Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa最新文献_第9页

Towards sustainability in municipal solid waste management in South Africa: a survey of challenges and prospects 南非城市固体废物管理的可持续性：挑战和前景调查

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2021-01-02 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2020.1858366

O. Adeleke, S. Akinlabi, T. Jen, I. Dunmade

{"title":"Towards sustainability in municipal solid waste management in South Africa: a survey of challenges and prospects","authors":"O. Adeleke, S. Akinlabi, T. Jen, I. Dunmade","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2020.1858366","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1858366","url":null,"abstract":"In most developing countries, the huge amount of unmanaged municipal solid wastes and the inefficiency of the current waste management system have resulted in an unprecedented detrimental effect on human health and the quality of the environment. The drive towards sustainability in solid waste management in South Africa has led to the promulgation of several legislations and policies directed towards increased efficiency of solid waste management strategies. However, despite the progress in South Africa’s waste management systems over the years, it still faces several challenges and shortcomings. To achieve sustainable development through the transition from a linear economic model to a circular economy, there is a need to revamp the waste management sector. This study presents a survey of the key physical elements of integrated waste management in South Africa. The study further discusses the challenges, with a major emphasis on the future directions of integrated waste management. Waste management decisions are data-driven decisions. This study identifies the lack of accurate and reliable waste-related data as one of the major factors that impede the fast-track growth towards sustainable waste management in South Africa. A data-mining approach that emphasises intelligent modeling of waste management systems is recommended to support the national waste database, which will aid waste management decisions and optimise waste management facilities and investments. Multi-sector intervention and involvement are required to stimulate sustainable development in waste management in South Africa.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"76 1","pages":"53 - 66"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1858366","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47934034","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 15

Cereal stem borer (Lepidoptera) assemblage structure in a sub-tropical agro-ecosystem, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa 南非东开普省亚热带农业生态系统谷物茎螟虫(鳞翅目)群落结构

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2021-01-02 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2021.1893861

A. Niba, S. Mdazu

{"title":"Cereal stem borer (Lepidoptera) assemblage structure in a sub-tropical agro-ecosystem, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa","authors":"A. Niba, S. Mdazu","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2021.1893861","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2021.1893861","url":null,"abstract":"Insect pests, especially lepidopterous stem borers, cause significant losses to cereal production at local and global scales. The borer species associated with cultivated grain cereals and alternative wild host plants were identified at three elevation gradients in the former Transkei area of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Stem borer sampling was undertaken during maize crop and non-crop seasons in Port St Johns (PSJ), Mthatha and Elliot, sites that differ in elevation above sea level, annual precipitation and temperature. Morphologically identical borers retrieved from each sampling unit were recorded, processed and reared to adult stage for identification at an ambient temperature range of 25–28°C and a relative humidity range of 65–80%. Specimens were sorted first into morphospecies (MS1–MS6) based on external morphological characteristics. Six stem borer species (Busseola fusca, Sesamia calamistis, Eldana saccharina, Chilo orichalcocili, Chilo sacchariphagus and Chilo partellus) were collected during the survey. E. saccharina and C. orichalcocili were absent in PSJ; in Elliot, E. saccahrina occurred in very low numbers whereas C. partellus was absent. Busseola fusca was more abundant at high altitude (i.e. Elliot). Borer community structure in the study showed similarity between Mthatha and Elliot. Species richness and abundance across study sites were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). The study provides information on borer species occurrence in the study area, and techniques to identify larval stages for effective control by local farmers and extension workers. When designing strategies for borer control, elevation may not be a major concern at this spatial scale.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"76 1","pages":"27 - 34"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2021.1893861","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"59097929","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

A remote sensing-based approach to investigate changes in land use and land cover in the lower uMfolozi floodplain system, South Africa 基于遥感的方法调查南非uMfolozi下游洪泛平原系统土地利用和土地覆盖的变化

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2021-01-02 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2020.1858365

Mandla Dlamini, E. Adam, G. Chirima, H. Hamandawana

{"title":"A remote sensing-based approach to investigate changes in land use and land cover in the lower uMfolozi floodplain system, South Africa","authors":"Mandla Dlamini, E. Adam, G. Chirima, H. Hamandawana","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2020.1858365","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1858365","url":null,"abstract":"The goal of this study was to understand land use and land cover (LULC) changes within the lower uMfolozi floodplain system, South Africa, and relate those changes to wetland loss. Changes in LULC were assessed using a geographic object-based image analysis (GEOBIA) algorithm to classify multi-date Landsat images into eight cover types over a period of 20 years, between 1997 and 2017. Post-classification accuracy assessment of all map-outputs was conducted by compiling confusion matrixes and calculating producer, user, and global accuracies and kappa coefficients (K) for each map-output. Levels of accuracy for all map-outputs were within acceptable limits, ranging between 79% and 88% (K = 0.76 and 0.86, respectively). Thereafter, paired t-tests were applied to determine whether the changes in LULC over the study period were significant. Results of this investigation showed a significant (p-value, < 0.01) conversion of wetland to cultivation, by 14%. This finding is important because it demonstrates that in this environment, human agency is one of the major drivers of a persistent decrease in the wetland ecosystem. The major insight from this observation is that there is an urgent need to formulate and implement objectively informed interventions to enhance the sustainability of the uMfolozi floodplain system and that of others elsewhere.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"76 1","pages":"13 - 25"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1858365","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42426787","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 4

Entrepreneurship concepts/theories and smallholder agriculture: insights from the literature with empirical evidence from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa 创业概念/理论与小农农业:来自南非夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省实证文献的见解

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2021-01-02 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2020.1861122

E. Wale, U. Chipfupa

{"title":"Entrepreneurship concepts/theories and smallholder agriculture: insights from the literature with empirical evidence from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa","authors":"E. Wale, U. Chipfupa","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2020.1861122","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1861122","url":null,"abstract":"Unlocking on-farm entrepreneurship is said to be fundamental for employment creation in the smallholder sector and for rural poverty reduction. However, policy-relevant knowledge to enhance smallholders’ entrepreneurial activities and transform the sector is scant. This paper draws from a systematic literature review and recent survey data from South Africa to interrogate entrepreneurship concepts and theories in the context of smallholder farmers. The evidence shows that smallholders and their features do not conform to the growth-oriented concept of entrepreneurship. The external locus of control, reliance on unearned and external income, the absence of a business mindset and the lack of risk-taking propensity are the key challenges to realising entrepreneurship in the context of South African smallholder agriculture. It is possible to be a survival or subsistence entrepreneur without necessarily maximising profit. If such entrepreneurial activities are to flourish, there is a need to focus on farmers’ mindset, nurture self-reliance and take advantage of indigenised local knowledge. To this end, a paradigm shift is required in designing financial grants and inputs or farm service support programs. Government and rural development partners must be mindful of the long-term behavioural impacts (on farmers) of their actions so that they render support without nurturing a culture of entitlement and expectations by farmers. At a structural level, the structure of smallholder income will have to change in South Africa to enhance the internal locus of control and realise the transformation agenda in the sector. Future research should focus on the theory and practice of entrepreneurship in the context of smallholder agriculture.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"76 1","pages":"67 - 79"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1861122","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44344645","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 8

Effect of lactic acid bacteria administered as feed supplement on the weight gain and ruminal pH in two South African goat breeds 乳酸菌对两个南非山羊品种增重和瘤胃pH值的影响

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2021-01-02 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2020.1870018

Takalani Whitney Maake, M. Adeleke, O. Aiyegoro

{"title":"Effect of lactic acid bacteria administered as feed supplement on the weight gain and ruminal pH in two South African goat breeds","authors":"Takalani Whitney Maake, M. Adeleke, O. Aiyegoro","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2020.1870018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1870018","url":null,"abstract":"Antibiotics as growth promoters are banned in most European countries, because of antibiotic resistance and residues in animal products, and the release of recalcitrant antibiotics into the environment. Probiotics are the preferred alternative, because of no harmful attributes when compared to antibiotics, and the additional advantage of the ability to stabilise the microbial communities in the gut. We investigated the effects of LAB on the growth performance of South African goats. Randomly selected 17 Specked and 18 Boer goats were divided into five treatment groups according to sex and breed and were placed in an experimental trial for 30 days. Ruminal fluid was collected before and after the trial to monitor the changes in the pH. Data collected were analysed using a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) (SAS, version 9.4). Results revealed that LAB supplementation had no effect on feed intake in all experimental groups. However, the average weight gain was higher in the LAB groups when compared to other groups. Sex and breed had effects on final body weight; that is male (18.4 kg) goats are heavier than females (15.3 kg) averagely, irrespective of the breed, and the Boer goats are heavier than Specked irrespective of gender. The pH decreased averagely from 7.01 to 6.33 across all treatments, confirming the modulatory effect of the administered lactic acid bacteria. The findings in this study suggested that LAB as probiotics may induce beneficial effects in goats by enhancing weight gain, dropping the gut pH, thus maintaining an equilibrium of ruminal microbiota.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"76 1","pages":"35 - 40"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1870018","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45671606","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 8

Neuroscience and literacy: an integrative view 神经科学和读写能力:一个综合的观点

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2020-12-06 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2021.1912848

George Ellis, C. Bloch

{"title":"Neuroscience and literacy: an integrative view","authors":"George Ellis, C. Bloch","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2021.1912848","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2021.1912848","url":null,"abstract":"Significant challenges exist globally regarding literacy teaching and learning. To address these challenges, key features of how the brain works should be taken into account. First, perception is an active process based in detection of errors in hierarchical predictions of sensory data and action outcomes. Reading is a particular case of this non-linear predictive process. Second, emotions play a key role in underlying cognitive functioning, including oral and written language. Negative emotions undermine motivation to learn. Third, there is not the fundamental difference between listening/speaking and reading/writing often alleged on the basis of evolutionary arguments. Both are socio-cultural practices that are driven through the communication imperative of the social brain. Fourth, both listening and reading are contextually occurring pyscho-social practices of understanding, shaped by current knowledge and cultural contexts and practices. Fifth, the natural operation of the brain is not rule-based, as is supposed in the standard view of linguistics: it is prediction, based on statistical pattern recognition. This all calls into question narrow interpretations of the widely quoted “Simple View of Reading”, which argues that explicit decoding is the necessary route to comprehension. One of the two neural routes to reading does not involve such explicit decoding processes, and can be activated from the earliest years. An integrated view of brain function reflecting the non-linear contextual nature of the reading process implies that an ongoing focus on personal meaning and understanding from the very beginning provides positive conditions for learning all aspects of reading and writing.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"76 1","pages":"157 - 188"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-12-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2021.1912848","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45814674","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 2

South African consumers’ interpretation of nutritional labelling systems of food products 南非消费者对食品营养标签制度的解读

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2020-11-13 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2020.1834466

Fanny Sekitla Mabotja, D. Metcalfe, O. Adebo

{"title":"South African consumers’ interpretation of nutritional labelling systems of food products","authors":"Fanny Sekitla Mabotja, D. Metcalfe, O. Adebo","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2020.1834466","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1834466","url":null,"abstract":"Nutritional labelling systems are used for effectively communicating food’s nutritional value to consumers. This study investigated the effectiveness of three existing and two proposed nutritional labelling systems in communicating the nutritional value of foods. The extent to which South African consumers make use of nutritional labelling systems to influence their food choices was also interrogated. Findings indicate that nutritional labelling systems are considered important by most participants and are used when making food choices. Nonetheless, some participants confirmed challenges with interpreting nutritional labelling systems. The observed preference for the Nestlé Know Your Serving (NKYS), Teaspoon Nutritional Illustration (TNI), Nutritional Information Table (NIT) and Guideline Daily Allowance (GDA) systems was 76%, 69%, 68%, and 67%, respectively. The lowest preference was for the Traffic Light Labelling (TLL) system (52%). Based on the percentage preference for these nutritional labelling systems, it was found that participants fall into two groups. The first group is participants with preferences for numerical data as presented by the NIT and GDA, while the second group prefers graphical data as presented by the NKYS, TNI and TLL systems. Findings from this study suggest that the use of nutritional labelling systems representing both numerical and graphical data could improve South African consumers’ understanding of the nutritional information found on food labels.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"76 1","pages":"41 - 51"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-11-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1834466","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48787077","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 2

Trend analysis of long-term rainfall data in the Upper Karoo of South Africa 南非上卡鲁长期降雨数据的趋势分析

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2020-11-13 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2020.1834467

C. Harmse, J. D. du Toit, A. Swanepoel, H. Gerber

{"title":"Trend analysis of long-term rainfall data in the Upper Karoo of South Africa","authors":"C. Harmse, J. D. du Toit, A. Swanepoel, H. Gerber","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2020.1834467","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1834467","url":null,"abstract":"Rainfall and stocking densities are key drivers of vegetation functioning and productivity in semi-arid regions. Below-average rainfall is of particular importance in the agricultural sector as it limits fodder availability for livestock in the short term, and can influence potential agricultural productivity through inducing the mortality of palatable perennial plant species in the long term. Changes in rainfall trends are not equal for all regions and must be quantified locally to sustainably manage natural grazing resources. The Upper Karoo has experienced considerable fluctuations in rainfall for many thousands of years, with relatively wetter and drier phases. This study analysed farm records from the past eight decades at eight sites in the Upper Karoo. The aim was to provide detailed and comparable descriptions to generate a more general understanding of rainfall at a spatial scale over this entire bioregion and to assess recent farming conditions within a historical rainfall context. A steadily increasing trend in rainfall of approximately 10 mm per decade has been observed in the Upper Karoo over the past eight decades, and the 30-year period from 1989 to 2018 was generally characterised by above-average rainfall. Presently, the farming conditions are more favourable compared to historical rainfall recorded before the year 1989.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"76 1","pages":"1 - 12"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-11-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1834467","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41924609","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 4

Study on antimicrobial and antioxidant potentials of Alchornea cordifolia (Linn.): an in vitro assessment 茜草的体外抗菌和抗氧化能力研究

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2020-09-01 DOI: 10.1080/0035919x.2020.1830868

O. F. Ajayi, O. Olasunkanmi, M. Agunbiade, K. A. Alayande, O. Aiyegoro, D. Akinpelu

{"title":"Study on antimicrobial and antioxidant potentials of Alchornea cordifolia (Linn.): an in vitro assessment","authors":"O. F. Ajayi, O. Olasunkanmi, M. Agunbiade, K. A. Alayande, O. Aiyegoro, D. Akinpelu","doi":"10.1080/0035919x.2020.1830868","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919x.2020.1830868","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigated antimicrobial properties of Alchornea cordifolia leaf extract against a panel of selected bacterial strains. It also assessed antioxidant and phytochemical properties of the plant constituents responsible for the bioactive actions recorded. The antimicrobial potentials of the crude extract along with the fractions obtained were determined using the agar well-diffusion method. The most active fraction was partially purified by a combination of thin-layer and column chromatography; and the antimicrobial activity of the resulting samples was tested against the bacterial strains. The results showed that the leaf extract of A. cordifolia and the obtained fractions exhibited varying degrees of antibacterial activities. Phytochemical tests revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, phenols, resins, sterols, carbohydrates and terpenoids. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of the crude extracts were 0.55–4.38 mg/mL while those of the chloroform and ethyl acetate fractions were 0.08–2.50 and 0.08–0.63 mg/mL, respectively. The rate of kill assay showed that the percentage of cells killed was related to concentrations and contact time. The nucleotide and potassium ion leakage from test cells also increased with an increase in the fraction concentrations as well as the contact time intervals. Alchornea cordifolia extract exhibited 50% 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging activities at 2.1 µg/mL, whereas the ascorbic acid used as standard had a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 12.3 µg/mL. The major active constituent of the purified sample was 6-octadecanoic acid. This study showed that A. cordifolia leaf extract, which possesses antioxidant properties, exhibited significant antimicrobial activities against the test pathogens.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"75 1","pages":"266 - 281"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919x.2020.1830868","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43652022","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 1

A camera trap record of scavengers at a kudu carcass: implications for archaeological bone accumulations 库杜尸体上拾荒者的相机捕捉记录：对考古骨骼堆积的启示

Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa Pub Date : 2020-09-01 DOI: 10.1080/0035919X.2020.1813215

L. Wadley

{"title":"A camera trap record of scavengers at a kudu carcass: implications for archaeological bone accumulations","authors":"L. Wadley","doi":"10.1080/0035919X.2020.1813215","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1813215","url":null,"abstract":"A camera trap was set near a greater kudu bull carcass for 3 weeks at the start of winter. The carcass lay in an open savanna setting on a game farm in Limpopo, and it was visited by leopard, brown hyena, black-backed jackal, African civet, honey badger, bushpig and warthog. At the end of a month there were no visible remains of the carcass save the skull and damaged horns. After a week, when decomposition was pronounced, suids spent more time at the carcass than other animals. They may have been responsible for much of the on-site bone consumption. Bone and meat portions not eaten directly at the death scene were probably carried away by scavengers like brown hyena and jackal. The area was excavated and sieved to collect bone debris that might have been trampled into sediment. Only a few small bone fragments were recovered, one of which had a tooth mark. Several outcomes are of interest to archaeologists. Firstly, the diversity of scavengers at the kudu carcass (including some animals not normally classified as scavengers) suggests that damage on surviving bone at some archaeological sites may be from an assortment of animals not normally considered to be scavengers. Comparative collections must accommodate such variety. Secondly, under certain environmental conditions, death assemblages in the wild may disappear without trace when predators can move freely and feed without disturbance. Thirdly, is possible that some bone fragments survive at archaeological sites because they were protected (possibly unintentionally) by human presence, and because they were on occasion processed in ways that made them less attractive to predators.","PeriodicalId":23255,"journal":{"name":"Transactions of The Royal Society of South Africa","volume":"75 1","pages":"245 - 257"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/0035919X.2020.1813215","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42972815","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 3