Regeneration and utilization of Faidherbia albida and Acacia erioloba along ephemeral rivers of Namibia

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Regeneration of the two fodder trees Faidherbia albida and Acacia erioloba along ephemeral rivers in Namibia is threatened by increasing land-use intensity and changes to the hydrological regime. Large numbers of livestock remove seedlings at an early stage and inhibit maturation of juveniles through browsing. This puts increasing pressure on the tree regeneration, which depends on rare surface floods of high magnitude. These floods are needed to deposit seeds on overbank sites where the seedlings can establish. A loss of the two tree species would limit the ability of the local resource users to derive their livelihoods from subsistence livestock farming.