Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The response of elephants to the spatial heterogeneity of vegetation in a Southern African agricultural landscape

  • Research article
  • Published:
Landscape Ecology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Based on the agricultural landscape of the Sebungwe in Zimbabwe, we investigated whether and how the spatial distribution of the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) responded to spatial heterogeneity of vegetation cover based on data of the early 1980s and early 1990s. We also investigated whether and how elephant distribution responded to changes in spatial heterogeneity between the early 1980s and early 1990s. Vegetation cover was estimated from a normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI). Spatial heterogeneity was estimated from a new approach based on the intensity (i.e., the maximum variance exhibited when a spatially distributed landscape property such as vegetation cover is measured with a successively increasing window size or scale) and dominant scale (i.e., the scale or window size at which the intensity is displayed). We used a variogram to quantify the dominant scale (i.e., range) and intensity (i.e., sill) of NDVI based congruent windows (i.e., 3.84 km × 3.84 km in a 61 km × 61 km landscape). The results indicated that elephants consistently responded to the dominant scale of spatial heterogeneity in a unimodal fashion with the peak elephant presence occurring in environments with dominant scales of spatial heterogeneity of around 457–734 m. Both the intensity and dominant scale of spatial heterogeneity predicted 65 and 68% of the variance in elephant presence in the early 1980s and in the early 1990s respectively. Also, changes in the intensity and dominant scale of spatial heterogeneity predicted 61% of the variance in the change in elephant distribution. The results imply that management decisions must take into consideration the influence of the levels of spatial heterogeneity on elephants in order to ensure elephant persistence in agricultural landscapes.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • P.B. Adler D.A. Raff W.K. Lauenroth (2001) ArticleTitleThe effect of grazing on the spatial heterogeneity of vegetation Oecologia 128 465–474

    Google Scholar 

  • A.K. Birky (2001) ArticleTitleNDVI and a simple model of deciduous forest seasonal dynamics Ecological Modelling 143 43–58

    Google Scholar 

  • M. Burton (1999) ArticleTitleAn assessment of alternative methods of estimating the effect of the ivory trade ban on poaching effort Ecological Economics 30 93–106

    Google Scholar 

  • W.B. Cohen T.A. Spies G.A. Bradshaw (1990) ArticleTitleSemivariograms of digital imagery for analysis of conifer canopy structure Remote Sensors Environment 34 167–178

    Google Scholar 

  • D.H.M. Cumming (1981) The management of elephant and other large mammals in Zimbabwe P.A. Jewel S. Holt D. Hart (Eds) In problems in Management of Locally Abundant Wild Animals Academic Press Inc. New York 91–118

    Google Scholar 

  • Cumming D.H.M. and Lynam T.P.J. 1997. Land use changes, Wildlife Conservation and Utilisation and the Sustainability of Agro-ecosystems in the Zambezi Valley, Final Technical ReportVols. 1–7, Rep. No. European Union Contract B7-50440/93/06. WWF Project ZW0024. WWF, Harare.

  • P.J. Curran (1983) ArticleTitleThe semivariogram in remote sensing: an introduction Remote Sensors Environment 24 493–507

    Google Scholar 

  • P.J. Diggle (1983) Statistical Analysis of Spatial Point Patterns Academic press London

    Google Scholar 

  • J.T. du Toit (1995) ArticleTitleDeterminants of the composition and distribution of wildlife communities in southern Africa Ambio 24 2–6

    Google Scholar 

  • R. du Toit (1985) ArticleTitleA middle way for wildlife parks New Science 105 33–36

    Google Scholar 

  • K.M. Dunham (1986) ArticleTitleMovements of elephant cows in the unflooded Middle Zambezi Valley, Zimbabwe African Journal of Ecology. 24 287–291

    Google Scholar 

  • L. Fahrig (2001) ArticleTitleHow much habitat is enough? Biological Conservation 65–74

    Google Scholar 

  • A.S. Fotheringham C. Brundson M. Charlton (2000) Quantitative Geography: Perspectives on Spatial Data Analysis SAGE publications Ltd London

    Google Scholar 

  • M.F. Goodchild D.A. Quattrochi (1997) ScaleMultiscaling, Remote Sensing and GIS D.A. Quattrochi M.F. Goodchild (Eds) Scale in Remote Sensing and GIS Lewis Publishers New York 1–11

    Google Scholar 

  • S.N. Goward D.G. Dye (1987) ArticleTitleEvaluating North American net primary productivity with satellite observations Advanced Space Research 7 165–174

    Google Scholar 

  • J.A. Griffith E.A. Martinko K.P. Price (2000) ArticleTitleLandscape structure analysis of Kansas at three scales Landscape Urban Planning 52 45–61

    Google Scholar 

  • E.J. Gustafson (1998) ArticleTitleQuantifying landscape spatial pattern: what is the state of the art? Ecosystems 1 143–156

    Google Scholar 

  • P.R. Guy (1976b) ArticleTitleDiurnal activity patterns of elephant in the Sengwa AreaRhodesia East African Wildlife Journal 14 285–295

    Google Scholar 

  • P.R. Guy (1976b) ArticleTitleThe feeding behaviour of elephant (Loxodonta africana) in the Sengwa AreaRhodesia South African Journal of Wildlife Research 6 55–63

    Google Scholar 

  • M.J. Hill G.E. Donald (2003) ArticleTitleEstimating spatio-temporal patterns of agricultural productivity in fragmented landscapes using AVHRR NDVI time series Remote Sensors Environment 84 367–384

    Google Scholar 

  • R.E. Hoare J.T. Du Toit (1999) ArticleTitleCo-existence between people and elephants in African Savannas Conservation Biology 13 633–639

    Google Scholar 

  • R.G. ITC (2002) Integrated Land and Water Information System (ILWIS) ITC EnschedeThe Netherlands

    Google Scholar 

  • IUCN,2002,IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, Vol. 2003. www.redlist.org

  • G. Jansson (2002) ArticleTitleScaling and habitat proportions in relation to bird diversity in managed boreal forests Forest Ecology and Management 157 77–86

    Google Scholar 

  • A.R. Johnson J.A. Wiens B.T. Milne T.O. Crist (1992) ArticleTitleAnimal movements and population dynamics in heterogeneous landscapes Landscape Ecology 7 63–75

    Google Scholar 

  • P. Kareiva U. Wennergren (1995) ArticleTitleConnecting landscape patterns to ecosystem and population processes Nature 373 299–302 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK2MXjtlygtLc%3D

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kerr J.T. and Ostrovysky M. 2003. From space to species: ecological applications for remote sensing. Trends in Ecology and Evolution.

  • J. Kingdon (2001) The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals Academic Press London

    Google Scholar 

  • Lam L,2001,An Introduction of S-PLUS CANdiensten,Amsterdam

  • P. Legendre (1998) Numerical Ecology Elsevier Amsterdam

    Google Scholar 

  • P. Legendre M. Fortin (1989) ArticleTitleSpatial pattern and ecological analysis Vegetatio 80 107–138

    Google Scholar 

  • S.A. Levin (1992) ArticleTitleThe problem of pattern and scale in ecology Ecology 73 1943–1967

    Google Scholar 

  • X. Li L. Lu G. Cheng H. Xiao (2001) ArticleTitleQuantifying landscape structure of the Heihe River Basin, north-west China using FRAGSTATS Journal of Arid Environments 48 521–535

    Google Scholar 

  • B.I. Logan W.G. Moseley (2002) ArticleTitleThe political ecology of poverty alleviation in Zimbabwe’s Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) Geoforum 33 1–14

    Google Scholar 

  • Los S.O. 1998. Linkages between global vegetation and climate: an analysis based on NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer Data. PhD Vrije Univesiteit te AmsterdamAmsterdam.

  • A.J. Lynam I. Billick (1999) ArticleTitleDifferential responses of small mammals to fragmentation in a Thailand tropical forest Biological Conservation 91 191–200

    Google Scholar 

  • McGrigal K. and Cushman S.A. 2002. The gradient concept of landscape structureVol. 2003. http://www mass.edu/landeco/pubs/Gradients_short.pdf.

  • M.L. Morrison B.G. Marcot R.W. Mannan (1992) Wildlife–Habitat Relationships: Concepts and Applications The University of Wisconsin Press Wisconsin

    Google Scholar 

  • Murwira A. and Skidmore A.K. 2003. Characterising the spatial heterogeneity of a landscape. Under revision, International Journal of Geographical Information Science.

  • D.E. Myers (1997) Statistical models for multiple-scaled analysis D.A. Quattrochi M.F. Goodchild (Eds) Scale in Remote Sensing and GIS Lewis Publishers New York 273–307

    Google Scholar 

  • B.O. Oindo A.K. Skidmore (2001) ArticleTitleInterannual variability of NDVI and species richness in Kenya International Journal of Remote Sensors 23 285–298

    Google Scholar 

  • F.V. Osborn G.E. Parker (2003) ArticleTitleLinking two elephant refuges with a corridor in the communal lands of Zimbabwe African Journal of Ecology 41 68–74

    Google Scholar 

  • D.M. Pearson (2002) ArticleTitleThe application of local measures of spatial autocorrelation for describing pattern in north Australian landscapes Journal of Environmental Management 64 85–95 Occurrence Handle11876077

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • S.T.A. Pickett K.H. Rogers (1997) Patch dynamics: the transformation of landscape structure and function J.A. Bissonette (Eds) Wildlife and Landscape Ecology: Effects of Pattern and Scale Springer New York 101–127

    Google Scholar 

  • M. Rietkerk J. van de Koppel L. Kumar F. van Langevelde H.H.T. Prins (2002) ArticleTitleThe ecology of scale: Editorial Ecological Modelling 149 1–4

    Google Scholar 

  • Said M.Y. 2003. Multiscale perspectives of species richness in East Africa. PhD, ITC and Wageningen, EnschedeThe Netherlands.

  • R.J. Scholes (1997) Savanna R.M. Cowling D.M. Richardson S.M. Pierce (Eds) Vegetation of Southern Africa Cowling Cambridge University Press Cambridge 258–277

    Google Scholar 

  • C. Song C.E.K.S. Woodcock M.P. Lenney S.A. Macomber (2001) ArticleTitleClassification and change detection using landsat TM data: when and how to correct atmospheric effects Remote Sensors Environment 75 230–244

    Google Scholar 

  • T.R.E. Southwood (1977) ArticleTitleHabitatthe template for ecological strategies? presidential address to the British ecological society 5 January 1997 Journal of Animal Ecology 4 337–365

    Google Scholar 

  • Sparrow A.D. (1999) ArticleTitleA heterogeneity of heterogeneities Trends in Ecology and Evolution 14 422–423 Occurrence Handle10511715

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • J.R. Timberlake N. Nobanda I. Mapaure (1993) ArticleTitleVegetation survey of the communal lands-north and west Zimbabwe Kirkia: The Zimbabwe Journal of Botany 14 171–271

    Google Scholar 

  • P. Treitz P. Howarth (2000) ArticleTitleHigh spatial resolution remote sensing data for forest ecosystem classification: an examination of spatial scale Remote Sensors Environment 72 268–289

    Google Scholar 

  • C.J. Tucker P.J. Sellers (1986) ArticleTitleSatellite remote sensing and primary production International Journal of Remote Sensors 7 1395–1416

    Google Scholar 

  • M.G. Turner (1989) ArticleTitleLandscape ecology: the effect of pattern on process Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 20 171–197

    Google Scholar 

  • D.P. Turner W.B. Cohen R.E. Kennedy K.S. Fassnacht J.M. Briggs (1999) ArticleTitleRelationships between Leaf Area Index and Landsat TM Spectral Vegetation Indices across Three Temperate Zone Sites Remote Sensors Environment 70 52–68

    Google Scholar 

  • M.G. Turner S.M. Pearson W.H. Romme L.L. Wallace (1997) Landscape heterogeneity and ungulate dynamics: what spatial scale are important J.A. Bissonette (Eds) Wildlife and Landscape Ecology: Effects of Pattern and Scale Springer New York 331–348

    Google Scholar 

  • H. Wackernagel (1998) Multivariate Geostatistics Springer Berlin

    Google Scholar 

  • S.J. Walsh T.W. Crawford W.F. Welsh K.A. Crews-Meyer (2001) ArticleTitleA multiscale analysis of LULC and NDVI variation in Nang Rong district northeast Thailand AgricultureEcosystems and Environment 85 47–64

    Google Scholar 

  • J.S. Walsh A. Moody T.R. Allen D.G. Brown (1997) Scale dependence of NDVI and its relationship to Mountainous Terrain D.A. Quattrochi M.F. Goodchild (Eds) In Scale in Remote Sensing and GIS Lewis Publishers New York 27–55

    Google Scholar 

  • R. Webster (2000) ArticleTitleIs soil variation random? Geoderma 97 149–163

    Google Scholar 

  • J.A. Wiens (1989) ArticleTitleSpatial scaling in ecology Functional Ecology 3 385–397

    Google Scholar 

  • K.A. With T.O. Crist (1995) ArticleTitleCritical thresholds in species responses to landscape structure Ecology 76 2446–2459

    Google Scholar 

  • R.H. Yapp (1922) ArticleTitleThe concept of habitat Journal of Ecology 10 1–17

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography and Environmental Science, University of Zimbabwe, P.O. Box 6, MP167, Harare, Mount Pleasant, Zimbabwe

    Amon Murwira

  2. International Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC), Hengelosestraat 99, P.O. Box 6, 7500, Enschede, AA, The Netherlands

    Andrew K. Skidmore

Authors
  1. Amon Murwira
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Andrew K. Skidmore
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Amon Murwira.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Murwira, A., Skidmore, A. The response of elephants to the spatial heterogeneity of vegetation in a Southern African agricultural landscape. Landscape Ecol 20, 217–234 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-004-3159-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-004-3159-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation