Wiegand-Moloney O-ring statistics"],["dc.title","Disentangling facilitation and seed dispersal from environmental heterogeneity as mechanisms generating associations between savanna plants"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]

[["dc.bibliographiccitation.firstpage","131"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.issue","2"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.journal","African Journal of Ecology"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.lastpage","136"],["dc.bibliographiccitation.volume","43"],["dc.contributor.author","Meyer, Katrin M."],["dc.contributor.author","Ward, David"],["dc.contributor.author","Moustakas, Aristides"],["dc.contributor.author","Wiegand, Kerstin"],["dc.date.accessioned","2017-09-07T11:44:43Z"],["dc.date.available","2017-09-07T11:44:43Z"],["dc.date.issued","2005"],["dc.description.abstract","Fire and acacias are vital components in savanna dynamics but little is known about the relationship between postfire mortality and size of Acacia species. We determined mortality, height, and height of resprouts of the encroaching shrub species Acacia mellifera in a semi‐arid South African savanna 2 years after fire. As expected, resprouting ability after topkill was high, only 9% of the studied shrubs died completely. Surprisingly, shrubs that died in the fire were significantly taller than their resprouting conspecifics. Results from quantile regression show that the height of regrowth relative to the total height of taller shrubs is less than in smaller shrubs, despite taller shrubs having more access to below‐ground resources. We offer two possible explanations for these unexpected results: in taller shrubs, the maximum longitudinal growth rate of resprouts may be reached and therefore, resources may be invested in a greater number of resprouts or stored as reserves. Alternatively, resprouting ability may be impaired in old age by a senescence effect caused by the accumulation of physiological dysfunctions."],["dc.identifier.doi","10.1111/j.1365-2028.2005.00559.x"],["dc.identifier.gro","3148943"],["dc.identifier.uri","https://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gro-2/5585"],["dc.language.iso","en"],["dc.notes.intern","Wiegand Crossref Import"],["dc.notes.status","final"],["dc.notes.submitter","chake"],["dc.relation.issn","0141-6707"],["dc.relation.orgunit","Abteilung Ökosystemmodellierung"],["dc.subject.gro","Below-ground traits"],["dc.subject.gro","Flame zone"],["dc.subject.gro","Kalahari thornveld"],["dc.subject.gro","Limiting factors"],["dc.subject.gro","Roots"],["dc.subject.gro","Size"],["dc.title","Big is not better: small Acacia mellifera shrubs are more vital after fire"],["dc.type","journal_article"],["dc.type.internalPublication","yes"],["dc.type.peerReviewed","no"],["dc.type.subtype","original_ja"],["dspace.entity.type","Publication"]]