Colleen Seymour
List of peer-reviewed publications:
Seymour, C.L., Joseph, G.S., Makumbe, M., Cumming, G.S., Mahlangu, Z. & Cumming, D.H.M.
(2016). Woody species composition in an African savanna: determined by centuries of termite activity
but modulated by 50 years of ungulate herbivory. Journal of Vegetation Science XX: pp-pp
Geslin, B., Oddie, M., Folschweiller, M., Legras, G., Seymour, C.L., van Veen, F.J.F., & Thébault, E.
(2016). Spatiotemporal changes in flying insect abundance and their functional diversity as a function
of distance to natural habitats in a mass flowering crop. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 229:
21-29
Joseph, G.S. Makumbe, M., Seymour, C.L., Cumming, G.S., Mahlangu, Z., & Cumming, D.H.M.
(2015). Termite mounds mitigate against 50 years of herbivore-induced reduction of functional
diversity of savanna woody plants. Landscape Ecology. 30: 2161-2174
Henri, D.C., Jones, O., Tsiattilos, A. Thébault, E., Seymour, C.L. and van Veen, F.J.F. (2015). Natural
vegetation benefits synergistic control of the three main insect and pathogen pests of fruit crop in
southern Africa. Journal of Applied Ecology 52:1092-1101.
Seymour, C.L., Simmons, R.E., Joseph, G.S. and Slingsby, J.A. (2015). On bird functional diversity:
species richness and functional differentiation show contrasting responses to rainfall and vegetation
structure in an arid landscape. Ecosystems 18:971-984.
Ehlers Smith, Y.C.; Ehlers Smith, D.A.; Seymour, C.L.; Thébault, E.; and van Veen, F.J.F. (2015).
Response of avian diversity to habitat modification can be predicted from life-history traits and
ecological attributes. Landscape Ecology 30: 1225-1239
Joseph, G.S., Seymour, C.L, Cumming, G.S., Cumming, D.H.M. and Mahlangu, Z. (2014). Termite
mounds increase functional diversity of woody plants in African savannas. Ecosystems 17: 808-819
Seymour, C.L., Milewski, A.V., Mills, A.J., Joseph, G.S., Cumming, G.S., Cumming D.H.M. and
Mahlangu, Z. (2014). Do the large termite mounds of Macrotermes concentrate micronutrients in
addition to macronutrients in nutrient-poor African savannas? Soil Biology and Biochemistry 68: 95105
Joseph, G.S., Seymour, C.L., Cumming, G.S., Mahlangu, Z., & Cumming, D.H.M. (2013). Escaping
the flames: large termitaria as refugia from fire in miombo woodland. Landscape Ecology 28:15051516
Garibaldi, L.A., Steffan-Dewenter, I., Winfree, R., Aizen, M.A., Bommarco,R., Cunningham, S.A.,
Kremen, C., Carvalheiro, L.G., Afik, O., Bartomeus, I., Benjamin, F., Boreux, V., Cariveau, D.,
Chacoff, N.P., Dudenhöffer, J.H., Freitas, B.M., Greenleaf,S., Harder, L., Hipólito, J., Holzschuh, A.,
Howlett, B., Isaacs, R., Javorek, S.K., Kennedy, C., Krewenka, K., Mandelik, Y., Mayfield, M.M.,
Motzke, I., Munyuli, T., Nault, B.A., Otieno, M., Petersen, J., Pisanty, G., Potts, S.G., Rader, R.,
Ricketts, T.H., Rundlöf, M., Seymour, C.L., Schüepp, C., Smith,A, K., Szentgyörgyi, H., Taki, H.,
Tscharntke, T., Vergara, C.H., Viana, B.F., Wanger, T.C., Westphal, C., Williams, N., Klein, A.M.
(2013). Global crop pollination provided by wild insects is not substituted with abundant honey bees.
Science. 339:1608-1611.
Joseph, G. S., Seymour, C.L., Cumming, G.S., Cumming, D.H.M, & Mahlangu, Z. (2012) Termite
mounds as islands: woody plant assemblages relative to termitarium size and soil properties. Journal
of Vegetation Science. 24:702-711.
Carvalheiro, L.G., Seymour, C.L., Nicolson, S.W., & Veldtman, R. (2012). Creating patches of
native flowers facilitates crop pollination in large agricultural fields – mango as a test case. Journal
of Applied Ecology 49: 1373- 1383
Joseph, G.S., Cumming, G.S., Cumming, D.H.M., Mahlangu, Z., Altwegg, R. & Seymour, C.L.
(2011). Large termitaria act as refugia for tall trees, deadwood and cavity-using birds in a miombo
woodland. Landscape Ecology 26, 439-448.
Seymour, C.L., Milton, S.J.M., Joseph, G.S., Dean, W.R.J., Ditlhobolo, T. & Cumming, G.S.(2010)
Twenty years of rest returns grazing potential, but not palatable plant diversity, to Karoo rangeland,
South Africa Journal of Applied Ecology 47:859-867
Carvalheiro, L.G., Seymour, C.L., Veldtman, R. & Nicholson, S. (2010). Pollination services decline
with distance from natural habitat even in biodiversity-rich areas Journal of Applied Ecology. 47:810–
820.
Seymour, C.L. & Dean, W.R.J. (2010). The influence of changes in habitat structure on the species
composition of bird assemblages in the southern Kalahari. Austral Ecology 35:581-592.
Seymour, C.L. & Veldtman, R. (2010) Ecological-role of control agent, and not just host-specificity,
determine risks of biological control. Austral Ecology 35:704-711
Sirami, C., Seymour, C., Midgley, G. and Barnard, P. (2009). The impact of shrub encroachment on
savanna bird diversity from local to regional scale. Diversity and Distributions 15 (6): 948-957
Blaum N, Seymour CL, Rosmmanith E, Schwager, M & Jeltsch F (2009). Changes in arthropod
diversity along a land use driven gradient of shrub cover in the southern Kalahari: Identification of
suitable indicators. Biodiversity & Conservation. 18:1187–1199
Seymour, C.L. (2009). Protégé Ziziphus mucronata (Rhamnaceae) show no negative effects of
competition with the nurse tree Acacia (Leguminaceae), even as adults. Journal of Vegetation Science
20:926-934
Seymour, C. & Desmet, P. (2009). Coping with drought: Do science and policy agree? South African
Journal of Science 105: 18-19.
Seymour, C. L. (2008). Grass, rainfall and herbivores as determinants of Acacia erioloba (Meyer)
recruitment in an African savanna. Plant Ecology 197:131-138.
Seymour, C.L. and Simmons, R.E. (2008).Can severely fragmented patches of riparian vegetation
still be important for arid-land bird diversity? Journal of Arid Environments 72:2275-2281.
Seymour, C.L. & Huyser, O. (2008). Fire and the demography of camelthorn (Acacia erioloba
Meyer) in the southern Kalahari – evidence for a bonfire effect? African Journal of Ecology 46:594601
Milton, S. J., Wilson, J. R. U., Richardson, D. M., Seymour, C. L., Dean, W. R. J., Iponga, D. M. &
Proches, S. (2007) Invasive alien plants infiltrate bird-mediated shrub nucleation processes in arid
savanna. Journal of Ecology, 95, 648-661.
Dean, W.R.J., Milton, S.J. & Seymour, C.L. (2004). Landuse and biodiversity: examples from arid
southern Africa. Annals of Arid Zones 43: 255-276
Seymour C.L., H.M. de Klerk, A. Channing and T.M. Crowe. (2001). The biogeography of the
Anura of sub-equatorial Africa and the prioritisation of areas for their conservation. Biodiversity and
Conservation 10: 2045-2076
Seymour, C.L. & Dean, W.R.J. (1999). Effects of heavy grazing on invertebrate assemblages in the
Succulent Karoo, South Africa. Journal of Arid Environments 43: 267-286
Milton, S.J., Hoffmann, J.H., Bowie, R.C.K., D’Amico, J.D., Griffiths, M., Joubert, D.F., Loewenthal,
D., Moinde, N.N., Seymour, C., Toral-Granda, M.V. & Wiseman, R. (1998). Invasive fountain grass
on the Cape Peninsula. South African Journal of Science 94:57-58.
Book chapters and reports
Simmons R and Seymour C. (2010). Changes in bird diversity under shrub encroachment along a
rainfall gradient. In: Hoffman MT, Schmiedel U, Jurgens N (eds.) Biodiversity in southern Africa 3:
50-51 Implications for landuse and management. Gottingen & Windhoek, Klaus Hess Publishers.
Simmons R and Seymour C. (2010). Conservation of Biodiversity. In: Hoffman MT, Schmiedel U,
Jurgens N (eds.) Biodiversity in southern Africa 3: 69-70 Implications for landuse and management.
Gottingen & Windhoek, Klaus Hess Publishers.
Simmons R and Seymour C. (2010). Future research needs. In: Hoffman MT, Schmiedel U, Jurgens
N (eds.) Biodiversity in southern Africa 3: 70-74. Implications for landuse and management.
Gottingen & Windhoek, Klaus Hess Publishers.
Jeltsch, F., N. Blaum, N. Classen, A. Eschenbach, C. Grohmann, A. Gröngröft, D. F. Joubert, A.
Horn, D. Lohmann, K. E. Linsenmair, M. Lück-Vogel, T. V. Medinski, S. Meyfarth, A. Mills, A.
Petersen, A. Popp, P. Poschlod, C. Reisch, E. Rossmanith, H. Rubilar, S. Schütze, C. Seymour, R.
Simmons, G. N. Smit, M. Strohbach, J. Tews, B. Tietjen, D. Wesuls, M. Wichmann, M. Wieczorek,
and I. Zimmermann. 2010. Impacts of landuse and climate change on the dynamics and biodiversity
in the Thornbush Savanna Biome. Pages 33–74 in M. T. Hoffman, U. Schmiedel, and N. Jürgens,
editors. Biodiversity in southern Africa. Volume 3: Implications for landuse and management. Klaus
Hess Publishers, Göttingen & Windhoek.
Seymour, C.L. & Milton, S.J. (2003). A collation and overview of research information on Acacia
erioloba (Camelthorn) and identification of relevant research gaps to inform protection of the
species. Unpublished report. Department of Water Affairs and Forestry, Pretoria.
Herrmann, E., Milton, S.J. & Seymour, C.L. (2003). A collation and overview of research
information on Combretum imberbe Warwa (Leadwood) (Combretaceae) and identification of
relevant research gaps to inform protection of the species. Unpublished report. Department of
Water Affairs and Forestry, Pretoria.
First or second authored seven chapters of the book “Terrestrial ecoregions of Africa and
Madagascar: a conservation assessment”, (2004) edited by Burgess, N., Underwood, E., D’Amico, J,
Olson, D., Dinerstien, E. and Itoua, I. Island Press, Washington DC, USA.