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The main subject of this book is the interaction between diggings created by porcupines when consuming geophytes, and their influences on annual and perennial vegetation in a desert biome. The accumulation of run-off water in diggings and depressions made by animals increases the carrying capacity of these microhabitats in the desert biome.
The accumulation of run-off water does not only benefit the natural vegetation; a system of human-made depressions can be evolved to increase the catchment of the run-off water that is typical to many desert habitats, and can lead to run-off agriculture in such areas.
This book will be of interest to anyone working in the fields of development of deserts from the ecological point of view, water resources, soil protection and erosion, plant ecophysiology and settlement, and agronomy. It will be helpful to students, researchers, teachers, and anyone interested in any of these areas.
List of contents
1. The Desert Biome.- 2. Diggings and Consumption of Subterranean Plant Organs.- 3. Annuals in Porcupine Diggings and Ibex Wallows in the Negev Desert Highlands.- 4. Effects of Human Made Disturbances and Agriculture on Flood and Runoff Water in the Negev.- References.- Plant Index.- Animals and Insect Index.
Summary
The main subject of this book is the interaction between diggings created by porcupines when consuming geophytes, and their influences on annual and perennial vegetation in a desert biome. The accumulation of run-off water in diggings and depressions made by animals increases the carrying capacity of these microhabitats in the desert biome.
The accumulation of run-off water does not only benefit the natural vegetation; a system of human-made depressions can be evolved to increase the catchment of the run-off water that is typical to many desert habitats, and can lead to run-off agriculture in such areas.
This book will be of interest to anyone working in the fields of development of deserts from the ecological point of view, water resources, soil protection and erosion, plant ecophysiology and settlement, and agronomy. It will be helpful to students, researchers, teachers, and anyone interested in any of these areas.
