Ecosystem engineering through aardvark (Orycteropus afer) burrowing : mechanisms and effects

dc.contributor.authorHaussmann, Natalie S.
dc.contributor.authorLouw, Michelle Anne
dc.contributor.authorLewis, Simone
dc.contributor.authorNicol, Keegan J.H.
dc.contributor.authorVan der Merwe, Stephni
dc.contributor.authorLe Roux, Peter Christiaan
dc.contributor.emailnatalie.haussmann@up.ac.zaen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2018-06-04T08:57:31Z
dc.date.issued2018-08
dc.description.abstractBurrowing mammals are often considered to be ecosystem engineers as burrowing disturbs the soil, thereby potentially changing resource availability and affecting habitat conditions for other species. After their excavation, burrows may strongly impact local plant communities through several mechanisms, including resource trapping, altered chemical and physical soil properties, and amelioration of microclimatic conditions. We studied ecosystem engineering by aardvark (Orycteropus afer) burrowing by comparing soil and vegetation characteristics between three microsites (burrow entrances, excavated soil mounds and adjacent control sites). We were able to identify several engineering effects and distinguish between potential mechanisms. Burrow soils were cooler, drier and less compact than the other microsites, with all three microsites representing unique combinations of abiotic conditions. Mean species richness was higher at older burrows than mounds and non-burrowed controls, despite burrows having a smaller seedbank and not differing in soil fertility from mounds and control sites. However, the opposite was observed at fresh burrows and mounds, where control plots contained more species on average than the other two types of microsites. Burrow age and microsite type also affected species composition, although only a small proportion of species were significantly associated with specific microsites and just two species were limited to a single microsite type. We suggest that trampling and the physical digging action at burrow entrances, and burial by deposited soil at mounds, prevents the establishment of many plant species at active burrows. However, once abandoned, burrow entrances provide good physical conditions for seedling survival, allowing the establishment of more species. Therefore, as suggested previously for other ecosystem engineers, it is important to explicitly consider the age and degradation processes of engineered structures. In addition, our results highlight biologically-important differences in engineering impacts between burrow entrances, where soil is removed, and mounds, where soil is deposited. Such microscale differences are important to consider when examining bioturbation or, more generally, ecosystem engineering.en_ZA
dc.description.departmentGeography, Geoinformatics and Meteorologyen_ZA
dc.description.departmentPlant Production and Soil Scienceen_ZA
dc.description.embargo2019-08-01
dc.description.librarianhj2018en_ZA
dc.description.sponsorshipThe National Research Foundation of South Africa for Grant No. 94103.en_ZA
dc.description.urihttp://www.elsevier.com/locate/ecolengen_ZA
dc.identifier.citationHaussmann, N.S., Louw, M.A., Lewis, S. 2018, 'Ecosystem engineering through aardvark (Orycteropus afer) burrowing : mechanisms and effects', Ecological Engineering, vol. 118, pp. 66-72.en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn0925-8574 (print)
dc.identifier.issn1872-6992 (online)
dc.identifier.other10.1016/j.ecoleng.2018.04.022
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/65084
dc.language.isoenen_ZA
dc.publisherElsevieren_ZA
dc.rights© 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Notice : this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Ecological Engineering. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. A definitive version was subsequently published in Ecological Engineering, vol. 118, pp. 66-72, 2018. doi : 10.1016/j.ecoleng.2018.04.022.en_ZA
dc.subjectAardvark (Orycteropus afer)en_ZA
dc.subjectEcosystem engineeren_ZA
dc.subjectGrasslanden_ZA
dc.subjectMammal burrowingen_ZA
dc.subjectPhysical soil disturbanceen_ZA
dc.subjectSpecies compositionen_ZA
dc.subjectEcosystemsen_ZA
dc.subjectMammaliaen_ZA
dc.subjectSoilsen_ZA
dc.subjectMammalsen_ZA
dc.subjectForestryen_ZA
dc.subjectEngineersen_ZA
dc.titleEcosystem engineering through aardvark (Orycteropus afer) burrowing : mechanisms and effectsen_ZA
dc.typePostprint Articleen_ZA

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