Grasses and habitat relationships on a sour bushveld nature reserve

Abstract

Habitat preferences of nine grass species were studied on a nature reserve which forms part of the southern African moist savanna biome. Multiple regression and correspondence analysis related the distribution of the species to habitat parameters that included edaphic factors, geomorphological structure and vegetation density. Results of the two analyses generally matched and complemented one another, indicating that the abundance of the species in the study area is determined by changes along gradients of pH levels in soils and rockiness. Slope, vegetation density and mineral content contribute to the variation within these gradients. The combination of qualitative and quantitative information gave an overview of the distribution pattern of grass species, emphasizing some of the underlying factors operating in the system.