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Degradation of a Forest in the Shimba Hills National Reserve, Kenya, as Initiated by Man and Maintained by Wildlife

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Tropical Forests in Transition

Part of the book series: Advances in Life Sciences ((ALS))

Abstract

An evergreen seasonal lowland forest in Kenya was chosen as an example to demonstrate the effects of forest use in the Holocene. Heavily disturbed and little influenced sites within this forest were compared in regard to structure and floristics. The Lagynias pallidiflora community and its seral stages of natural gap dynamics were described as the zonal vegetation type which was little influenced in the past. The Leptonychia usambarensis community and its seral stages were considered to be a consequence of logging activities. Phytosociological analysis indicated the general possibility of a regeneration of the disturbed sites, i.e. a transition from the Leptonychia usambarensis to the Lagynias pallidiflora community. However, at present, the strain on the vegetation caused by a large population of elephants impedes succession in the open forest sites. The Leptonychia usambarensis community is thus considered to be at a proclimax stage.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Botany, University of Bayreuth, P.O. Box 101251, D-8580, Bayreuth, Germany

    Robert Schmidt

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  1. Robert Schmidt
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Max Planck Institute of Chemistry, Biogeochemistry Department (Mainz), Fire Ecology and Biomass Burning Research Group, c/o University of Freiburg, Bertoldstr. 17, D-7800, Freiburg, Germany

    Johann Georg Goldammer

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© 1992 Birkhäuser Verlag Basel/Switzerland

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Schmidt, R. (1992). Degradation of a Forest in the Shimba Hills National Reserve, Kenya, as Initiated by Man and Maintained by Wildlife. In: Goldammer, J.G. (eds) Tropical Forests in Transition. Advances in Life Sciences. Birkhäuser Basel. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-7256-0_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-7256-0_6

  • Publisher Name: Birkhäuser Basel

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-0348-7258-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-0348-7256-0

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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