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Article: Influence of grazing by large mammals on the spider community of a Kenyan Savanna Biome.
- Article from:
- Journal of Arachnology
- Article date:
- May 1, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 American Arachnological Society. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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ABSTRACT. Pitfall trap and sweep net samples were taken over a period of fifteen months (2002-2003) in the Kenya Long-term Exclosure Experiment (KLEE), in which the presence of domestic and wild herbivores have been independently manipulated since 1995. ANOVA and ANCOVA showed that the exclosure treatments significantly affected plant cover, with the presence of cattle significantly reducing the relative vegetation cover and spider diversity. Herbivory by indigenous mega- and meso-herbivores did not have a significant influence on the diversity of the spider fauna, but abundance of three dominant species (Cyclosa insulana Costa (Araneidae), Argiope trifasciata Forskal ...