Energy availability and density estimates in African ungulates

While many studies have investigated the link between primary productivity and species richness, the link between primary productivity and species abundance is still poorly understood. We explored how primary productivity, assessed by the satellite-based normalized difference vegetation index, influ...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American naturalist Vol. 173; no. 5; p. 698
Main Authors: Pettorelli, Nathalie, Bro-Jørgensen, Jakob, Durant, Sarah M, Blackburn, Tim, Carbone, Chris
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States 01.05.2009
Subjects:
Africa
Animals
Artiodactyla
Biomass
Models, Biological
Perissodactyla
Plants
Population Density
Satellite Communications
Africa
ISSN:1537-5323, 1537-5323
Online Access:Get more information
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Summary:While many studies have investigated the link between primary productivity and species richness, the link between primary productivity and species abundance is still poorly understood. We explored how primary productivity, assessed by the satellite-based normalized difference vegetation index, influenced density estimates in 13 African ungulate species. We found that primary productivity generally correlated positively with density estimates. However, this link was more pronounced for some species than for others, and information regarding the area surveyed needed to be taken into account to highlight this functional relationship. Detailed consideration of measurements of productivity in broadscale studies identify a general link between primary productivity and abundance of African ungulates and highlight remote-sensing-based analyses as a potentially crucial tool in assessing the population consequences of future changes in primary productivity on this continent.
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ISSN:1537-5323
1537-5323
DOI:10.1086/597379