Plant Biology and Biodiversity Management

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Browsing Plant Biology and Biodiversity Management by Author "Addi, Admassu"

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    the Ecology, Carbon Stock, Bee Forage Diversity in a Moist Afromontane Forest of Gesha and Sayilem Districts in Kaffa Zone, South West Ethiopia
    (Addis Ababa University, 2018-04-01) Addi, Admassu; Demissew, Sebsebe (Professer); Soromessa, Teshome (PhD)
    The study was conducted at Gesha and Sayilem districts of the Kaffa Zone, with the objective of documenting the floristic compositions, determining the carbon stock and bee forage diversityof the area.Stratified random sampling technique was followed to establish plot sizes of 25 X 25m. A total of 90 plots were used to collect vegetation and carbon data.The plant community classification was performed using R-software packages.Species diversity and evenness were evaluated using the Shannon diversity and evenness indices respectively.The study revealed that the study area composed of 300 species that belong to 239 genera in 96 families. Asteraceae was the most abundant family followed by Fabaceae, Acanthaceae, Poaceae, Rubiaceae and Euphorbiaceae. Five plant community types were identified and these were Ilex mitis-Syzygium guineense,Pouteria adolfi-friederici-Schefflera abyssinica, Millettia ferruginea-Sapium ellipticum, Arundinaria alpina and Schefflera volkensii-Masea-lanceolata community types.Among the community types,Pouteria adolfi-friedericii–Syzygium guineense community was the most diverse and whereas Arundinaria alpina community was the least diverse community. CCA of vegetaion data indicated that altitude, disturbance,slope, phosphorus and EC were the environmental factors that significantly influence of the plant communities.The structures of woody plant species of the forest showed five general population patterns (inverted J-shape, Gauss type, U-shaped, J-shape and irregular patterns and unknown pattern). The mean total carbon stock density of Gesha-Sayilem forest was found to be 362.04tons of carbon per hectareout ofwhich168.05,32.8, 1.27, 23.8 and 136.8 ton ha-1 were stored in the above ground,below ground,litter, deadwood and in soil organic carbon respectively. The analysis of allometric equation for different woody species indicated that the developed model comprising of DBH and wood density are the reliable model for estimating the above ground biomass for the study species.The assessment of bee forage based on field observation, pollen analysis and key informant interview indicatedthat 79 bee forages were identified of which Schefflera abyssinica,Croton macrostchyus and Vernonia amaygdalina are the the major source of monofloral honey in the area.The high dependency of local communities on the forest resources are affecting the plant biodivresrity and honey production. Thus conservation of the forest through introduction of sustainable forest management interventions including REDD+) seems an appropriate action.