Results of Study on Vegetation Diversity at Muong Nhe Nature Reserve, Dien Bien Province

Abstract

The vegetation at Muong Nhe nature reserve has been described in 5 types: Tropical evergreen moist monsoon closed forest (only secondary sub-types formed by human activities including tropical evergreen moist monsoon secondary forests after selected logging, tropical evergreen moist monsoon secondary forests formed on abandoned upland fields, tropical evergreen secondary scrubs and grasslands); Tropical semi-evergreen semi-dry monsoon closed forest (only secondary sub-type formed by human activities); Sub-tropical evergreen moist monsoon closed forest (including secondary sub-types formed by human activities including sub-tropical evergreen moist monsoon secondary forest and sub-tropical evergreen secondary scrubs); Sub-tropical evergreen moist monsoon broad-leaved mixed with conifers forest; Sub-tropical semi-dry monsoon deciduous forest (only secondary sub-types formed by human activities including sub-tropical semi-dry monsoon deciduous secondary forest after selected logging, sub-tropical semi-dry monsoon deciduous secondary forest formed on abandoned upland fields, sub-tropical semi-dry secondary scrubs and grasslands) and cultivated communities. The results showed that closed forest is located at sub-tropical zone only. Based on species existed in each forest sub-type or community, the abundant species in tropical zone are fast-growing and photophilic plants while the abundant species in sub-tropical zone include both fast-growing plants and typical sub-tropical plants with monsoon moi climate or monsoon semi-dry climate. In the winter, tropical semi-evergreen forest and sub-tropical deciduous forest forms to North-Western regionalism. The non fast-growing and photophilic species are expected to be most abundant in the future based on currently vegetation succession indication, and there will be more and more closed forests in the near future at Muong Nhe nature reserve.