I. Mapaure et Mp. Mccartney, Vegetation-environment relationships in a catchment containing a dambo in central Zimbabwe, BOTHALIA, 31(1), 2001, pp. 135-143
Seasonally saturated wetlands, known as dambos, are a common landscape elem
ent throughout much of southern Africa. The diversity of species compositio
n within catchments containing dambos is widely attributed to hydrological
conditions, but plant-water relationships are poorly established. In this p
aper a detailed classification and a vegetation map are presented for a sma
ll catchment in central Zimbabwe containing a dambo. Canonical Corresponden
ce Analysis has been applied to explore the link between vegetation composi
tion and environmental variables. This confirms that water is a key influen
ce in species distribution and small-scale patterning of vegetation within
the catchment.