Abstract
Calcrete Bontveld is a mosaic vegetation type found on calcareous flat-topped ridges in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The mosaic is comprised of thicket clumps (bushclumps) scattered in a grassy dwarf shrubland matrix. The bushclumps appear to function as islands, yet their close resemblance to the adjacent Valley Thicket suggests that they could be remnant thicket patches. This study utilised the Island Biogeography Theory to determine the insularity of bushclumps. We specifically tested if they were indeed isolated communities or remnant thicket patches. Linear regression was used to obtain the slopes of the species-area curves, which indicated that the bushclumps, at all three known Calcrete Bontveld sites, were indeed isolated communities. Whilst the bushclumps of Calcrete Bontveld may mirror the appearance of the adjacent Valley Thicket, they are not remnant thicket patches but have rather developed de novo.
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