Abstract

Data on the ecology of forest elephants are difficult to find. Therefore studies of forest elephant ecology are needed to support the species' management. With that perspective in mind, data on forest understorey types and key plant species that elephants feed on were collected in Salonga National Park (1996-2002) and Malebo (2006-2010), Democratic Republic of Congo. The objective of the study was to document the physical effects of elephants on understorey species and the relationship between elephant trails and elephant-dispersed plant species. About 94% of the openness of the understorey in Salonga National Park positively related with elephant abundance. Elephant trails influenced the distribution of plant species that elephants feed on at Malebo. Plant species whose fruits are eaten (and therefore dispersed) by elephants declined within 20 m of the trail centre while those on whose leaves elephants browsed increased, creating opposed gradients. Three optimum points were described, suggesting that trails move over time within a given width. Projecting the trends given by the gradient equations, a fourth optimum point would be reached at 76 m from the centre at which both types of plant species would be zero. We concluded that 150 +/- 2 m distance would define the minimum width of corridors connecting disconnected large elephant habitats.

Keywords

open understorey; elephant trails; fruit plant species

Published in

Pachyderm
2013, number: 53, pages: 28-37
Publisher: IUCN-SSC ASIAN ELEPHANT SPECIALIST GROUP

SLU Authors

• Inogwabini, Bila-Isia

  • Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    
  • University of Kent
  • World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)

UKÄ Subject classification

Ecology


Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/76877