Primary productivity of papyrus (Cyperus papyrus) in a tropical swamp; Lake Naivasha, Kenya

Abstract

Papyrus (Cyperus papyrus) standing biomass and the primary productivity of undisturbed and previously harvested areas of papyrus was measured in Lake Naivasha swamp, Kenya. Papyrus culm density in undisturbed swamp was estimated to be 13·1±1·9 culms m−2 and aerial biomass was 3602 g m−2. In undisturbed swamp the aerial productivity was 14·1 g m−2 day−1 while the previously harvested swamp reached a peak of 21·0 g m−2 after 6 months. The annual aerial production rate of papyrus in Lake Naivasha was estimated to be 5150 g m−2 year−1. To sustain yields of regularly harvested papyrus swamps, the harvest intervals should exceed 1 year.