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Let’s Analyze the Data

We will now fill the table with additional samples collected throughout the park from the same four herbivores (dik-dik, impala, Cape buffalo, Grevy’s zebra) that you studied in Module 1. For each plant species, a checkmark indicates that a matching DNA barcode was found in that animal’s dung in at least one sample. Can you see any patterns? Do these herbivores have distinct diets?

A selection of the plant species identified in a total of 172 dung samples from four herbivores in Mpala. Plant species shown in green are grasses and those shown in black are browse. (Table scrolls horizontally.)
Browse Grasses
Acacia drepanolobium
Abutilon mauritianum
Melanthera scandens
Helichrysum glumaceum
Sphaeranthus suaveolens
Malva parviflora
Barleria ramulosa
Boscia angustifolia
Achyropsis avicularis
Solanum nigrum
Lippia javanica
Barleria spinisepala
Dychoristes radicans
Crassulaceae (family)
Senna gardneri
Aristida congesta
Chloris virgata
Eragrostis racemosa
Digitaria (genus)
Panicum maximum
Setaria sphacelata
Themeda triandra
Aristida kenyensis
Digitaria velutina
Garnotia (genus)
Echinochloa pyramidalis
Lintonia nutans
Leersia hexandra
Pennisetum sp.
Eragrostis sp.
Eragrostis superba
Grevy's Zebra
Dik-dik
Cape Buffalo
Impala