Collaborative Research: Convergence and Contingencies in Savanna Grasslands

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Grasslands and savannas occupy one eighth of the land surface on Earth, are economically important as grazing lands, and are highly impacted by human activities. They also have tremendous conservation value and support most remaining large native grazing animals in the world, particularly in Africa. A fundamental understanding of the factors most important for sustaining savanna grasslands, including their natural fire and grazing regimes, is required for their management and conservation. Scientists have questioned whether grasslands in different regions function similarly. Convergence in functioning would mean that ecological understanding and conservation strategies could be generalized for savanna grasslands worldwide. But contingent factors specific to a region, such as differences in evolutionary history or the types of grazers present, may lead to unique responses in some savanna grasslands. The goal of this research is to compare responses of key ecological processes to fire and grazing in North American and South African savanna grasslands. Scientists will take advantage of three ongoing, long-term experiments that manipulate fire return interval and the presence of large grazers. Responses of plant productivity, plant diversity and nutrient cycling will be compared, and the mechanisms underlying responses, such as differences in plant traits or evolutionary histories, will be assessed. Comparative research elucidating the consequences of human alterations of fire and grazing regimes worldwide is needed to enable development of management strategies that can insure the sustainability of ecologically and economically important savanna grasslands. This research will provide the basic knowledge necessary to do so, as well as afford training and important global and cultural experiences for young scientists, graduate students and undergraduates. Finally, though collaborations that are already established, results will be made available to scientists and managers in South Africa.