Plant traits and drought tolerance in the Savanna: A Kruger National Park case study

Abstract

One of the central goals of plant ecology is to understand the factors that control the local

distribution of plant species and thus the composition of communities. The aim of this study is to

determine plant functional traits that can be associated with drought tolerance/avoidance and to

test whether wood density is a good indicator of drought tolerance. The study was carried out in

Kruger National Park in the month of June. A number of plant traits including wood density, leaf

thickness, leaf life sp~n/longevity and water potential were measured along a rainfall gradient

(from south to north of the park). Wood density and water potential did not show any significant

differences between the wet and dry sites. Leaf thickness and percent leaf cover showed

significant correlations with the rainfall gradien~nd 0.02 respectively). Wood density

may not be the single most important factor th~ fitness during drought. Tolerance in

plants may come about as a result of the interplay between plant traits and site characteristics that

may result in the differential response even in plants that may be deemed drought tolerant.