Structure and composition of snake assemblages across three types of plantation in south‐eastern Nigeria |
| |
| Authors: | Godfrey C Akani Fabio Petrozzi Edem A Eniang Luca Luiselli |
| |
| Institution: | 1. Department of Applied and Environmental Biology, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria;2. Environmental Studies Centre Demetra, Rome, Italy;3. Department of Forestry and Wildlife, University of Uyo, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria |
| |
| Abstract: | Assemblage structure, diversity measures and diversity/dominance patterns of snakes were studied between 1996 and 2013 in three types of plantation in the Niger River delta of southern Nigeria. The investigated plantation types were pineapple, banana/plantain, and cassava/yam. Over 74% of the census species (n = 27) were found in all three plantation types, with, overall, just two singletons (Bitis nasicornis, Lamprophis olivaceus) being observed. Despite an overall similarity in the taxonomic species composition, a principal component analysis placed the three plantation types in distinct zones of the multivariate space. Diversity/dominance diagrams for the three plantation types showed that banana/plantain and cassava/yam were nearly identical in terms of evenness profile, whereas the pineapple plantation had a higher evenness. |
| |
| Keywords: | community ecology diversity/dominance diagrams Nigeria plantations Serpentes |
|
|
