Selection of Vegetation Components by Grazing Ungulates in the Serengeti National Park

The work described here was designed to test the hypothesis that the species in such a grazing succession make use of different levels of the herb layer and might therefore be expected to take different proportions of the plant parts available.

Abstract

ECOLOGICAL separation of the African grazing ungulates has been found to be difficult1, although some authors have observed that these ungulates often take part in grazing successions in which species follow each other in characteristic sequences during their seasonal movements2. The migratory populations of the Serengeti take part in such a succession; first zebra (Equus burchelli), second wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus albojubatus) and lastly Thomson's gazelle (Gazella thomsoni). The semi-migratory topi (Damaliscus korrigum) tends to associate with zebra. The work described here was designed to test the hypothesis that the species in such a grazing succession make use of different levels of the herb layer and might therefore be expected to take different proportions of the plant parts available.