. Biology of the Heteromyidae. Heteromyidae. 674 MARES. Fig. 29.—The bipedal dipodid, Allactaga elater, is typical of the members of this genus which possess elongated pinnae. Although similar to Dipodomys morphologically, they are more like geo- myids trophically. (Photo: M. Andera) beds, deseil; gallery forests of Acacia and other woody vegetation (Walter, 1986; Werger, 1978). The Namib is limited to that area lying between the coast and the quickly rising escarpment that forms the western limits of the Kalahari; thus the desert varies from only 80 to 150 km in width (Walter, 1986). Despite
. Biology of the Heteromyidae. Heteromyidae. 674 MARES. Fig. 29.—The bipedal dipodid, Allactaga elater, is typical of the members of this genus which possess elongated pinnae. Although similar to Dipodomys morphologically, they are more like geo- myids trophically. (Photo: M. Andera) beds, deseil; gallery forests of Acacia and other woody vegetation (Walter, 1986; Werger, 1978). The Namib is limited to that area lying between the coast and the quickly rising escarpment that forms the western limits of the Kalahari; thus the desert varies from only 80 to 150 km in width (Walter, 1986). Despite its relatively small areal ex- tent and its pronounced aridity, however, this desert supports a rich mammal fauna (Bigalke, 1978; Coetzee, 1969; Rautenbach, 1978; Stuart, 1975) (Appendix 1). The Karroo is adjacent to the southern Namib, lying south and east of that desert on the South African Plateau. It differs from the Namib in that precipitation is received as summer rain (Werger, 1978,1986). Rain- fall may total 250 mm in some sites and as little as 50 mm in others; elevation is about 900 m. Many plant species are shared with the Namib, although vegetation in the Kar- roo is much more luxuriant than in the arid Namib, with tall Euphorbiaceae and legu- minous trees being common (Werger, 1978, 1986). The Kalahari (including the Namaland Domain) is found to the east of the Namib and north of the Karroo. In its northern portion (the Namaland Domain) it includes scrublands of the escarpment zone (Werger, 1978), with substrate ranging from rocky to deeper soil. Grasses are common in large parts of this area. In the southern portion, the Kalahari includes extensive stable dunes (90% of this region is covered by red dunes, Werger, 1978) and clayey or silty soil areas (Fig. 31). Rain falls mainly in summer, while maximum vegetative growth occurs from. Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - colora
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