Assessing Plant Species’ Diversity with the Whittaker Plot Method in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda
Author(s)
  • Benjamin Cozzens Senior, Environmental and Conservation Biology (Conservation Biology)
Abstract
Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP) has historically contained diverse vegetation for wild animals. New prevalence of the invasive woody plant Dichrostachys cinerea has caused rapid biodiversity loss and forced these animals into private pastureland that worsens human-wildlife conflicts. Consequently, QENP staff have devoted countless hours relocating animals back into the park and assisting the community. As an intervention designed to mitigate woody plant encroachment, habitat patches within QENP have been clear cut to reset vegetation succession and remove invasive species. QENP’s long-term goal is to restore the grasslands, bring back the grazer populations, and reduce human-wildlife contact. Whittaker’s plant diversity sampling method consists of a pattern of taped off quadrats that are compounded to project the species richness. Kent State University students laid out Whittaker plots in QENP with the help of students and staff from the Uganda Wildlife Research and Training Institute. The purpose was to compare species richness in a cleared habitat patch with a patch of similar size that had not been cleared of the woody invasive plants. Results project that the cleared habitat patches had higher plant species abundance than the uncleared patches. There were numerous juvenile plants in the recently cleared area; high species competition can be inferred from this. This was preliminary research to assess the effectiveness of clear cutting as a conservation practice for native flora. Future monitoring should be done to conduct the Whittaker plot method on a larger scale and test the possibility of using alternative conservation methods that manipulate fire and grazing.
Format
Conference Proceeding
Contributor(s)
Faculty Mentor
Andrew Lepp
Edgar Kooijman
David Ward
Modified Abstract

New prevalence of the invasive woody plant Dichrostachys cinerea in Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP) has caused rapid biodiversity loss and forced wild animals into private pastureland. Consequently, QENP staff have designed an intervention to mitigate woody plant encroachment; habitat patches have been clear cut to reset vegetation succession and restore local grazers. Whittaker’s plant diversity sampling method consists of a quadrat pattern compounded to find plot species richness. This method was used to compare a cleared habitat patch with one that had not been cleared. Results project that the cleared habitat patches had higher plant species abundance than the uncleared patches. Future research should conduct the Whittaker plot method on a larger scale and test alternative conservation methods.
Permalink https://oaks.kent.edu/ugresearch/2020/biologyecology/assessing-plant-species-diversity-whittaker-plot-method-queen
Cozzens, B. (n.d.). Assessing Plant Species’ Diversity with the Whittaker Plot Method in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda (1–). https://oaks.kent.edu/node/10186
Cozzens, Benjamin. n.d. “Assessing Plant Species’ Diversity With the Whittaker Plot Method in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda”. https://oaks.kent.edu/node/10186.
Cozzens, Benjamin. Assessing Plant Species’ Diversity With the Whittaker Plot Method in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda. https://oaks.kent.edu/node/10186.