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The establishment of native woodland in the moorland areas of upland Britain is increasing. However, there is no clear basis on which to predict either the effect of this on the ecology of the mountain hare, or the effect of mountain hare on woodland establishment. This study investigates the feeding ecology of the mountain hare, a primarily moorland inhabitant in upland Britain, in an upland landscape containing a newly established native woodland and also the potential impact that they may have on regeneration of native woodland species (Pinus sylvestris, Betula pubescens and B. pendula). The mean home range size, determined by radio-tracking, of male mountain hares was 12.1 ha and females 8.9 ha. The native woodland habitat was not preferentially selected by mountain hares in summer or winter. Faecal n-alkane and long-chain fatty alcohol analysis revealed that P. sylvestris and B. pubescens were minor components of the diet in all seasons. The diet of both male and female hares was dominated by Calluna vulgaris in winter and by grasses, sedges and rushes in summer. Annual measurements of browsing by mountain hares on P. sylvestris and B. pendula saplings at eight sites throughout Scotland, showed that on average only 5.8 % of trees sustained browsing each year. Relative hare abundance, tree density, tree species and ground vegetation height did not predict the extent of browsing damage by mountain hares. In contrast, a field-based planting experiment involving nursery grown B. pubescens saplings, had higher local hare densities and revealed that mountain hares do browse saplings extensively and that season, tree density and ground vegetation height are important in determining the extent of browsing. Seasonal habitat utilisation of the experimental plots by mountain hares fluctuated in relation to the frequency of browsing. In general, the results showed that moderate densities of mountain hares are unlikely to inhibit regeneration of native woodlands However, the likelihood of damage will increase if trees occur at high densities and if local hare density is high.

A dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the academic requirements for the degree of Masters of Environmental Science, School of Animal Plant and Environmental Sciences. University of the Witwatersrand. October 2016. / Fire and grazing are important drivers of grassland composition and function in savanna ecosystems. Fire alters the forage quality and vegetation structure, so changing fire regimes also changes grazer utilisation of the landscape. This study aimed to investigate how different fire regimes, specifically changes in fire size and season of burn, influence grazer attraction as well as grazing intensity and duration in the short-term, and further to determine how long-term fire-grazing interactions may influence the development of grazing lawns. In the short-term experiment, fires of three different sizes were applied in both the early dry season (EDS) and late dry season (LDS), and periodic collection of grass height and dung count data was conducted over a full year. Results showed that grazers were immediately attracted to the burned areas after the fires, and that fire and grazing together can maintain a short grazed patch for a full season. The greatest grazer visitation and grazing pressure (shortest grass) was observed on the intermediately sized burns (5ha). Furthermore, EDS treatments exhibited less initial grazer visitation but grass was kept in a short state for longer than on LDS burns. LDS burns had more intense grazing but over a much shorter time. For the long-term experiment, a long-standing fire experiment (Experimental Burn Plots, Kruger National Park, South Africa) was used to investigate change in grass community composition as influenced by firegrazing interactions over a 60 year period. Historical data were used, and grass composition data were also collected on three treatments that allowed for comparison of communities that experienced grazing and fires repeated at different fire frequencies and different seasons (April biennial and August annual burns), as well as a natural fire regime (control). By investigating the change in abundance in a few key grass species, grass ecological status classes, and grass functional guilds, results found that grasses associated with grazing lawns (stoloniferous, ‘disturbed’) increased in abundance, while grasses of bunch grass communities decreased, and that this change was more pronounced on April biennial burns. The results of this study show that small fires can act as a catalyst for grass community compositional and structural change by attracting grazers. Key words: Grazing lawns, fire size, fire season, pyric-herbivory, savanna. / TG2016

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Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2002. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains viii, 52 p. : ill. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 36-39).

Thesis (Ph. D.) -- Lincoln University, 2009. / Also available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2003. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 39 p. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 27-29).

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