**Part 4**

**Land Use and Land Cover Change** 

230 International Perspectives on Global Environmental Change

Valencia-Islas N.; Zambrano, A. & Rojas, J. L. (2007) Ozone reactivity and free radical

Sanchez, J. F.; Chiang, Y.-M. & Wang, C. C. C. (2008) Diversity of polyketide synthases

Yu, J. H. & Keller, N. (2005) Regulation of secondary metabolism in filamentous fungi.

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233.

scavenging behavior of phenolic secondary metabolites in lichens exposed to chronic oxidant air pollution from Mexico City. Journal of Chemical Ecology

found in the *Aspergillus* and *Streptomyces* genomes. Molecular Pharmaceutics. 5:226-

**12** 

*Botswana* 

**Investigating Soils, Vegetation and Land** 

**Use in a Lunette Dune-Pan Environment:** 

The association between vegetation and environmental factors has been a subject of ecological studies over time (e.g. Monier & Amer, 2003; McDonald et al., 1996). Some of these studies have addressed facilitative and competitive interactions between woody and herbaceous plants (Maestre et al., 2003), whilst others focused on the feedbacks in the dynamics of plant communities (Schwinning et al., 2005). On the other hand, there is considerable empirical research work on pans and their associated landforms (e.g. Lancaster, 1986; Goudie & Thomas, 1986; Cooke et al., 1993). Common land forms associated with pans like lunette dunes have particularly received significant attention from researchers (e.g. Lancaster, 1978; Goudie & Thomas, 1986; Holmgren & Shaw, 1996). Most of the afore-mentioned studies have mainly focused on the morphology, sedimentology and the origin of lunette dunes and pans. In addition, they have considered the significance of lunette dunes in palaeo-environmental

reconstruction (Holmgren & Shaw, 1996; Lancaster, 1989; Marker & Holmes, 1995).

rural communities of the area (Chanda et al., 2003; Mosweu & Areola, 2008).

Livestock production dominated by cattle rearing plays a pivotal economic role in the Kalahari area (van de Maas et al., 1994; Chanda et al., 2003; Mosweu et al., 2010). The most limiting factor in livestock production in Kalahari over the years has been the availability of surface water and fodder resources. Consequently, lunette dune-pan environments continue to play a central role as sources of both water (Figure 1) and fodder resources for livestock in the area. As a result, lunette dune-pan environments exist in the Kalahari as unique interspersed micro-ecosystems that are significantly intertwined with the livelihoods of

Although some research work has been conducted on the lunette dunes, pans, vegetationenvironment relationships, and land use in the Kalahari environment (e.g. Chanda et al., 2003; Privette et al., 2004; Shugart et al., 2004; Wang et al., 2007; Mosweu, 2008), paucity still exists in researches that consider lunette dunes, pans and their environs as unique microecosystems of significance to rural communities inhabiting semi-arid and arid regions. This scenario prevails in spite of the fact that the state of lunette dune-pans as micro-ecosystems remains vital in the sustainability of the livelihoods of the Kalahari rural communities and

**1. Introduction** 

**The Case of Sekoma Lunette Dune-Pan** 

S. Mosweu1, J.R. Atlhopheng1 and M.P. Setshogo2

**Complex, Botswana** 

*1Department of Environmental Sciences 2Department of Biological Sciences University of Botswana, Gaborone,* 
