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Tree Species Composition and Regeneration Status of Shitalpur Forest Beat Under Chittagong North Forest Division, Bangladesh

Asadozzaman Nur
Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong 4331, Bangladesh

Rajasree Nandi
Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong 4331, Bangladesh

Mohammed Jashimuddin
Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong 4331, Bangladesh

Mohammed Akhter Hossain
Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, University of Chittagong, Chittagong 4331, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Biodiversity erosion particularly in developing countries is a matter of great concern to the global ecological community. Species composition and regeneration indicate the health of forest.This study explored tree species composition and regeneration of natural hill forest of Shitalpur under Chittagong North Forest Division through 27 sample plots of 20 m × 20 m for trees and 2 m × 2 m for regeneration. A total of 47 tree species belonging to 29 families and 17 regenerating species belonging to 15 families were recorded. The tree stem density, basal area, and wood volume were 0.49 m2 /ha, 1425 stem/ha, and 189.9 m3 /ha, respectively. Mean regeneration was significantly higher in bottom hill (14374 seedlings/ha) compared to top hill (9671 seedlings/ha). Toona ciliata was highest (4444 seedlings/ha) at the bottom hill compared to other hill positions. The result shows that only 36% of the tree species (17 out of 47) are regenerating in the study area, meaning majority of the tree species (64%) are not getting favorable conditions to regenerate. This might be due to absence of mature tree species as a result of over exploitation by local people. The findings may help in monitoring the species composition changes over time and adopting specific conservation programs for Shitalpur Forest.

Keywords: Species Composition, Regeneration Status, Shitalpur Forest Beat, Bangladesh

Location: Shitalpur Forest Beat under Kumira Range of Chittagong North Forest Division

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Conservation and Biodiversity

Commodity: Plant

Objectives:

The main objective of the study was to investigate the vegetative composition and species diversity and also the status of natural regeneration on different hill slopes in Shitalpur Forest Beat under Kumira Range in Chittagong North Forest Division.

Methodology:

Selection of the Study Area. The study was conducted at Shitalpur Forest Beat under Kumira Range of Chittagong North Forest Division. It is situated at the northwestern part of Chittagong district. The total area of the beat was 1962 hectares of which 41% comprised protected forest and 37% vested forest and the remaining other forest. A small area of around 100 ha under Shitalpur Forest Beat situated adjacent to western boundary of Chittagong University campus was first selected for this study. Topographically, the study area comprised mostly hills and valleys. The total area sampled under this study was 1.08 hectares. The study was based on primary data collection regarding the systematic survey on the status, structure, composition, and diversity of trees of the study area and the effects of topography on natural regeneration. Necessary information was collected through extensive field observation of the area. The study was based on field data collection through physical measurement in the field and review of relevant literature on similar previous studies based on species composition in Chittagong and Chittagong Hill Tracts. The following steps had been followed for the preparation of this paper. 2.2. Data Collection and Analysis. At first a reconnaissance survey was conducted to become familiar with the study sites and the relevant information was collected from Nondonkanon, Chittagong Range office, and Shitalpur Beat Office. To have an idea of species composition of the whole study area, a number of field visits were conducted at the advent of the field work. Two transect walks (one from North to South and other from East to West) across the study area was made with the help of Field Assistant as per. The aim of the walk was to be familiar with the vegetation in order to get a general idea of the site, topography, species composition, and natural regeneration of the study area. The Shannon-Wiener index and Simpson’s index were used as diversity indices. Statistical package SPSS 13.0 was used to conduct the statistical analysis under this study. 2.3. Sampling Design. The sample plots were selected by purposive sampling method. At first, three hills situating at a distance of about 500 m from each other were selected intentionally from the study area. In each of the selected hills, 9 sample plots (3 plots on each topography, namely, top hill, middle hill, and bottom hill; about 100 m apart from each other) of sizes 20 m × 20 m were demarcated for final study. In this way, a total of 27 sample plots were demarcated for data collection. For regeneration study, 2 m × 2 m subplots were taken at the corner point of each of the 27 sample plots and thus a total of 108 regeneration subplots were studied from the study area. All the sample plots and subplots were well demarcated, their corners were marked with pegs, and then all the tree species including seedlings and saplings in each plot were identified and recorded.

Source of Information: Advances in Ecology, Volume 2016, Article ID 5947874, 7 pages

Article Link (Online Journal): http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/5947874

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

The study revealed that Shitalpur Forest Beat is under threat of over extraction and illegal cutting which in the future may reduce both tree density and diversity drastically. Such detrimental interferences must be stopped immediately; otherwise this will reduce natural forest restoration capacity. The ecologically important plant species may be conserved through both in situ and ex situ conservation methods. It came out from the study that most of the people living near the forest area are poor, so they depend on forest for their livelihood. It has been observed that there exists a great demand and supply gap of fuel wood and other associated timber in this area, which ultimately increases the pressure of pilferage and illicit felling of trees from forest. To mitigate these problems and to maintain the complexity, species diversity, normal composition, and natural environment of Shitalpur Forest, large scale reforestation program can be carried out. However, adequate information and knowledge on the sustainable management of existing and potential resources in the study area is not available. So, there is a need to have a well-organized database on Shitalpur Forest resources for the purpose of forest protection and biodiversity conservation.

Knowledge Management: Journal