Journal
ECOLOGICAL MODELLING
Volume 304, Issue -, Pages 11-21Publisher
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2015.02.015
Keywords
Ecohydrological modeling; ODE model; Coexistence; Biome shifts; Fire; Grazing
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Funding
- German Research Foundation (DFG) through the Graduate School program (Shaping Earth's Surface in a Variable Environment - Interactions between tectonics, climate and biosphere in the African-Asian monsoonal region) [583720, GRK 1364]
- BMBF in the framework of the OPTIMASS project [01LL1302A, 01LL1302B]
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Our current understanding regarding the functioning of the savanna ecosystem describes savannas as either competition- or disturbance-dependent. Within this generalized view, the role and importance of facilitation have been mostly neglected. This study presents a mathematical model of savannas with coupled soil moisture-vegetation dynamics, which includes interspecific competition and environmental disturbance. We find that there exist environmental and climatic conditions where grass facilitation toward trees plays an important role in supporting tree cover and by extension preserving the savanna biome. We, therefore, argue that our theoretical results in combination with the first empirical studies on the subject should stimulate further research into the role of facilitation in the savanna ecosystem, particularly when analyzing the impact of past and projected climatic changes on it. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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