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Getting better with age: Lessons from the Kenya Long-term Exclosure Experiment (KLEE)
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  • Truman Young,
  • Corinna Riginos,
  • Duncan Kimuyu,
  • Kari Veblen,
  • Lauren Porensky,
  • Wilfred Odadi,
  • Ryan Sensenig
Truman Young
University of California

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Corinna Riginos
The Nature Conservancy
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Duncan Kimuyu
Karatina University
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Kari Veblen
Utah State University
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Lauren Porensky
USDA Agricultural Research Service
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Wilfred Odadi
Egerton University
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Ryan Sensenig
University of Notre Dame
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Abstract

The Kenya Long-term Exclosure Experiment (KLEE) was established in 1995 in a semi-arid savanna rangeland on the Laikipia Plateau to examine the separate and combined effects of livestock, wildlife, and megaherbivores (elephants and giraffes) on their shared environment and on each other. The long-term nature of this experiment also allowed us to measure these effects and related questions of stability and resilience in the context of multiple drought-rainy cycles. Here we outline some of the lessons learned over the last 29 years. In particular, we summarize three ways that KLEE exemplifies the value of long-term studies: 1) identifying experimental effects that take a many years to express themselves, 2) quantifying the effects of different years, especially multiple droughts, and 3) capturing time periods long enough to see the signature of systemic, anthropogenic change in the broader landscape. Across all aspects of a long-term study such as this one, there is a need to incorporate both consistency and flexibility to ensure deeper understanding.
Submitted to Ecology Letters
19 Feb 2024Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
03 Apr 2024Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
03 Apr 20241st Revision Received
12 Apr 2024Submission Checks Completed
12 Apr 2024Assigned to Editor
12 Apr 2024Reviewer(s) Assigned
25 May 2024Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
11 Jun 2024Submission Checks Completed
11 Jun 2024Assigned to Editor
11 Jun 2024Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
12 Jun 2024Editorial Decision: Accept