Name:
Drakensberg Grassland Macrogroup
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
Drakensberg grasslands are found primarily associated with the Great Escarpment of the Drakensberg region, including Lesotho and extending southwestward into the Amatole Mountains, some of the highest elevations of Southern Africa. Elevations vary from 600 to 3300 m. The topography can be very steep; and rainfall is high and persistent throughout the year, with snow or frost common in winter in the higher elevations, with bimodal precipitation from 450-1800 mm as annual means. Communities occur on mountain slopes, steep scarpments, plateaus and moderately undulating slopes, on a variety of soils and geologies. The vegetation is predominantly grasslands often with a short-shrub component and forbs, in some cases the shrubs are of the ericoid type. The grasses are of the genera <i>Cynodon, Eragrostis, Themeda, Agrostis, Andropogon, Cymbopogon, Cyperus, Elionurus, Festuca, Koelleria, Melica, Pennisetum, Sporobolus</i>, and <i>Trachypogon</i>. Among the endemic herbs are <i>Alchemilla bolusi, Cineraria vagans, Wahlenbergia laxiflora, Galium amatymbicum, Nidorella undulata, Diascia integerrima, Aster confertifolius</i>, and <i>Selago leptothrix</i>. Shrubs include <i>Abutilon flanaganii, Erica amatolensis, Euryops ciliatus, Lotononis holosericea, Leucosidea sericea, Relhania acerosa, Erica anomala, Erica hillburttii, Erica caffrorum, Cliffortia linearifolia, Cliffortia nitidula, Chrysocoma ciliata</i>, and <i>Passerina dragensbergensis</i>.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:40701-{2710A312-414C-4A62-8857-54A21FB3E9CA}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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