Abstract
The savanna biome is defined here, following (1982), as those regions of the world characterized by: (1) a strongly seasonal climate with hot or warm wet summers and cool dry winters, and (2) a mixed life-form vegetation in which both woody and herbaceous plants play a significant ecological role. In tropical and subtropical savannas the herbaceous layer is dominated by C4 grasses, whereas the woody plants are C3 trees and shrubs. In temperate savannas the grasses are generally also C3. Because of their greater extent this chapter will focus on the tropical/subtropical savannas.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Diamond J (1989) Overview of recent extinctions. In: Western D, Pearl M (eds) Conservation in the Twenty-First Century, pp. 37–43. Oxford University Press, New York.
Eiten G (1982) Brazilian savannas. In: Huntley BJ, Walker BH (1982) Ecology of Tropical Savannas, pp. 25–47. Springer-Verlag, New York.
Harrington GN, Sanderson KD (1994) Recent contraction of wet sclerophyll forest in the wet tropics of Queensland due to invasion by rainforest. Pacific Conservation Biology 1:319–327.
Huntley BJ, Walker BH (eds) (1982) Ecology of Tropical Savannas. Springer-Verlag, New York.
Kennard DG, Walker BH (1973) Relationships between tree canopy cover and Panicum maximum in the vicinity of Fort Victoria. Rhodesian Journal of Agricultural Research 71:145–153.
Korner C (1996) The response of complex multispecies systems to elevated CO2. In: Walker BH, Steffen W (eds) Global Change and Terrestrial Ecosystems. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.
Mooney HA, Canadell J, Chapin FS III, Ehleringer J, Korner C, McMurtrie RE et al. (1999) Ecosystems physiology responses to global change. In: Walker BH, Steffen W, Canadell J, Ingram J (eds) The Terrestrial Biosphere and Global Change. Implications for Natural and Managed Ecosystems, pp. 141–189. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.
Rushworth JE (1975) The floristic, physiognomic and biomass structure of Kalahari sand shrub vegetation in relation to fire and frost in Wankie National Park, Rhodesia. M.S.c. thesis, University of Rhodesia.
Scholes RJ, Walker BH (1993) Nylsvley: The study of an African savanna. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.
Silva J (1987) Responses of savannas to stress and disturbance: species dynamics. In: Walker BH (ed) Determinants of Tropical Savannas, pp. 141–156. IRL Press Ltd., Oxford, UK.
Stafford-Smith MD, Morton SR (1990) A framework for the ecology of arid Australia. Journal of Arid Environments 18:255–278.
Tothill JC, Mott JJ (eds) (1985) Ecology and Management of the World’s Savannas. Australian Academy of Science, Canberra.
Walker BH (ed) (1987) Determinants of Tropical Savannas. IRL Press Limited, Oxford.
Walker BH (1992) Biodiversity and ecological redundancy. Conservation Biology 6(1):18–23.
Walker BH (1997) Functional types in non-equilibrium ecosystems. In: Smith TM, Shugart HH (eds) Plant Functional Types, pp. 91–93. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.
Walker BH, Langridge J (1997) Predicting savanna vegetation structure on the basis of plant available moisture (PAM) and plant available nutrients (PAN): a case study from Australia. Journal of Bio geography (In press).
Walker BH, McFarlane FR, Langridge JL (1997) Grass growth in response to time of rainfall and season along a climate gradient in Australian rangelands. The Rangeland Journal (In press).
Walker J, Gillison AN (1982) Australian savannas. In: Huntley BJ, Walker BH (1982) Ecology of Tropical Savannas, pp. 55–24. Springer-Verlag, New York.
Whitford WG, Reynolds JF, Cunningham GL (1987) How desertification affects nitrogen limitations of primary production on Chihuahan desert watersheds. In: Alden EF, Ganzales C, Mair W (eds) Strategies for classification and management of native vegetation for food production in arid zones, pp. 143–153. U.S. Forest Service, General Technical Rep. RM-150.
Williams RJ, Cook GD, Braithwaite RW, Anderson AN, Corbett LK (1995) Australia’s wet-dry tropics: identifying the sensitive zones. In: Pernatta J, Leemans R, Elder D, Humphrey S (eds) The Impact of Climate Change on Ecosystems and Species: Terrestrial Biomes, pp. 39–64. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland.
Woinarski JCZ, Braithwaite RW (1990) Conservation Foci for Australian Birds and Mammels. Search 21:65–68.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2001 Springer Science+Business Media New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Walker, B. (2001). Tropical Savanna. In: Chapin, F.S., Sala, O.E., Huber-Sannwald, E. (eds) Global Biodiversity in a Changing Environment. Ecological Studies, vol 152. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-0157-8_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-0157-8_8
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-0-387-95286-4
Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-0157-8
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive