Get reliable science

Previous studies suggest that forest regeneration in grasslands is often slow because of grass competition and fire and that regeneration may be dependent on fire-resistant savannah trees. To examine the potential of savannah trees in facilitating regeneration, species diversity, number and total abundance of species of woody plants were determined below and away from Acacia sieberiana and Erythrina abyssinica tree crowns. Additionally, crown size and distance from a natural forest were estimated to determine their influence on natural regeneration. Results showed that the environment under tree crowns positively influence diversity compared to that outside crowns: including for biodiversity (3.08 versus 2.82), the number of species and total abundance (P = 0.001). However, distance from the forest to trees in the grassland had no influence on these parameters. Vertebrate animals were found to be the major seed dispersers in grasslands of Kibale. We concluded that forests that establish below crowns of savannah trees will be more diverse than those in treeless areas and that crown size is more important than distance from natural forest in facilitating regeneration. Furthermore, A. sieberiana could be more suitable in facilitating natural regeneration, while animals have proved to be vital for regeneration.