Article title: Selective disturbance by elephants (Loxodonta africana) on eight tree species in a West African savannah
Journal name: Ecological Research (MS. NO: ECOL-D-16-00316R3)
Author name: Emmanuel M. Hema; Richard F.W. Barnes; Massimiliano Di Vittorio, Luca Luiselli, Wendengoudi Guenda
Affiliation and the e mail address of the corresponding author: Luca Luiselli, IDECC - Institute for Development, Ecology, Conservation and Cooperation, via G. Tomasi di Lampedusa 33, I-00144 Rome, Italy; and Department of Applied and Environmental Biology, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, P.M.B. 5080, Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Emails: Emails: ;
Table S1 Pluviometric data for the Nazinga Game Ranch over the years 1985-2007. Note that the rainfall regimes were relatively similar all through the period. Data source: Nazinga Game Ranch managing authority.
Dry season / Wet season/ DRT Dry season
Year / Jan / Feb / Mar / Apr / May / Jun / Jul / Aug / Sep / Oct / Nov / Dec / Total
1987 / 0 / 0 / 11.9 / 8.1 / 45.4 / 187.5 / 183.6 / 286.3 / 139.5 / 31.6 / 0 / 0 / 893.90
1988 / 0 / 0 / 2.2 / 65.1 / 37.9 / 176 / 158.6 / 244.6 / 131 / 21 / 13.9 / 0 / 850.30
1989 / 0 / 0 / 36.7 / 4.3 / 22.7 / 148.3 / 261.7 / 383.5 / 191.8 / 52.7 / 0 / 40 / 1141.70
1990 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 53.5 / 124 / 33 / 229.2 / 161.2 / 93.1 / 22.1 / 17.7 / 23.6 / 757.40
1991 / 0 / 2.3 / 114.1 / 43.8 / 174.6 / 160.9 / 142.5 / 370.4 / 88.1 / 184.3 / 0 / 0 / 1281.00
1992 / 0 / 0 / 0.2 / 69.7 / 113.7 / 108.9 / 172.4 / 221.9 / 148.2 / 48.5 / 10.8 / 0 / 894.30
1993 / 0 / 0 / 22.4 / 24.2 / 68.4 / 251.5 / 193.9 / 292.3 / 116 / 30.2 / 3.7 / 0 / 1002.60
1994 / 0 / 0 / 23.3 / 54.5 / 185.4 / 44.2 / 306.8 / 439.5 / 138.1 / 76.6 / 0 / 0 / 1268.40
1995 / 0 / 0 / 8.3 / 60.1 / 36.4 / 178.5 / 153.6 / 320.8 / 117.7 / 32.2 / 0.2 / 16.6 / 924.40
1996 / 0 / 0 / 8.1 / 15.2 / 111.1 / 306.9 / 115.8 / 363.6 / 215 / 17.3 / 0 / 0 / 1153.00
1997 / 0 / 0 / 2.1 / 52.1 / 101.7 / 115 / 112 / 165.6 / 212.2 / 99.4 / 0 / 0 / 860.10
1998 / 0 / 9 / 0 / 87.9 / 138.5 / 124.3 / 161.9 / 215.3 / 271.9 / 59.6 / 0 / 0 / 1068.40
1999 / 0 / 0.1 / 0 / 75.7 / 165.9 / 76.1 / 391.4 / 318.3 / 193.8 / 68.8 / 0 / 0 / 1290.10
2000 / 0.1 / 0 / 0 / 52.1 / 73.5 / 191.7 / 120.3 / 225.4 / 143.9 / 55.8 / 0 / 0 / 862.80
2001 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 17.1 / 48.2 / 125.2 / 145.1 / 236.4 / 113 / 43.1 / 0 / 0 / 728.10
2002 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 62.9 / 73.2 / 111.6 / 201.9 / 210.4 / 148.6 / 36.6 / 5.2 / 0 / 850.40
2003 / 0 / 2.2 / 56.6 / 43.2 / 87 / 169.9 / 181.4 / 326.1 / 269 / 68.3 / 2.5 / 0 / 1206.20
2004 / 0 / 0 / 10.3 / 43 / 48.2 / 196.9 / 203.2 / 275.9 / 130.8 / 24.2 / 0 / 0 / 932.50
2005 / 0.4 / 62.9 / 0 / 37.1 / 120 / 162.5 / 206.1 / 195.6 / 237.7 / 557 / 0 / 0 / 1579.30
2006 / 0 / 1.3 / 0 / 80 / 56.5 / 194.4 / 192.1 / 209.4 / 306.7 / 52.5 / 0 / 0 / 1092.90
2007 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 102.5 / 77.4 / 120.9 / 30.59 / 46.3 / 156.1 / 7.5 / 0 / 0 / 541.29
Table S2 Summary of the data on number of stems, including damaged and non-damaged, and their densities, divided by transect.
Transect number / Plot area (ha) / Number of stems (undamaged + damaged) / Number of damaged stems / Number of living (undamaged) stems / Density of living (undamaged) stems / Stem density (n × ha-1) (undamaged + damaged) / Density of damaged stems (n × ha-1)T01 / 0.1875 / 112 / 22 / 90 / 480 / 597 / 117
T02 / 0.1875 / 138 / 18 / 120 / 640 / 736 / 96
T03 / 0.1875 / 123 / 12 / 111 / 592 / 656 / 64
T04 / 0.1875 / 138 / 14 / 124 / 661 / 736 / 75
T05 / 0.1875 / 104 / 32 / 72 / 384 / 555 / 171
T06 / 0.1875 / 80 / 22 / 58 / 309 / 427 / 117
T07 / 0.1875 / 187 / 23 / 164 / 875 / 997 / 123
T08 / 0.1875 / 132 / 17 / 115 / 613 / 704 / 91
T09 / 0.1875 / 139 / 14 / 125 / 667 / 741 / 75
T11 / 0.1875 / 173 / 13 / 160 / 853 / 923 / 69
T12 / 0.1875 / 174 / 32 / 142 / 757 / 928 / 171
T13 / 0.1875 / 142 / 19 / 123 / 656 / 757 / 101
T14 / 0.1875 / 139 / 5 / 134 / 715 / 741 / 27
T15 / 0.1875 / 175 / 10 / 165 / 880 / 933 / 53
T16 / 0.1875 / 165 / 33 / 132 / 704 / 880 / 176
T17 / 0.1875 / 129 / 20 / 109 / 581 / 688 / 107
T18 / 0.1875 / 136 / 13 / 123 / 656 / 725 / 69
T19 / 0.1875 / 127 / 7 / 120 / 640 / 677 / 37
T20 / 0.1875 / 236 / 38 / 198 / 1056 / 1259 / 203
T21 / 0.1875 / 119 / 17 / 102 / 544 / 635 / 91
T22 / 0.1875 / 144 / 22 / 122 / 651 / 768 / 117
T23 / 0.1875 / 128 / 23 / 105 / 560 / 683 / 123
T24 / 0.1875 / 115 / 17 / 98 / 523 / 613 / 91
T25 / 0.1875 / 176 / 24 / 152 / 811 / 939 / 128
T26 / 0.1875 / 200 / 18 / 182 / 971 / 1067 / 96
T27 / 0.1875 / 130 / 13 / 117 / 624 / 693 / 69
T28 / 0.1875 / 166 / 13 / 153 / 816 / 885 / 69
T29 / 0.1875 / 197 / 22 / 175 / 933 / 1051 / 117
T30 / 0.1875 / 152 / 26 / 126 / 672 / 811 / 139
T31 / 0.1875 / 162 / 21 / 141 / 752 / 864 / 112
T32 / 0.1875 / 62 / 7 / 55 / 293 / 331 / 37
T33 / 0.1875 / 121 / 20 / 101 / 539 / 645 / 107
T34 / 0.1875 / 212 / 31 / 181 / 965 / 1131 / 165
T35 / 0.1875 / 127 / 19 / 108 / 576 / 677 / 101
T36 / 0.1875 / 155 / 26 / 129 / 688 / 827 / 139
T37 / 0.1875 / 172 / 21 / 151 / 805 / 917 / 112
T38 / 0.1875 / 206 / 16 / 190 / 1013 / 1099 / 85
T39 / 0.1875 / 144 / 14 / 130 / 693 / 768 / 75
T40 / 0.1875 / 186 / 13 / 173 / 923 / 992 / 69
T41 / 0.1875 / 135 / 12 / 123 / 656 / 720 / 64
T42 / 0.1875 / 48 / 6 / 42 / 224 / 256 / 32
T43 / 0.1875 / 97 / 18 / 79 / 421 / 517 / 96
T44 / 0.1875 / 76 / 8 / 68 / 363 / 405 / 43
T45 / 0.1875 / 115 / 16 / 99 / 528 / 613 / 85
T46 / 0.1875 / 108 / 16 / 92 / 491 / 576 / 85
T47 / 0.1875 / 111 / 10 / 101 / 539 / 592 / 53
T48 / 0.1875 / 161 / 18 / 143 / 763 / 859 / 96
T49 / 0.1875 / 186 / 26 / 160 / 853 / 992 / 139
T50 / 0.1875 / 106 / 12 / 94 / 501 / 565 / 64
T51 / 0.1875 / 69 / 6 / 63 / 336 / 368 / 32
T52 / 0.1875 / 133 / 25 / 108 / 576 / 709 / 133
T53 / 0.1875 / 133 / 18 / 115 / 613 / 709 / 96
T54 / 0.1875 / 142 / 14 / 128 / 683 / 757 / 75
T56 / 0.1875 / 153 / 17 / 136 / 725 / 816 / 91
Total / 10.125 / 969 / 6627
Fig. S1 Elephants as ecosystem engineers in Nazinga Game Research (Burkina Faso). In this plate, an adult male browsing and contextually breaking a savannah tree (a), and extirpation of a savannah tree by an elephant (b)
Fig. S2 Transects showing the positions of the tree surveys plots