Vegetation dynamics under variable conditions in the famous sandy steppe of southern Tunisia
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Wassim Attia, Mohamed Tarhouni, Azaiez Ouled Belgacem, Omar Gammar, Houcine Khatteli. (30/11/2013). Vegetation dynamics under variable conditions in the famous sandy steppe of southern Tunisia. African Journal of Ecology, 53, pp. 16-24.
Abstract
During last decades, the natural vegetation cover in
southern Tunisia, mainly dominated by dwarf and sparse
shrub, was continuously disturbed under various human
activities especially on sandy soil (easily eroded). The
ecological characteristics (soil structure and texture, vegetation,
topography…) of sandy steppes, with Rhanterium
suaveolens Desf., enhanced their sharp decline. This study
aims to investigate the vegetation status of two R. suaveolens
steppes (R: protected; r: degraded) under different
conditions in five sites belonging to southern Tunisia using
the quadrat point method and some ecological indicators.
Main results show that vegetation cover is related to
climatic conditions. Plant density is mainly affected by
rainfall and human activities. The annual and perennial
density and cover are high during the rainy season (spring)
compared with the dry one (fall). The degraded steppes (r)
are mainly dominated by annual plants but the protected
steppes (R) contain more perennials. This work can be very
useful for the sustainable sandy steppes management under
different stress and human disturbances in dry area. It
presents a great national and international importance
(economic, social, nature conservation…) such as job
creation and limiting rural exodus.
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Ouled Belgacem, Azaiez https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5946-7540