Bekele Tamrat (PhD)Hailu Kassahun2019-09-202023-11-092019-09-202023-11-092018-08-12http://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/19148Prosopis juliflora is a perennial shrub introduced in the 1970’s to the Amibara woreda of Afar National Regional State and now became highly invasive in the study area, due to equipped with a number of biological characteristics. The aim of this study was to identify the possible role of domestic and wild animals for dispersal of P. juliflora seeds in the study area. The samples of animal dropping were collected from animals selected purposely to meet the intended goals of the study. A sample of dropping from domestic animals (cattle, camel, sheep, goats and donkey) and wild animals (warthog) were collected from five villages randomly selected from four kebeles of Amibara Woreda. The study conducted on analysis of P. juliflora seeds in animal dropping and its’ germination and seedling emerging capacity, to determine contribution of animals for dispersion of P. juliflora seed after the passage through the intestinal tract. The experimental result reveals that the average number of P. juliflora seedling emerged per 1.25kg sample of donkey, cattle, warthog, goats, camel and sheep dropping were 160, 86, 46, 16, 3, & 2 respectively. Depending on the results, all of the targeted animals consumed seed pod of Prosopis as food and capable to disperse seeds through their dropping from parent tree/shrub to other new area for about 20km. Because of this case, domestic animals of pastoralist play the highest role to foster the rapid invasion of P. juliflora than wind, flood, humans and birds. But the degree of contribution among selected animals as a dispersal agent of P. juliflora seeds per 1.25kg dropping after 50 days, the percentage of P.juliflora seedling emergence are significantly different (P≤ 0.01). Finally from those animals where sample dropping was collected for analysis, the level of animals as a dispersal agent of P. juliflora was forwarded in the order of donkey, cattle, warthog, goat, camel and sheep.enP. JulifloraEndozoochoryDroppingsInvasive Plant SpeciesSeed DispersalSeed GerminationDisseminating AgentSeedling EmergenceThesis