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Reedbuck, Waterbuck, Lechwe, Puku >>

Habitat - Food

Martin compiled a list of plant species eaten by reedbuck, waterbuck, lechwe and puku based on the feeding studies by Jungius (1971) and Child and von Richter (1969):

Grass species Herbacious species Woody species

 

Grass Species

A = annual

p = perennial

X = species

G = Genus referenced in Caprivi Atlas

Reedbuck Waterbuck Lechwe Puku
Acalypha indica P          
Acroceras macrum P          
Andropogon amplectens P   <5%      
Andropogon schirensis P X <5%      
Aristida adscensionis A G <5%      
Brachiaria brizantha P     >10% <5% >10%
Brachiaria deflexa A         <5%
Brachiaria humidicola P       <5% <5%
Brachiaria latifolia P     >10% >10% >10%
Brachiaria nigropedata P       <5%  
Burnatia enneandra P       >10%  
Cenchrus ciliaris P          
Chloris gayana P          
Cymbopogon validus P G        
Cynodon dactylon P          
Dactyloctenium giganteum A          
Digitaria ascendens A          
Digitaria erecta P   <5%      
Digitaria monodactyla P   <5%      
Digitaria pentzii P   <5%      
Digitaria setivalva P     <5% <5% >10%
Digitaria spp P   <5%      
Digitariella remotigluma P     >10% <5% <5%
Dinebra reflexa A   >10%      
Echinochloa stagnina P X   >10% <5%  
Echinochloa pyramidalis P X <5%      
Eleocharis sp. P       >5% <5%
Enneapogon cenchroides A   >10%      
Enteropogon machrostachyus P         <5%
Eragrostis capensis P   <5%      
Eragrostis curvula P   >5%      
Eragrostis galpinii P   >5%      
Eragrostis gangetica P     <5% <5%  
Eragrostis jeffreysii P     >10%   <5%
Eragrostis lappula P X   >5%   >10%
Eragrostis rigidior P     >10% >10% >10%
Eragrostis superba P   <5%      
Eragrostis sp. P     <5%   <5%
Eriochloa borumensis P   >5%      
Eulalia geniculata P   <5%   >5%  
Fimbristylis hispidula P     <5%    
Hemarthria altissima P X >5% >10% >5% <5%
Heteropogon contortus A/P   >10%      
Hyparrhenia dissoluta P G >10%      
Hyparrhenia filipendula P G <5%      
Imperata cylindrica P X >5%      
Ischaemum brachyatherum P   >10%      
Leersia hexandra P   >10%      
Loudetia simplex P X <5%      
Panicum coloratum P   >10%      
Panicum levifolium A     >5% >5% <5%
Panicum maximum A   >10%     <5%
Paspalum commersonii P     >5%   <5%
Perotis patens A   <5%      
Phragmites communis P G >10%      
Phragmites mauritianus P G       <5%
Pogonarthria squarrosa P   <5%      
Rhynchelytrum setifolium P   <5%      
Sacciolepis africana P       >10%  
Setaria flabellata P   <5%      
Setaria perennis P   <5%      
Setaria sphacelata P X >10% >10% >10% 1
Setaria woodii P   <5%      
Sorghastrum rigidifolium P   >5%      
Sorghastrum friesii P   >10%      
Sorghum verticilliflorum A/P   <5%      
Sporobolus fimbriatus P   <5%      
Sporobolus schlechteri P   >10%      
Sporobolus pyramidalis P     <5% <5%  
Sporobolus robustus P   <5%      
Themeda triandra P   >5%      
Trachypogon spicatus P   >10%      
Tricholeana monachne P   <5%      
Trichoneura grandiglumis P       >10%  
Tristachya hitchcockii P G       <5%
Urelytrum squarrosum P   >10%      
Urochloa mosambicensis P G >10%      
Vossia cuspidata P     >10% >10% <5%
Table 9: Significance of grass species in the diet of Reedbuck, Waterbuck, Lechwe and Puku
Herbaceous Plants

C = Child and von Richter

J = Jungius

X = species

G = Genus referenced in Caprivi Atlas

Reedbuck Waterbuck Lechwe Puku
Androcymbium roseum C     >10%   >5%
Anthericum sp. J   <5%      
Commelina africana J   <5%      
Cyanotis nodiflora J   <5%      
Cyperus articulatus C G   <5% <5%  
Cyperus difformis J G >5%      
Cyperus digitatus C G     <5%  
Cyperus esculentus C G        
Cyperus fastigeatus J G >5%      
Cyperus immensis J G <5%      
Cyperus margaritasius J G <5%      
Cyperus sexangularis J G <5%      
Cyperus teniospica J G <5%      
Cyperus sp. J G X <5%      
Dipcadi longifolium C       <5%  
Equisetum ramosissum J   <5%      
Fimbristylis sp J   <5%      
Fuirena pubescens J   <5%      
Graphalium undulatum J   <5%      
Hypoxis rooperi J   <5%      
Ipomea coptica C       1  
Kyllingia alba J   <5%      
Kyllingia erecta J   >5%      
Kyllingia melanosperma J   <5%      
Lotonius florifera J   <5%      
Mariscus capensis J   <5%      
Murdannia sinicum J   <5%      
Nidarella auriculata J   <5%      
Polygonum limbatum C G     <5%  
Polygonum pulchrum J G X >5%      
Polygonum saltifolium J G <5%      
Pycreus polystachus J   >5%      
Scirpus corymbosus J   <5%      
Tephrosia purpurea C         <5%
Typha capensis J   <5%      
Vetiveria nigritana C X   >5% >5%  
Table 10: Significance of herbaceous species in the diet of Reedbuck, Waterbuck, Lechwe and Puku
Woody Plants A

X = species

G = Genus referenced in Caprivi Atlas

Reedbuck Waterbuck Lechwe Puku
Acacia sp. (nilotica?) J   <5%      
Albizia harveyii J   >5%      
Dichrostachys cinerea J   <5%      
Hibiscus micranthus J   <5%      
Maerua legati J   <5%      
Maytenus senegalensis J   <5%      
Ruellia patella J   <5%      
Securinega virosa J   <5%      
Table 11: Significance of woody species in the diet of Reedbuck, Waterbuck, Lechwe and Puku

 

'X' indicates that the species is listed in the Caprivi floodplain vegetation types described by Mendelsohn and Roberts (1997) and 'G' indicates that the genus is mentioned.

 

Data on plant species eaten by reedbuck are from Jungius (1971) and the data for waterbuck, lechwe and puku are from Child and von Richter (1969). The reedbuck data is from Kruger National Park and the data for the other species is from the Botswana side of the Chobe River. In Jungius (1971) each species is discussed individually and the importance of each species in the diet of reedbuck is summarised for each vegetation type in the Pretoriuskop area of Kruger National Park. Child and von Richter (1969) give the percentages of total observation time during which waterbuck, lechwe and puku were seen eating each plant species. It is likely that many of the species names may have changed in the thirty years since these studies were carried out.