Vegetation Function Network supported by Australian Research Council and Landcare Research NZ
49. Savanna structure and variation

Organised by Caroline Lehmann, Charles Darwin University

First meeting held Sept 17-26, 2008 in Darwin

PARTICIPANTS MAY INCLUDE

Lindsay Hutley, Charles Darwin U - tree ecophysiology; ecosystem productivity
Caroline Lehmann, Charles Darwin U (leader) - quantitative landscape dynamics; demography; remote sensing
Lynda Prior, Charles Darwin U - tree ecophysiology; demography 
Dick Williams, CSIRO - carbon dynamics; plant phenology
Mahesh Sankaran, Centre for Comparative and Integrative Biology, University of Leeds. savanna ecology; grazer-plant interactions in African savannas
Steve Higgins, Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Frankfurt - ecological modelling; plant demography
Jayashree Ratnam, University of Leeds - tree and grass nutrient ratios in African savannas
Michael Anderson, University of Groningen, Netherlands - African savannas
Simon Scheiter, Technical University of Munich - process-based ecological modelling
Adam Liedloff, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems - ecological modelling
William Hoffmann, University of North Carolina, USA –South American savannas
 William Bond, University of Cape Town, South Africa – savanna dynamics; role of disturbance in ecosystems
Sally Archibald, CSIR, South Africa - fire and grazer interactions; phenology; remote sensing
Jeanine Felfili, University of Brasilia - fire in savannas, structural attributes of the cerrado
Niall Hanan, Colorado State University - west african savannas

   

Much research has been undertaken across savanna ecosystems in Africa, Australia and South America, yet there have been few attempts to address the differences and similarities of dynamics and function of these ecosystems across continents. Over the last few decades, several models have been proposed to account for the meta-stable co-existence of trees and grasses. Regardless, no single model has been able to account for all patterns observed, and validations are generally restricted in scale. We propose to combine published and unpublished datasets of savanna vegetation structure and properties from Africa, Australia and South America to assess global patterns of ecosystem (basal area, tree cover and grass biomass) and species (plant allometry; plant architecture; topkill response; leaf N; leaf longevity; d13 C) attributes in tropical savanna ecosystems. We will relate this information to climate, soils, fire, herbivory and phenology information. This will allow an examination of differences and similarities in savanna vegetation structure and function across continents.

Last Updated April 2008