DOI: 10.5061/dryad.18931zd7q
title: Disturbances in drylands: Interactions among herbivory, drought, and termite activity in savanna plant communities

description: Climate models predict increases in the frequency and intensity of
 extreme-weather events. The impacts of these events may be modulated by
 biotic agents in unpredictable ways, yet few experiments cover sufficient
 spatiotemporal scales to measure the interactive effects of multiple
 extreme events. We used 15 years of a 28-year experiment spanning several
 significant droughts to investigate how rainfall, large herbivores, and
 soil-engineering termites affect understory vegetation in a semi-arid
 savanna. Herbivory was the dominant influence on community
 structure—decreasing cover, increasing species richness, and favouring
 occurrence of annuals relative to perennials—but these effects were
 contingent on rainfall and termitaria in non-additive (hence
 unpredictable) ways. A separate experiment affirmed that resource
 supplementation does not straightforwardly compensate for herbivory
 effects. Synthesis: Our study highlights the potency of top-down forcing
 in African savannas. It suggests impressive robustness to drought and
 underscores the value of multi-decadal experiments for studying
 interactions among multiple drivers of ecosystem dynamics.
description: # Disturbances in drylands: Interactions among herbivory, drought, and
 termite activity in savanna plant communities
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.18931zd7q](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.18931zd7q) ## Description of the data and file structure These data were collected at the Kenya Long-term Herbivore Exclusion Experiment (KLEE) and were used to study the effects of herbivores, rainfall, and termite mounds on African savanna understory vegetation. ### Files and variables #### File: Hits\_OMWC\_20stns\_cont\_final.csv **Description:** Understory plant pin frame pin hit data in the fenced ('O') and unfenced ('MWC') treatments of KLEE at 20 sampling stations. ##### Variables * Date: Sampling date to closest month (YYYY-MM-DD). * Survey: Numerical survey ID. * Block: Replicate block (N=north, C=central, S=South). * Treatment: Herbivore treatment (O=fenced, MWC=unfenced). * Row: Row ID of sampling grid. * Column: Column ID of sampling grid. * Station: Sampling station ID (RowColumn). * Plot: Plot (Block-Treatment). * unqID: Unique sampling station ID (Block-Treatment-Sampling station) * Hits: Total number of pin hits of all species. * dT: Distance to termite mound (m). * cum4mo: Cumulative 4-month antecedent rainfall (mm). * cum4mo_t2: Cumulative 4-month antecedent rainfall of previous year (mm). #### File: PA\_OMWC\_50stns\_cont\_final.csv **Description:** Understory plant quadrat presence-absence data in the fenced ('O') and unfenced ('MWC') treatments of KLEE at 20 sampling stations. ##### Variables * Date: Sampling date to the closest month (YYYY-MM-DD). * Block: Replicate block (N=north, C=central, S=South). * Treatment: Herbivore treatment (O=fenced, MWC=unfenced). * Row: Row ID of sampling grid. * Column: Column ID of sampling grid. * Station: Sampling station ID (RowColumn). * unqID: Unique sampling station ID (Block-Treatment-Sampling station) * SpCode: Species code (see table below for details). * PA: Species occurrence (presence-absence) in 1 m x 1 m quadrats. * dT: Distance to termite mound (m). * cum4mo: Cumulative 4-month antecedent rainfall (mm). * cum4mo_t2: Cumulative 4-month antecedent rainfall of previous year (mm). | **SpCode** | **Species** | | :--------- | :----------------------------------- | | AcaCre | *Acalypha crenata* | | AerLan | *Aerva lanata* | | AriKen | *Aristida kenyensis* | | AspPlu | *Aspilia pluriseta* | | BleInt | *Blepharis integrifolia* | | BotIns | *Bothriochloa insculpta* | | BraEru | *Brachiaria eruciformis* | | BraLac | *Brachiaria lachnantha* | | BraSem | *Brachiaria semiundulata* | | ChlSub | *Chlorophytum subpetiolatum* | | ComSpp | *Commelina* spp. | | ConPed | *Conyza pedunculata* | | CorcSp | *Corchorus* sp. | | CrotSp | *Crotalaria* sp. | | CypMar | *Cyperus* & *Mariscus* spp. | | DigMil | *Digitaria milanjiana* | | DigVel | *Digitaria velutina* | | DinRet | *Dinebra retroflexa* | | DysRad | *Dyschoriste radicans* | | EraCyl | *Eragrostis cylindriflora* | | EraTen | *Eragrostis tenuifolia* | | EruAra | *Erucastrum arabicum* | | EupIna | *Euphorbia inaequilatera* | | EvoAls | *Evolvulus alsinoides* | | FernSp | Fern sp. | | GutCor | *Gutenbergia cordifolia* | | HelGlu | *Helichrysum glumaceum* | | HibFla | *Hibiscus flavifolius* | | HibTri | *Hibiscus trionum* | | IndBre | *Indigofera brevicalyx* | | IndSch | *Indigofera schimperi* | | IpoBif | *Ipomoea biflora* | | JusDic | *Justicia diclipteroides* | | JusSpp | *Justicia* spp. | | KohAsp | *Kohautia aspera* | | LeuGla | *Leucas glabrata* | | LeuMar | *Leucas martinicensis* | | LinNut | *Lintonia nutans* | | LipJav | *Lippia javanica* | | MelVel | *Melhania velutina* | | MicKun | *Microchloa kunthii* | | MisOro | *Misopates orontium* | | MolNud | *Mollugo nudicaulis* | | MonAng | *Monsonia angustifolia* | | MonDeb | *Monechma debile* | | OxySin | *Oxygonum sinuatum* | | PanAtr | *Panicum atrosanguineum* | | PelAlc | *Pelargonium alchemilloides* | | PenMez | *Pennisetum mezianum* | | PenStr | *Pennisetum stramineum* | | PhyMad | *Phyllanthus maderaspatensis* | | PleSpp | *Plectranthus* spp. | | PolSph | *Polygala sphenoptera* | | PorOle | *Portulaca oleracea* | | PsiSch | *Psilotrichum schimperi* | | RhiNdo | *Rhinacanthus ndorensis* | | RhyHol | *Rhynchosia holstii* | | SidCun | *Sida cuneifolia* | | SolInc | *Solanum incanum* (*campylacanthum*) | | SolInd | *Solanum indicum* | | SpoFes | *Sporobolus festivus* | | TheTri | *Themeda triandra* | | TraBer | *Tragus berteronianus* | ## Code/software NA ## Access information NA