Bibliometric analysis of piosphere research: implications for conservation and scientific collaboration

Abstract

ABSTRACT The concept of the piosphere is important in rangeland management, wildlife management, desertification. Piosphere research describes the changes in soil, biota and fauna as a function of distance from water sources utilized by grazing animals. Piosphere research has provided a better understanding of how grazing pressure can affect local environments. We conducted a bibliometric analysis to describe the progress of piosphere knowledge between 1915 and 2018. This is the first comprehensive bibliometric analysis of piosphere research, and it provides insights on future challenges, research challenges, and knowledge gaps. Google Scholar was used to identify 875 publications from 68 countries and 10 different languages. Our analyses showedthat research article was the most frequent publication type and piosphere was the most frequent keyword. Australia was first in the number of publications followed by South Africa and USA. Ivan Thrash is the most contributed author with 11 publications. The most frequently cited article is ‘Responses of Mediterranean grassland plants to grazing and protection’ in The Journal of Ecology. Herbivores, vegetation, soil, livestock, wildlife, and ecological were the most frequent research areas of piosphere investigations. English was the major and dominant language of piosphere publications. Rapid growth was found in piosphere research since the 1990s, enlivened by advances in statistics, remote sensing, GIS, and programming. We recommend that future research should investigate knowledge gaps such as grazing system relationships to piosphere patterns, economic analysis of watering point development and closure, and the implications of climate change and new piospheres.