Rates of wood and dung disintegration in arid South African rangelands

Abstract

Dead shrubs lying on the soil surface in an arid shrubland in the southern Karoo have half‐lives of 9 to 18 years depending on wood density which varies among species. Dung pellets of sheep and springbok can remain intact on the soil surface in Karoo shrubland and desert grassland for five years or more. Burial hastens the breakdown of dung, but decay may be slower in fine‐textured soils than sandy soils. This preliminary study highlights the dearth of information on ecosystem processes and their response to landuse and climate in arid southern Africa.

Additional index words:

• Augea
• demography
• desert
• Drosanthemum
• Galenia
• karoo
• litter
• Pteronia