Ecological Floristic And Ethnobotanical Studies In And Around Wejig-mahgo-waren Massif Forest Patches In Southern Tigray Ethiopia

There is a declining trend of biodiversity in general and plant diversity in particular. This trend is leadingrnto the loss of the associated indigenous and local botanical knowledge in Ethiopia, which is more severernin the northern highlands than elsewhere in the country. The purpose of this research was to studyrnvegetation composition, soil seed bank and to document associated ethnobotanical and managementrnpractices applied by the forest fringe communities in and around Wejig-Mahgo-Waren Massif Forestrnarea. Vegetation data were collected from a sample of 150 quadrats (each 20 m x 20 m) placed in tenrntransect lines, which were systematically laid. All vascular plant species were recorded. Diameter atrnbreast height was measured and seedlings and saplings were counted and recorded. Height andrnpercentage cover abundance were estimated. Soil samples were collected from 75 quadrats down to 0-5rncm and 5 -10 cm depth. Stratified random sampling of 309 informants was performed for collection ofrndata on indigenous knowledge, of social classes associated with the forest and the resources in it. Thirtyrnkey informants were purposively selected with the help of local administrators, elders and otherrncommunity members for collection of ranking exercises. For collection of ethnobotanical data, semistructuredrninterview, guided field walks and focus group discussions were applied. Basal area, density,rnfrequency, importance value index, Shannon-wiener diversity index, cluster analysis and ordination wererncomputed on ecological data. Density, composition, depth distribution and Sorensen coefficient ofrnsimilarity were computed for soil seed bank analysis. Ethnobotanical analytical tools, includingrnpreference ranking, informant consensus factor, fidelity level, direct matrix ranking and culturalrnsignificance index were employed to describe the reciprocal relationship between the forest vegetationrnand forest fringe communities. Vegetation study revealed a total of 264 plant species belonging to 162rngenera and 82 families. Woody (45.45%) species were higher than herbs (42.04%). Asteraceae (27rnspecies, 32.93%), Poaceae (24 species, 29.27%) and Fabaceae (23 species, 20.05%) were the dominantrnfamilies in terms of number of species. Five plant communities were identified in the forest vegetation,rnnamely Cadia purpurea – Carissa spinarum, Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata – Juniperus procera,rnDodonaea angustifolia – Acacia abyssinica, Erica arborea – Myrsine africana and Acacia etbaica –rnAcacia tortilis. The highest (3.87) and the least (3.21) Shannon-Wiener diversity indices were found inrncommunities two and five, respectively. Altitude, slope, livestock grazing and human impacts were thernfactors influencing species distribution. From soil samples, the total number of species recorded was 54,rnrepresenting 42 genera and 23 families. The number of viable seeds in the soil samples corresponded to arnseed bank density down to 10 cm was 1115 m-2. Herbs (85.16%) and woody species (14.84%) were thernplants counted from the germination assay. Soil Seed bank and standing vegetation shared 36 species andrntheir similarity was 23 %. The informants viewed the forest as an important entity for attraction of rainrnand for wildlife habitation followed by beekeeping and foraging as well as for sourcing straw andrnfuelwood. Of 79 plant species differentiated as useful to the community, 52 (66%) were used in traditionalrnmedicine (human and livestock), 28 (35%) as livestock fodder/ forage and 27 (34%) were recognized asrnhoneybee forage. The highest informant consensus factor values were calculated for dermatologicalrnailments (0.98,) followed by external injuries, bleeding and snakebites (0.92). The highest fidelity levelrn(96.15%) was recorded for Verbascum sinaiticum followed by Withania somnifera (89.47%).rnDeforestation, agricultural expansion, fuelwood collection, grazing and settlement in decreasing orderrnwere considered responsible for forest resources depletion. Both the associated indigenous knowledgernand the forest resources were under pressure. Thus, to restore the forest in the shortest possible time,rnrestoration strategy that combines planting of seedlings of indigenous species and natural restorationrntechniques need to be applied.

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