Elephants and woodlands II

Abstract

The paper clarifies and expands on ideas relating to the interaction between elephants and woodlands. Aspects of elephant dietary requirements and woodland response to elephant damage are discussed. Instability of woodlands in arid eutrophic areas is the outcome between a number of factors, including seed germination, amount of browsing, season during which major browsing take place, regeneration of woody plants after breakage by animals, soil nutrient availability and shade intolerance. The author notes that the so called non-damaging trait of the desert elephants in Namibia may be related to the time of year during which the animals tend to browse in different locations.