Phytosociological characteristics and diversity of trees in a comanaged protected area of Bangladesh: Implications for conservation |
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| Authors: | Tapan Kumar Nath Mohammed Jashimuddin Md Kamruzzaman Vaskar Mazumder Md Kamrul Hasan Sukumar Das |
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| Institution: | 1. School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus, Selangor, MalaysiaTapan.Nath@nottingham.edu.my;3. Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh;4. Divisional Officer (Retired), Bangladesh Forest Research Institute, Chittagong, Bangladesh |
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| Abstract: | ABSTRACTThe Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS), a degraded protected area in southeastern Bangladesh, had been under comanagement since 2004. This study examined phytosociological characteristics and diversity of trees in CWS and discussed villagers’ opinions on the impact of comanagement on forest conservation. Following a stratified and systematic sampling 140 circular plots, 17.84-m radius each, were laid out in seven forest beats for the assessment of phytosociological characteristics and tree diversity. Several key-informant interviews and 15 focus group discussions were held to explore the impact of comanagement on forest conservation and on villagers’ livelihood. A total of 93 tree species were identified having a diameter at breast height (dbh) of ≥ 5 cm in 36 plant families. The dominant species were Acacia auriculiformis, Dipterocarpus turbinatus, Ficus hispida, and Tectona grandis. The average density of trees was 239 trees/ha of which 60% was composed of planted exotic species. Nearly 90% trees were belonging to 5- to 15-cm dbh class and the Shannon-Wiener index was 3.15. The comanagement governance had brought positive changes in forest conservation. However, to sustain the engagement of poor villagers in the comanagement and conservation of degraded CWS, more collective efforts are needed to support their living. |
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| Keywords: | Basal area comanagement diversity index forest conservation livelihood tree density |
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