Terrestrial megaherbivores represent a diverse group of herbivorous mammals weighing over 1,000 kg. Unfortunately, less than 20% of megaherbivores from the Pleistocene Epoch remain today, and with their loss comes the loss of the crucial ecosystem services they provide. My PhD dissertation aims to illuminate the influence that the few remaining megaherbivores exhort on ecological communities. ​​

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Chapter 1 focuses on simulating the presence of megaherbivores (African bush elephants, black rhinoceros, and common hippopotamus) to identify what drives the ‘landscape of fear’ they create for smaller, mid-sized herbivores.

 

Chapter 2 investigates whether dominant megaherbivores drive spatiotemporal behavior of smaller, subordinate herbivores on the savanna.

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In Chapter 3, the focus shifts to examining how giraffes impact trees on the savanna. Giraffes, being the tallest living terrestrial animal on earth, can uniquely influence flowering rates on tall trees. This chapter will identify how giraffes may alter the flower abundance and presence on one of the most common savanna tree species, the knob thorn (Senegalia nigrescens). 

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The final chapter will analyze how elephants housed in North American sanctuaries impact vegetation structure and primary productivity of local habitats. This investigation seeks to enhance our understanding of megaherbivore impacts in novel ecosystems, and identify if elephants, as ecological proxies of prehistoric megafauna, could improve primary productivity of North American ecosystems.