Microhabitat use by Black-Faced Impala in the Etosha National Park, Namibia

Title
Microhabitat use by Black-Faced Impala in the Etosha National Park, Namibia
Publication Date
2005
Author(s)
Matson, TK
Goldizen, AW
Jarman, Peter
Type of document
Journal Article
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
John Wiley & Sons, Inc
Place of publication
United States of America
DOI
10.2193/0022-541X(2005)69[1708:MUBBII]2.0.CO;2
UNE publication id
une:8803
Abstract
We studied microhabitat use by black-faced impala in different herd types during the rut in the cold dry seasons of 2001 and 2002 in the Etosha National Park, Namibia. We investigated whether black-faced impala select feeding sites consistently for their microhabitat characteristics in 2 vegetation types, Karstveld and Tamboti Woodland. We also investigated intra-population differences in microhabitat use between herds of different types. In both habitats, sites used by impala for feeding were more likely to be in the shade, within 2 m of the edges of wooded areas and grassy clearings, with high visibility at 1 m height, and with lower grass swords than nearby nonfeeding sites. In Karstveld, feeding sites of impala were also located closer to the nearest shrub than were nonfeeding sites. A degree of fine-scale sexual segregation in microhabitat use was demonstrated, but it was not consistent across habitats. Incorporating these trends in the microhabitat use of black-faced impala into management decisions should maximize the success of small populations released at selected off-park sites.
Link
Citation
Journal of Wildlife Management, 69(4), p. 1708-1715
ISSN
1937-2817
0022-541X
Start page
1708
End page
1715

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