Abstract
This study examines the practice of lopping of Quercus leucotrichophora A. Camus and Quercus floribunda Lindley ex Rehder in Garhwal Himalaya. The study objectives were to investigate the lopping process, the factors that influence it, and the changes it has undergone between 1993 and 2006, specifically, age and gender roles, method of fodder collection, type of branches and trees lopped, and weight of oak foliage bundles. Data were collected for 49 fodder collection trips in Beli village, Tehri Garhwal District, Garhwal Division. Four closely interlinked factors influenced forest use—gender roles, availability of oak foliage in the forest, number and type of livestock per household, and type of agricultural crops planted. The results indicate that lopping practice is not static. It has undergone fundamental changes between 1993 and 2006. Beli villagers continued to collect fodder basis, varied the fodder species collected, and rotated the location of trees lopped throughout the year in 2006, as they did in 1993. Foliage collection intensified until early 2000 when there was a marked decrease in the amount of foliage available in the forest. As a result, the villagers began to reduce their total reliance on the forest and agriculture for income and instead began to send their children to school in preparation for employment outside the village. This change in livelihood strategy is reflected in the lopping practice. Fodder collection trips decreased from 5 in 1993 to 3 times a day in 2006. The number of people collecting Q. floribunda decreased from 26 to 12, with fodder being collected mainly by women aged 21 to 26. This has resulted in females carrying significantly greater loads in 2006 (P = 0.0004). Examining the lopping practice provides insights into the impact of fodder collection on forest ecosystems and, in turn, the forest's impact on peoples' lives.
Highlights
Lopping of oak trees has been a source of tension between forest managers and villagers in the Central Himalaya of India
The matriarch of the household determines whether oak foliage, grass, fuelwood, or leaf litter needs to be collected that day and who should collect it
The number of people collecting fodder decreases in July when the ricetransplanting season begins in the Aglar valley, and many families take their livestock with them
Summary
Human disturbance of forest stands and energy flow between forests and agriculture have been analyzed in the Central Himalaya (Babu et al 1984; Pandey and Singh 1984; Singh et al 1984; Datt 1993; Negi and Todaria 1993; Sundriyal and Sharma 1996; Tripathi and Sah 2001; Dove et al 2005) These studies do not systematically examine the key link between humans and the forest—the lopping practice itself (Moench and Bandyopadhyay 1986; Mahat et al 1987; Negi et al 1999)
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