Termite mound cover and abundance respond to herbivore-mediated biotic changes in a Kenyan savanna.

ABSTRACT: Both termites and large mammalian herbivores (LMH) are savanna ecosystem engineers that have profound impacts on ecosystem structure and function. Both of these savanna engineers modulate many common and shared dietary resources such as woody and herbaceous plant biomass, yet few studies have addressed how they impact one another. In particular, it is unclear how herbivores may influence the abundance of long-lived termite mounds via changes in termite dietary resources such as woody and herbaceous biomass. While it has long been assumed that abundance and areal cover of termite mounds in the landscape remain relatively stable, most data are observational, and few experiments have tested how termite mound patterns may respond to biotic factors such as changes in large herbivore communities

SUBMITTER: Charles GK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8216887 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature