Assessing ground cover at patch and hillslope scale in semi-arid woody vegetation and pasture using fused Quickbird data

2012 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 94-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Muñoz-Robles ◽  
Paul Frazier ◽  
Matthew Tighe ◽  
Nick Reid ◽  
Sue V. Briggs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ground Cover ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Hillslope Scale ◽  
Semi Arid

Sensitivity of soil organic carbon to grazing management in the semi-arid rangelands of south-eastern Australia

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 153 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Orgill ◽  
C. M. Waters ◽  
G. Melville ◽  
I. Toole ◽  
Y. Alemseged ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Soil Organic Carbon ◽  
Ground Cover ◽  
Grazing Management ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Soil C ◽  
C Stocks ◽  
Close Proximity ◽  
Arid Rangelands ◽  
Semi Arid

This study compared the effects of grazing management on soil organic carbon (OC) stocks in the semi-arid rangelands of New South Wales, Australia. A field survey was conducted at three locations (Brewarrina, Cobar–North and Cobar–South), with paired sites of long-term (>8 years) rotational grazing management and continuously grazed pastures (either set stocked or no stocking). At each location, soil OC, carbon (C) fractions, soil nitrogen (N) and microsite and site factors (including ground cover and woody vegetation) were measured. The control of total grazing pressure (TGP) through rotational grazing and exclusion fencing did not increase soil C stocks compared with continuous grazing for the majority of comparisons. However, in some parts of the landscape, higher soil C stock was found with TGP control, for example on the ridges (21.6 vs 13.3 t C ha–1 to 0.3 m). C stocks increased with litter and perennial ground cover and with close proximity to trees. At Brewarrina, C stocks were positively affected by perennial plant cover (P < 0.001) and litter (P < 0.05), whereas at Cobar–North and Cobar–South C stocks were positively affected by the presence of trees (P < 0.001), with higher C stocks in close proximity to trees, and with increasing litter cover (P < 0.01). The present study demonstrates that natural resource benefits, such as increased perennial cover, can be achieved through controlling TGP in the rangelands but increases in soil C may be limited in certain parts of the landscape. These findings also highlight that interactions between managed and unmanaged TGP and microsite factors, such as ground cover and proximity to woody vegetation, need to be considered when evaluating the role of changed grazing management on soil C.

Spatial patterns of Caragana korshinskii growth on hillslope scale and influencing factors in the semi-arid Loess Plateau

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (23) ◽  
Author(s):  
王子婷 WANG Ziting ◽  
杨磊 YANG Lei ◽  
蔡国军 CAI Guojun ◽  
莫保儒 MO Baoru ◽  
柴春山 CHAI Chunshan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Influencing Factors ◽  
Loess Plateau ◽  
Spatial Patterns ◽  
Caragana Korshinskii ◽  
Hillslope Scale ◽  
Semi Arid

scholarly journals Rainfall, land use and woody vegetation cover change in semi-arid Australian savanna

2005 ◽  
Vol 93 (3) ◽  
pp. 596-606 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. FENSHAM ◽  
R. J. FAIRFAX ◽  
S. R. ARCHER
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Semi Arid ◽  
Vegetation Cover Change

Effect of woody vegetation clearing on nutrient and carbon relations of semi-arid dystrophic savanna

2009 ◽  
Vol 331 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 79-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Schmidt ◽  
Rebecca E. Lamble ◽  
Rod J. Fensham ◽  
Ilyas Siddique
Keyword(s):  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Semi Arid

Natural Regeneration of Ground Storey Vegetation in a Semi-Arid Woodland Following Mechanical Disturbance and Burning. 1. Ground Cover Levels and Composition.

1995 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 46 ◽  
Author(s):  
PJ Walker ◽  
TB Koen
Keyword(s):  
Species Composition ◽  
Natural Regeneration ◽  
Ground Cover ◽  
Natural Gas Pipeline ◽  
Total Cover ◽  
Mechanical Disturbance ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Disturbed Areas ◽  
Rainfall Seasonality ◽  
Semi Arid

A study was made over a period of 12 years of the natural regeneration of vegetation along a corridor corridor cleared for the construction of a natural gas pipeline in a semi-arid woodland in central- western New South Wales. Total cover, proportion of grasses, and species composition were assessed on the infilled trench and on areas from which topsoil had been bladed, as well as on adjacent undisturbed areas and areas burned by a wildfire. All areas were grazed continuously by sheep under normal station management, and by native animals. After four years of about average rainfall, total cover on disturbed areas had regained levels as high or higher than on adjacent areas, and was maintained thereafter. On many individual sites this period was as short as eighteen months. The proportion of grasses remained much lower on disturbed areas, except for some periods of annual grass dominance. Species composition remained very different between disturbed and undisturbed areas, the main difference being in perennial species. However, composition also varied markedly between years, according to rainfall seasonality and competition from previously established plants. Little difference was apparent between undisturbed areas and similar areas which had burned twelve months before the first measurements. Mechanical disturbance caused by trenching and blading had a much greater effect on vegetation than did fire, and the effects were still obvious after twelve years.

Enhancing food security in semi-arid eastern Indonesia through permanent raised-bed cropping: a review

1999 ◽  
Vol 39 (8) ◽  
pp. 1035 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Van Cooten ◽  
A. K. Borrell
Keyword(s):  
Water Supply ◽  
Food Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Ground Cover ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Additional Food ◽  
Eastern Indonesia ◽  
Raised Bed ◽  
Semi Arid

Summary. Much of south-eastern Indonesia is mountainous and characterised by a semi-arid tropical environment. Soil erosion is a significant environmental problem facing the region, affecting both productivity of the land and water quality. The challenge for the region is to secure year-round food production in such a fragile environment. More than 90% of rain falls in a distinct wet season between November and April. Therefore, cropping in this region is dependent on matching crop growth with water supply. In particular, crop production depends on the efficient use of rainfall during the wet season, including avoidance of waterlogging, and efficient use of stored soil water during the dry season. This paper summarises the results of a series of experiments undertaken in West Timor, Indonesia, between 1993 and 1999 aimed at developing a raised-bed cropping system. The objective of these studies was to better utilise the more fertile alluvial soils that are often susceptible to waterlogging during the wet season, allowing a range of crops to be grown in addition to rice. Raised beds of height 0.2 m and width 1.5 m were constructed either manually or with an 8.5 hp two-wheeled hand tractor. A range of crops including soybeans, sorghum, maize, pigeon pea, yam bean and cassava were successfully grown on raised beds in the wet season in addition to rice, indicating that raised-bed technology overcomes the constraints of waterlogging in the wet season. Soybeans grew particularly well on raised beds, with December-sown crops producing almost twice the yield of January-sown crops (2.6 v. 1.4 t/ha). For rice and soybeans, early sown crops were better able to match growth with water supply, thereby avoiding end-of-season drought. Early sowing and harvesting of wet season crops enables a drought-resistant crop such as sorghum to be planted in lateMarch or early April, utilising the stored soil moisture for grain production and also maintaining ground cover in the dry season. It is argued that cropping systems based on permanent raised beds can reduce erosion in 2 ways. First, raised beds are a permanent structure and, with the inter-cropping and relay-cropping proposed, crops can provide all-year ground cover in lowland areas. Second, if sufficient food and cash crops are grown on raised beds to meet the basic needs of subsistence farmers, then upland cropping on steep slopes can be replaced by a variety of tree species, providing additional food, fodder, firewood and medicines. Together, these strategies have the capacity to enhance food production and security in the semi-arid areas of eastern Indonesia.

Effects of artificial perches and interspecific interactions on patch use by wintering raptors

2003 ◽  
Vol 81 (12) ◽  
pp. 2038-2047 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel H Kim ◽  
Felipe Chavez-Ramirez ◽  
R Douglas Slack
Keyword(s):  
Interspecific Interactions ◽  
Ground Cover ◽  
South Texas ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Landscape Matrix ◽  
Patch Use ◽  
American Kestrel ◽  
Coastal Prairie ◽  
American Kestrels ◽  
Treatment Type

We used an experimental approach to investigate the effects of woody vegetation and interspecific interactions on patch use by three wintering raptor species in the coastal prairie in south Texas. We manipulated perch type and density by the addition of artificial perches to patches of coastal prairie grasslands, varying perch height in the first year and canopy density in the second year. American Kestrels (Falco sparverius) used areas with artificial perches more often than they used natural woody vegetation and areas without woody perches. Northern Harrier (Circus cyaneus) patch use did not vary with treatment type. Loggerhead Shrikes (Lanius ludovicianus) used areas of natural woody vegetation more than patches with artificial perches and patches with no perches. Patch use by Loggerhead Shrikes was also influenced by the presence of complex woody vegetation and interspecific interactions, whereas American Kestrel use was limited by landscape matrix and ground cover density. We believe that predation by Northern Harriers limited Loggerhead Shrikes to patches with escape cover, while competition from American Kestrels prevented Loggerhead Shrikes from concurrent patch use.

Modelling trends in woody vegetation structure in semi-arid Australia as determined from aerial photography

2003 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 421-436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roderick John Fensham ◽  
Sama J. Low Choy ◽  
Russell James Fairfax ◽  
Paul C. Cavallaro
Keyword(s):  
Aerial Photography ◽  
Vegetation Structure ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Semi Arid
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