Protecting the resource: an assessment of mitigation methods used to protect large trees from African elephant impact in a savanna system

African elephants (Loxodonta africana) can alter the structural components of savanna ecosystems, often through the reduction of the large tree (>5 m height) cover component. Elephant impact can be amplified in small, protected areas, or areas where water is readily available to elephants. One management option is to protect large trees directly using applied mitigation methods to limit elephant impact. In this paper, we assessed and compared the effectiveness and logistical requirements of four mitigation methods that have been applied to protect large trees from elephant impact in South Africa’s Greater Kruger National Park - namely African honeybees (Apis mellifera scutellata) in beehives; creosote oil in glass jars, concrete pyramids arranged in circles around trees, as well as wire-netting the trees’ main stems. For each method, elephant impact levels and tree mortality rates were measured over a 2–5-year period depending on the method in use. Sample sizes ranged from 43 to 59 t..., , , # Protecting the resource: an assessment of mitigation methods used to protect large trees from African elephant impact in a savanna system

In this study, we assess the effectiveness of four mitigation methods that have been used to protect marula (*Sclerocarya birrea*) trees from African elephant (*Loxodonta africana*) impact in the Associated Private Nature Reserves (APNR) in South Africa. The four mitigation methods included beehives, creosote jars, concrete pyramids and wire-netting. Each 'treated' tree was compared with control (no protection) trees, with the levels of impact assessed and compared between the method and control trees.

## Description of the data and file structure

The datasets are divided into the following sections:

**1) Elephant impact scores**

Impact scores were measured at the start and end of each method's experiment. Impact scores were assessed according to the following assessment table:
**Table 1.** Elephant impact scoring system for impact on large tre...

非洲象（学名Loxodonta africana）能够改变稀树草原生态系统的结构组成，其方式通常是减少高大树木（高度>5米）的覆盖度。在小型保护区或大象易获取水源的区域，大象的影响会被放大。一种管理方案是通过应用缓解措施直接保护高大树木，以限制大象的影响。在本文中，我们评估并比较了四种缓解措施的有效性及后勤需求——这些措施已在南非大克鲁格国家公园用于保护高大树木免受大象影响，具体包括：置于蜂箱中的非洲蜜蜂（学名Apis mellifera scutellata）、装于玻璃罐内的杂酚油、环绕树木排列的混凝土金字塔，以及包裹树木主干的铁丝网。针对每种措施，我们根据其使用情况，在2至5年的周期内测量了大象影响程度及树木死亡率。样本量范围为43至59棵……# 保护资源：稀树草原系统中保护高大树木免受非洲象影响的缓解措施评估

在本研究中，我们评估了四种缓解措施的有效性——这些措施已在南非关联私人自然保护区（APNR）用于保护马鲁拉树（学名Sclerocarya birrea）免受非洲象（Loxodonta africana）的影响。四种缓解措施包括蜂箱、杂酚油罐、混凝土金字塔及铁丝网。每棵“处理”树均与对照树（未受保护）进行比较，评估并对比了处理组与对照组树木的受影响程度。

## 数据与文件结构描述

数据集分为以下几个部分：
**1) 大象影响评分**
影响评分在每种措施实验的开始和结束时进行测量。影响评分根据以下评估表确定：
**表1.** 高大树木受大象影响的评分系统……