Evaluation of Theodorou island as a habitat for the conservation of the cretan wild goat (Capra aegagus cretica) and the impact of grazing on vegetation
1996
Papadopoulos, M.C.
The present study was carried out on Theodorou island (68 ha) Creta, Greece, the national reserve for the conservation of the endangered Cretan wild goat (Capra aegagrus cretica Schinz 1939) aiming at the evaluation of the area as a habitat for the species conservation, the assessment of the grazing impact to vegetation and the suggestion of certain guidelines for the reserve management. A big part of the habitat (39.9 per cent) was devoted to vegetation, bare rock - soil and dead biomass composed 21.2 per cent and 6 per cent respectively. The diversity type was shrubs constituting 74.5 per cent of the plant cover. Forbs and grasses composed 24 per cent and 1.5 per cent respectively. The most abundant species were either of low palatibility or inedible to wild goat: Istacia lentiscus (20.6 per cent) Sarcopotrium spinosun (17.6 per cent), Thymus capitatus (8.2 per cent), Euphorbia dendroides (7.5 per cent) ungrazed side islet was dominated by Lotus cytisiodes, a high palatable forb. Through prolonged overgrazing the plant community has been altered to a disclimax community dominated by invader species. Invaders, increasers and decreasers corresponded to 52.2 per cent, 38.1 percent and 9.7 percent respectively. Based on these, the range condition of the habitat was evaluated as poor. In comparison to previous vegetation inventories the invaders had increased while the decreasers had decreased. The total green biomass production was evaluated to 120126 kg or 1766 kg/ha. Thirty percent of the production was not edible at all. The carrying capacity of the habitat ungulate irruction. By an indirect habitat evaluation through horn comparisons the inferiority of Theodorou habitat in comparison with Samaria was revealed
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