Vegetation and Fauna Diversity of High Conservation Value (HCV) Swamp Areas in Oil Palm Plantation

Abstract

The designation of an area as a “high conservation value” (HCV) is a form of concern for environmental management. The palm oil company is one of the business units that has responsibility for the existence of HCVs in its area. This study aims to characterize and analyze the components of vegetation and fauna in HCV in swamp areas in oil palm plantations. The research object is in the form of vegetation and wild animals found in HCV swamp areas. The equipment used is: a set of survey equipment, tally sheets, documentation equipment, equipment for data analysis. Vegetation data collection is done using line transect system. Data collected were the number of individuals and the number of species. Fauna data collection is done by exploring and adjusting to vegetation data plots. Data collected were the number of species found in each plot. Vegetation and fauna data were analyzed by using tabulation matrix. Specifically for vegetation species and aves, the data were analyzed using the Shannon-Wiener Diversity Index (H’). There are 8 types of vegetation in the HCV area. The most dominant species found at this location at all levels of growth (seedlings, saplings, poles and trees) is the Melaleuca cajuputi species. The dominant tree species was Melaleuca cajuputi. The important value index of M.cajuputi > 90%. The H’ value for all vegetation levels are classified in the low category. The H’ values of trees, poles, saplings and seedling are 0.84, 0.41, 0.49, 0.46, respectively. There are 16 species of undergrowth which are dominated by plants associated with water. There were 21 species of birds at the study site, 4 of which were protected by government regulation PP No.7 / 1999. There are 21 species of birds with a value of H’=2.5. There are 8 species of mammals (including primates), 6 species of reptiles and 3 species of amphibians. The existence of HCV is very important in contributing to the diversity of homogeneous areas of oil palm plantations. Protecting HCV swamp areas in oil palm plantations are very important for the availability of a conducive animal habitat.