A vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa

The white-winged flufftail is listed as critically endangered, and limited knowledge about the species' ecology has been identified as a limiting factor to effectively conserving the bird. Little is known about the vegetation inhabited by the white-winged flufftail, which hampers the identifica...

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Autores principales:	A. J. Marais, K. Lloyd, H. A. Smit-Robinson, L. R. Brown
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	The Royal Society 2021
Materias:	plant communities vegetation structure plant traits Verloren Valei nature reserve Middelpunt Wetland Lakenvlei wetland Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/07b9f4d5d1ff41f99c43a0997ceed6a7
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:07b9f4d5d1ff41f99c43a0997ceed6a72021-11-12T10:10:57ZA vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa10.1098/rsos.2114822054-5703https://doaj.org/article/07b9f4d5d1ff41f99c43a0997ceed6a72021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.211482https://doaj.org/toc/2054-5703The white-winged flufftail is listed as critically endangered, and limited knowledge about the species' ecology has been identified as a limiting factor to effectively conserving the bird. Little is known about the vegetation inhabited by the white-winged flufftail, which hampers the identification and management of its habitat. This study presents a fine-scale classification and description of the vegetation of wetland sites where the bird is known to be present. A plant phytosociological study was conducted to describe the plant communities and vegetation structure of the habitat. Three sites were selected at Verloren Valei Nature Reserve and two at Middelpunt Wetland, Mpumalanga, South Africa, shortly after the white-winged flufftail breeding season. A total of 60 sample plots were placed within the study sites, where all plant species present were recorded and identified. Other aspects such as plant height, water depth and anthropogenic influences were also documented. A modified TWINSPAN analysis resulted in the identification of three sub-communities that can be grouped into one major community. The Cyperaceae, Asteraceae and Poaceae families dominate the vegetation, with the sedges Carex austro-africana and Cyperus denudatus being dominant, and the grasses Leersia hexandra and Arundinella nepalensis co-dominant. The broad habitat structure consisted of medium to tall herbaceous plants (0.5–0.7 m) with shallow slow-flowing water.A. J. MaraisK. LloydH. A. Smit-RobinsonL. R. BrownThe Royal Societyarticleplant communitiesvegetation structureplant traitsVerloren Valei nature reserveMiddelpunt WetlandLakenvlei wetlandScienceQENRoyal Society Open Science, Vol 8, Iss 11 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	plant communities vegetation structure plant traits Verloren Valei nature reserve Middelpunt Wetland Lakenvlei wetland Science Q
spellingShingle	plant communities vegetation structure plant traits Verloren Valei nature reserve Middelpunt Wetland Lakenvlei wetland Science Q A. J. Marais K. Lloyd H. A. Smit-Robinson L. R. Brown A vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa
description	The white-winged flufftail is listed as critically endangered, and limited knowledge about the species' ecology has been identified as a limiting factor to effectively conserving the bird. Little is known about the vegetation inhabited by the white-winged flufftail, which hampers the identification and management of its habitat. This study presents a fine-scale classification and description of the vegetation of wetland sites where the bird is known to be present. A plant phytosociological study was conducted to describe the plant communities and vegetation structure of the habitat. Three sites were selected at Verloren Valei Nature Reserve and two at Middelpunt Wetland, Mpumalanga, South Africa, shortly after the white-winged flufftail breeding season. A total of 60 sample plots were placed within the study sites, where all plant species present were recorded and identified. Other aspects such as plant height, water depth and anthropogenic influences were also documented. A modified TWINSPAN analysis resulted in the identification of three sub-communities that can be grouped into one major community. The Cyperaceae, Asteraceae and Poaceae families dominate the vegetation, with the sedges Carex austro-africana and Cyperus denudatus being dominant, and the grasses Leersia hexandra and Arundinella nepalensis co-dominant. The broad habitat structure consisted of medium to tall herbaceous plants (0.5–0.7 m) with shallow slow-flowing water.
format	article
author	A. J. Marais K. Lloyd H. A. Smit-Robinson L. R. Brown
author_facet	A. J. Marais K. Lloyd H. A. Smit-Robinson L. R. Brown
author_sort	A. J. Marais
title	A vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa
title_short	A vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa
title_full	A vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa
title_fullStr	A vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa
title_full_unstemmed	A vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa
title_sort	vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in south africa
publisher	The Royal Society
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/07b9f4d5d1ff41f99c43a0997ceed6a7
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A vegetation classification and description of white-winged flufftail (<italic toggle="yes">Sarothrura ayresi</italic>) habitat at selected high-altitude peatlands in South Africa

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