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Conservation Benefits of Tropical Multifunctional Land-uses in and Around a Forest Protected Area of Bangladesh

Sharif A. Mukul*
Centre for Research on Land-use Sustainability, Noakhali 3800, Bangladesh

Narayan Saha
Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, School of Agriculture and Mineral Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet 3114, Bangladesh;

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Competing interests in land for agriculture and commodity production in tropical human-dominated landscapes make forests and biodiversity conservation particularly challenging. Establishment of protected areas in this regard is not functioning as expected due to exclusive ecological focus and poor recognition of local people’s traditional forest use and dependence. In recent years, multifunctional land-use systems such as agroforestry have widely been promoted as an efficient land-use in such circumstances, although their conservation effectiveness remains poorly investigated. We undertake a rapid biodiversity survey to understand the conservation value of four contrasting forms of local land-use, namely: betel leaf (Piper betle) agroforestry; lemon (Citrus limon) agroforestry; pineapple (Ananas comosus) agroforestry; and, shifting cultivation–fallow managed largely by the indigenous communities in and around a highly diverse forest protected area of Bangladesh. We measure the alpha and beta diversity of plants, birds, and mammals in these multifunctional land-uses, as well as in the old-growth secondary forest in the area. Our study finds local land-use critical in conserving biodiversity in the area, with comparable biodiversity benefits as those of the old-growth secondary forest. In Bangladesh, where population pressure and rural people’s dependence on forests are common, multifunctional land-uses in areas of high conservation priority could potentially be used to bridge the gap between conservation and commodity production, ensuring that the ecological integrity of such landscapes will be altered as little as possible.

Keywords: Biodiversity conservation; Agroforestry; Traditional land-use; Land-sparing; Land-sharing; Wildlife

Location: Lawachara National Park (LNP), one of the richest forest patches in Bangladesh

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Conservation and Biodiversity

Non-commodity: Profit

Objectives:

Our study is useful to understand the role of multifunctional agroforestry land-use in conservation of biodiversity in tropical human-dominated landscapes.

Methodology:

2. Study Area: We conducted our study in and around Lawachara National Park (LNP), one of the richest forest patches in Bangladesh. Several indigenous communities also live in and adjacent to the park and are dependent on it for sustaining their livelihood. Geographically, the park is located between 24⁰300–24⁰320 N latitude and 91⁰370–91⁰390 E longitude with an area of about 1250 hectares. The topography of the area is undulating, with slopes and hillocks ranging from 10 to 50 m in elevation0. The forest of the park area originally supported tropical semi-evergreen to wet evergreen forests. Presently, the area is surrounded by a complex mosaic of landscapes, dominated by tea (Camellia sinensis) and rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) gardens, plantations of commercially valuable timber species, bamboo and rattan plantations, and agricultural fields. The area also experiences one of the highest rainfalls (~4000 mm/year) in the country due to its geographic location.

In LNP, most of the primary forest has been removed or substantially altered, with some plantations that were established in the area between 1920 and 1950 having now become part of the original forest cover and considered as old-growth secondary forest. Approximately 130 ha of forest area have been used for betel leaf (Piper betle) cultivation within the park area, primarily by the indigenous Khasia community. The main crop is betel leaf, a perennial dioecious climber that creeps up forest trees using its adventitious roots. This vine grows well in moist forest conditions with high humidity and soil moisture. Other forms of land-use, such as lemon agroforestry and pineapple agroforestry, are practiced mostly by the indigenous Tripura community and are common within and on the periphery of the park. Both lemon and pineapple agroforestry land-use require intensive management by the farmers, where they retain some of the forest tree species and cultivate few fruit species (e.g., Jackfruit; Artocarpus heterophyllus) with the main crop lemon in the lemon agroforestry agroforestry land-use. In pineapple agroforestry land-use, farmers usually retain tree species that are tall enough or with very little branch to allow maximum sunlight to the main crop pineapple. Removal of weeds and application of chemical and organic fertilisers are also common management practices in both agroforest.

3. Data Collection Biodiversity assessment was undertaken during 2009 through a series of field surveys in the area. We recorded the abundance and richness of trees, birds and mammals during the time of the survey. For the vegetation survey, a total of 50,100 m² randomly selected plots were established, representing four multifunctional agroforestry land-uses and the old-growth secondary forest. Within each 10 m × 10 m rectangular plot, we identified all mature trees ≥ 5 cm at diameter at breast height (dbh). Tree species were identified in the field and were cross-checked using available references. For bird diversity, we used 25 points (5 land-use × 5 replicate) with a 25 m radius for a period of one hour. In each point, observations were made from a suitable place during daylight hours with periodic movements within the area to detect and identify available cryptic and non-vocal species. Nocturnal birds were excluded from this survey. For mammalian diversity, we organized a walk along 25 pre-established trails (5 land-use × 5 replicate) at a very slow pace (~2 km/h), as done by Carrillo et al. All walks were performed early in the morning and/or late in the afternoon. 4. Data Analysis We measured alpha (α) and beta (β) diversity of trees, birds and mammals in the studied land-use both at the plot and landscape levels. Species abundance, richness and the Shannon-Wiener index (H) were used as measures of alpha diversity, while we used Jaccard’s similarity matrix (I) and ordination using non-metric multi-dimensional scaling (NMDS) to determine the beta diversity of species across contrasting land-uses and plots.

Source of Information: Land 2017, 6, 2

Article Link (Online Journal): doi:10.3390/land6010002

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

In Bangladesh, biodiversity conservation is challenging due to high population pressure, limited land designated for conservation, and high dependence of rural people on forests. Conflicts between protected area managers and local peoples are common in the country due to limited access of local people to different income-generating options and poor recognition of their traditional ways of living. In tropical multifunctional landscapes, there is a strong linkage between income and environmental benefits that sometime influence smallholders’ motivation and preference for particular land-use(s). Earlier studies also suggest that, to some extent, higher protection status and local beliefs help to protect the declining biodiversity of the country. The present study demonstrates that multifunctional land-uses such as agroforestry could potentially be used to protect and conserve biodiversity in the country, ensuring limited modification of the native vegetation and wildlife habitats. Such land-uses also hold great promise for integration in the available carbon forestry schemes, including reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) with benefits to both local livelihoods and the environment, although further studies are essential to quantify such benefits.

Knowledge Management: Journal