May 2024: UNAM team conducts fieldwork assessing the impact of bush control on vegetation

In May 2024, two BSc students, under the supervision of the UNAM project PI, Dr. Clara Wellencia Nesongano, and NamTip PhD students Ndamonenghenda Hamunyela and Faith Chambara, undertook a field trip to the NamTip bush control experimental sites in the communal areas of the Greater Waterberg Landscape. The BSc students' research focused on the effects of bush thinning on woody and herbaceous vegetation dynamics. Data collection concentrated on woody species density, composition, size, and recruitment in both bush-thinned and control sites. For herbaceous vegetation, the data collection included estimating species cover, size, and composition.

This field trip was an integral part of the BSc students' training and a research requirement for their degrees, necessitating them to undertake research activities and produce a research report before the completion of their degrees. It also formed part of the NamTip objective of academic capacity building by providing hands-on experience at the restoration sites.