Ecological Studies of Some Grasslands In Kenya: Structure and Net' Primary Productivity In Four Grassland Ecosystems

Abstract

Knowledge of the composition of a plant community is a pre-requisite to the understanding of' the overall structure and, function of an ecosystem (Gupta, 1977). In discussing the importance of species diversity, Odum (1963) suggested that the species numbers in a community reflect their adaptation potential. Biotic disturbances such as grazing or clipping influence the quantitative species expression (Dix, 1959). In an annual plant community, temporal species fluctuations and spatial diversity in plant species suggest different responses by each, species population to incoming heat, soil moisture and light (Heady, 1958).