Forest Conservation Strategies Research Articles

The first report of composition and occurrence of myxomycete assemblages in protected and unprotected plantation forests: a comparative study in Thai Nguyen City, Northern Vietnam

Background and aims – In spite of the cosmopolitan distributions of myxomycetes, relatively few studies have been conducted in subtropical forests of Southeast Asia, particularly in Northern Vietnam, where comprehensive reports of myxomycetes are lacking up to this date. Hence, a rapid biodiversity assessment was conducted in protected and unprotected plantation forests of Thai Nguyen City to compare the species composition of myxomycete communities between the two different forest management types.Methods – A total of 360 substrate samples were haphazardly collected within 5 m × 5 m plots established within three protected and three unprotected forests. The moist chamber cultures prepared from these samples were regularly checked for myxomycete fructifications over a period of 12 weeks. Analyses of diversity (species richness) and community composition were performed using the software EstimateS and the vegan package in R.Key results – The study yielded a total of 505 records representing 54 species belonging to 17 genera. All species recorded herein were new records for Northern Vietnam; among them five were new for the entire country. The rarefaction curves showed higher numbers of myxomycete species to be expected for protected forest (43.0) in comparison to unprotected forests (39.4). However, calculations of species diversity indices showed higher values in unprotected forest than in protected forest. The species composition between the two forest types showed clear overlaps with many shared (56%) species. Conclusions – Forest conservation strategies do not affect freely dispersing myxomycetes implicating that spore dispersal of myxomycetes is caused not only by natural factors but also by anthropogenic activities. The production of high number of myxomycete species for this study seems to point out that the subtropical forests of Vietnam harbours many undiscovered myxomycete species for Southeast Asia.

Forest Cover in Tunisia Before and After the 2011 Tunisian Revolution: a Spatial Analysis Approach

A spatio-temporal analysis of Tunisian forests over the 8 years from 2007 to 2014 is presented in this study. We compare the extent of the forest loss 4 years before and after the 2011 Tunisian revolution using estimates from Global Forest Change Data (GFCD) for 11 governorates located in northern Tunisia. Results show that forest losses have almost tripled from 32 km2 in the period from 2007 to 2010 compared to 90 km2 for 2011–2014, with an annual increment estimated at 3.06 km2 per year. Among the 11 governorates studied, only the governorates of Bizerte and Nabeul revealed a statistically significant difference (p value < 0.05) between the means of the forest loss recorded before the revolution and those registered during the post-revolution period. At the delegation level, a significant positive spatial autocorrelation (p value < 0.05) was revealed for both periods, with Moran’s I values of 0.14 and 0.06 before and after the revolution, respectively. The location of forest loss varied over the years with hot spots occurring in the Bizerte, Jendouba, and Beja governorates between 2007 and 2010 and in Bizerte and Le Kef governorates from 2011 to 2014. This study is the first attempt to map changes to forest cover in Northern Tunisia, which may help the development of proper forest conservation and management strategies in the country.

Setulang forest conservation strategy in safeguarding the conservation of non-timber forest products in Malinau District

Some research on human relationships with forests shows that human activities for the forests are sufficient to meet demand or to meet demand. Both will directly or indirectly change the perceptions of the people who exploit them against the forests being utilized. Setulang community one of the community groups that intensively utilize NTFP as one of the source of fulfillment and fulfill the demand of handicraft product. For needs and demand of livelihood the people of Setulang choose to make the existing forest in the Tane Olen area into. The analysis method used in this research with Stength Weakness Opportunity and Threat (SWOT). The results of this study show the extent to which the commitment of Setulang community and the conservation efforts of Setulang community both self-help and donor assistance and the local government, as well as what strategic steps can be taken by the stakeholders to conserve so that the village forest can provide benefits in the short or long term. Strategic measures need to be set up save Setulang State Forest from degradation and deforestation occurring around the village.

Gibbons (Nomascus gabriellae) provide key seed dispersal for the Pacific walnut (Dracontomelon dao), in Asia's lowland tropical forest

Understanding the mutualisms between frugivores and plants is essential for developing successful forest management and conservation strategies, especially in tropical rainforests where the majority of plants are dispersed by animals. Gibbons are among the most effective seed dispersers in South East Asia's tropical forests, but are also one of the highly threatened arboreal mammals in the region. Here we studied the seed dispersal of the Pacific walnut (Dracontomelon dao), a canopy tree which produces fruit that are common in the diet of the endangered southern yellow-cheeked crested gibbon (Nomascus gabriellae). We found that gibbons were the most effective disperser for this species; they consumed approximately 45% of the fruit crop, which was four times more than that consumed by macaques – the only other legitimate disperser. Gibbons tracked the temporal (but not spatial) abundance of ripe fruits, indicating this fruit was a preferred species for the gibbon. Both gibbons and macaques dispersed the majority (>90%) of the seeds at least 20 m away from parent crowns, with mean dispersal distances by gibbons measuring 179.3 ± 98.0 m (range: 4–425 m). Seeds defecated by gibbons germinated quicker and at greater rates than seeds spat by macaques, or in undispersed fruits. Gibbon-dispersed seeds were also more likely to be removed by unknown seed predators or unknown secondary dispersers. Overall, gibbons play a key role in the regeneration of the Pacific walnut. Our findings have significant implications both for the management of the Pacific walnut tree dominating tropical rainforest as well as the reintroduction program of the Southern yellow-cheeked crested gibbon.

The spatial level of analysis affects the patterns of forest ecosystem services supply and their relationships

The implementation of the Ecosystem Services (ES) framework (including supply and demand) should be based on accurate spatial assessments to make it useful for land planning or environmental management. Despite the inherent dependence of ES assessments on the spatial resolution at which they are conducted, the studies analyzing these effects on ES supply and their relationships are still scarce. To study the influence of the spatial level of analysis on ES patterns and on the relationships among different ES, we selected seven indicators representing ES supply and three variables that describe forest cover and biodiversity for Catalonia (NE Iberian Peninsula). These indicators were estimated at three different scales: local, municipality and county. Our results showed differences in the ES patterns among the levels of analysis. The higher levels (municipality/county) removed part of the local heterogeneity of the patterns observed at the local scale, particularly for ES indicators characterized by a finely grained, scattered distribution. The relationships between ES indicators were generally similar at the three levels. However, some negative relationships (potential trade-offs) that were detected at the local level changed to positive (and significant) relationships at municipality and county. Spatial autocorrelation showed similarities between patterns at local and municipality levels, but differences with county level. We conclude that the use of high-resolution spatial data is preferable whenever available, in particular when identifying hotspots or trade-offs/synergies is of primary interest. When the main objective is describing broad patterns of ES, intermediate levels (e.g., municipality) are also adequate, as they conserve many of the properties of assessments conducted at finer scales, allowing the integration of data sources and, usually, being more directly relevant for policy-making. In conclusion, our results warn against the uncritical use of coarse (aggregated) spatial ES data and indicators in strategies for land use planning and forest conservation.

Attitudes of Forest Users Towards Participatory Forest Management: The Case of Gebradima Forest, Southwestern Ethiopia

In recent years, the Ethiopian government has implemented participatory forest management (PFM) programs for achieving both forest conservation and livelihood outcomes through active participation of local communities. Understanding the attitudes of local communities is very important for designing effective local community development and sustaining conservation strategies. This paper examines the attitudes of forest users’ towards PFM programs and explores the association between respondents’ characteristics and their attitudes towards PFM programs in the Gebradima forest of southwestern Ethiopia. Primary data were collected through a household survey, key informant interviews and focus group discussions from three PFM rural kebeles (the lowest administrative units in Ethiopia). Descriptive statistics and Chi square tests were used to analyze the data. Results revealed that the majority (79.7%) of the respondents expressed favorable attitudes towards PFM programs. Results also indicated that there were significant associations between gender, age, education, income from the forest and livestock ownership with attitudes towards the PFM programs (p < 0.05). On the other hand, marital status, family size and landholding size had no significant associations with attitudes. This study suggests that there is a need to promote local community development to ensure long lasting support of the forest users for sustaining forest conservation strategies.

Balancing Conservation and Livelihoods: A Study of Forest-dependent Communities in the Philippines

Forest-dependent communities in the tropics typically rank lower in socioeconomic status than agricultural and urban communities, and improving livelihood choices while protecting forest resources can be a difficult task. Conflicts can arise where biodiversity conservation objectives restrict resource access to forest communities. In this study, we investigate how land cover, land use, and protected area management affects communities around a forest reserve in the Philippines. We conduct a socioeconomic analysis at two scales: a municipal-level analysis relating land use to socioeconomic status, and a community-level analysis contrasting villages that are close to and distant from a protected forest area. While forest-dependent communities generally had fewer amenities and infrastructure than agricultural and urban communities, community-level analysis showed that socioeconomic status was higher in areas close to protected areas. The study provides a counter-example to other findings by showing that access to resources improves socioeconomic status for local communities while maintaining environmental protections. We conclude that incorporating local livelihoods into forest conservation strategies, such as collection of non-timber forest product, results in a measure of sustainability, which in turn has a significant positive impact on the socioeconomic well-being of communities near the protected area.

Comparison of the Ecological Value of Sacred and Nonsacred Community Forests in Kaboli, Togo

Despite Togo's naturally low forest cover and high rates of deforestation, remnant forest patches play an important role in conserving biodiversity and ensuring the well-being of the country's human population. Many of these remnant forest patches are sacred forests, ecosystems that are increasingly threatened because of changes in belief systems which have accompanied westernization. This study compares the ecological value and level of degradation of two sacred forests with an otherwise similar control forest that does not contain a sacred site based on characteristics including tree cover, vegetation composition, biodiversity, and biomass. The sacred forests had a significantly higher percentage of tree cover, higher biodiversity, and a greater biomass than the forest that did not contain a sacred site. In addition, dominant species within the sacred forests were associated with deciduous dry forest ecosystems while dominant species within the forest not containing a sacred site were introduced plantation species and species associated with savanna ecosystems. These results indicate that sacred forests in Kaboli, Togo, have a higher ecological value and are less degraded than similar community forests that do not contain a sacred site. This important role of sacred sites in forest conservation suggests that feedback loops exist between social and ecological systems, and that both need to be considered together to achieve effective development of forest conservation strategies.

Fungal Community and Ligninolytic Enzyme Activities in Quercus deserticola Trel. Litter from Forest Fragments with Increasing Levels of Disturbance

Litter fungal communities and their ligninolytic enzyme activities (laccase, Mn-peroxidase, and lignin-peroxidase) play a vital role in forest biogeochemical cycles by breaking down plant cell wall polymers, including recalcitrant lignin. However, litter fungal communities and ligninolytic enzyme activities have rarely been studied in Neotropical, non-coniferous forests. Here, we found no significant differences in litter ligninolytic enzyme activities from well preserved, moderately disturbed, and heavily disturbed Quercus deserticola Trel. forests in central Mexico. However, we did find seasonal effects on enzyme activities: during the dry season, we observed lower laccase, and increased Mn-peroxidase and lignin-peroxidase activities, and in the rainy season, Mn-peroxidase and lignin-peroxidase activities were lower, while laccase activity peaked. Fungal diversity (Shannon-Weaver and Simpson indices) based on ITS-rDNA analyses decreased with increased disturbance, and principal component analysis showed that litter fungal communities are structured differently between forest types. White-rot Polyporales and Auriculariales only occurred in the well preserved forest, and a high number of Ascomycota were shared between forests. While the degree of forest disturbance significantly affected the litter fungal community structure, the ligninolytic enzyme activities remained unaffected, suggesting functional redundancy and a possible role of generalist Ascomycota taxa in litter delignification. Forest conservation and restoration strategies must account for leaf litter and its associated fungal community.

Protest response and contingent valuation of an urban forest park in Fuzhou City, China

Urban forest parks, such as Fuzhou National Forest Park (FNFP), provide residents with landscape amenities, recreational opportunities, and interaction with nature. Understanding the recreational quality of green spaces and visitors’ behaviors and preferences is essential for effective forest park conservation strategy. We aimed to assess the recreational use and amenities of FNFP and calculate the monetary value of provided services using a contingent valuation method (CVM). A total of 249 park visitors were interviewed face-to-face based on a questionnaire using entrance fee as the payment vehicle, in October 2015 and January 2016. A considerable number of protest responses may cause selectivity bias; consequently, we used models excluding protest zeros. Sample selection models were estimated using Heckman’s two-step and full information maximum likelihood methods The average willingness-to-pay (WTP) was estimated to be 13.79 RMB (equivalent to 2.00 USD) for the unconditional model, and the lower mean values were estimated for two selectivity bias corrected models. In this case, park visitors would be willing to pay an average 11.6 RMB (equivalent to 1.69 USD) per person according to the full information maximum likelihood estimate and an average 10.96 RMB (equivalent to 1.60 USD) per person by the two-step method. Respondents’ satisfaction of forest park facilities and service significantly influenced their WTP value for forest park improvements. Socio-demographic features could not effectively discriminate the protest bidders and the other non-protest bidders. Our results suggest that protesters may value the resource less than positive bidders. The high percentage of protest respondents may be due to the current free use of FNFP and payment vehicle of entrance fee. The CVM approach takes residents’ preferences into consideration and allows the study of heterogenous socio-demographic groups; thus, our data may help to develop effective management plans for improving urban forest parks in China.

Likelihood of changes in forest species suitability, distribution, and diversity under future climate: The case of Southern Europe.

Forest conservation strategies and plans can be unsuccessful if the new habitat conditions determined by climate change are not considered. Our work aims at investigating the likelihood of future suitability, distribution and diversity for some common European forest species under the projected changes in climate, focusing on Southern Europe. We combine an Ensemble Platform for Species Distribution Models (SDMs) to five Global Circulation Models (GCMs) driven by two Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs), to produce maps of future climate‐driven habitat suitability for ten categories of forest species and two time horizons. For each forest category and time horizon, ten maps of future distribution (5 GCMs by 2 RCPs) are thus combined in a single suitability map supplied with information about the “likelihood” adopting the IPCC terminology based on consensus among projections. Then, the statistical significance of spatially aggregated changes in forest composition at local and regional level is analyzed. Finally, we discuss the importance, among SDMs, that environmental predictors seem to have in influencing forest distribution. Future impacts of climate change appear to be diversified across forest categories. A strong change in forest regional distribution and local diversity is projected to take place, as some forest categories will find more suitable conditions in previously unsuitable locations, while for other categories the same new conditions will become less suited. A decrease in species diversity is projected in most of the area, with Alpine region showing the potentiality to become a refuge for species migration.

Implementing and managing urban forests: A much needed conservation strategy to increase ecosystem services and urban wellbeing

Megacities contain at least 10 million people whose wellbeing largely depends on ecosystem services provided by remote natural areas. What is, however, most often disregarded is that nature conservation in the city can also contribute to human wellbeing benefits. The most common mind set separates cities from the rest of nature, as if they were not special kinds of natural habitats. Instead, awareness that urban systems are also nature and do host biodiversity and ecosystem services opportunities, should push urban people towards increased urban forest conservation and implementation strategies. This research estimated existing and potential, tree cover, and its contribution to ecosystem services in 10 megacity metropolitan areas, across 5 different continents and biomes. We developed estimates for each megacity using local data to transform i-Tree Eco estimates of tree cover benefits to reductions in air pollution, stormwater, building energy, and carbon emissions for London, UK. The transformation used biophysical scaling equations based on local megacity tree cover, human population, air pollution, climate, energy use, and purchasing power parity. The megacity metropolitan areas ranged from 1173 to 18,720 sq km (median value 2530 sq km), with median tree cover 21%, and potential tree cover another 19% of the city. Megacities had a median tree cover density of 39m2/capita, much smaller than the global average value of 7800m2/capita, with density lower in desert and tropical biomes, and higher in temperate biomes. The present median benefit value from urban trees in all 10 megacities can be estimated as $482 million/yr due to reductions in CO, NO2, SO2, PM10, and PM2.5, $11 million/yr due to avoided stormwater processing by wastewater facilities, $0.5 million/yr due to building energy heating and cooling savings, and $8 million/yr due to CO2 sequestration. Planting more trees in potential tree cover areas could nearly double the benefits provided by the urban forest. In 2016 there were 40 megacities, totaling 722 million residents, nearly 10% of the human population, who would benefit from nature conservation plans where they work and live. Nature conservation strategies in megacities should work to sustain and grow the benefits of the urban forest, and improve accounting methods to include additional ecosystem services provided by the urban forest.

Soil biodiversity and environmental change in European forests

Abstract Biodiversity not only responds to environmental change, but has been shown to be one of the key drivers of ecosystem function and service delivery. Forest soil biodiversity is also governed by these principles, the structure of soil biological communities is clearly determined by spatial, temporal and hierarchical factors. Global environmental change, together with land-use change and forest ecosystem management, impacts the aboveground structure and composition of European forests. Due to the close link between the above- and belowground parts of forest ecosystems, we know that soil biodiversity is also impacted. However, very little is known about the nature of these impacts; effects they have on the overall level of biodiversity, the functions it fulfills, and on the future stability of forests and forest soils. Even though much remains to be learned about the relationships between soil biodiversity and forest ecosystem functionality, it is clear that better effort needs to be made to preserve existing soil biodiversity and forest conservation strategies taking soils into account must be considered.

Modelling the probability of microhabitat formation on trees using cross‐sectional data

Summary Context: Tree‐related microhabitats (TreMs), such as trunk cavities, peeled bark, cracks or sporophores of lignicolous fungi, are essential to support forest biodiversity because they are used as substrate, foraging, roosting or breeding places by bryophytes, fungi, invertebrates and vertebrates. Biodiversity conservation requires the continuous presence of TreMs in a forest. However, little is known about their dynamics. Moreover, we usually have only cross‐sectional TreM data (observations of many trees at a single time), making it difficult to estimate TreM formation rates. Method: This study adapted the methods of survival and reliability analysis to model the rate of TreM formation per unit of diameter increment as a function of tree diameter at breast height (DBH). We tested three variants of this model: the TreM formation rate independent of, proportional to or increasing nonlinearly with DBH. We calculated the likelihood of the models, considering cross‐sectional observations either of TreM presence/absence or TreM number on trees of different sizes. We calibrated the models in six subnatural montane forests dominated by European beech (Fagus sylvatica) and silver fir (Abies alba) – in the French Pyrenees. Assuming an annual DBH increment value, the annual formation rate of TreMs was predicted both at the level of the tree and at the level of the forest stand. Results: This method provides a coherent framework to model the probability that a TreM forms on a tree during a unit growth step and produces realistic predictions of TreM accumulation on trees. TreM formation accelerated as trees grew for A. alba but not for F. sylvatica. The TreM formation rate was twice as fast on F. sylvatica as on A. alba. We estimated a formation of 0·82–1·28 TreMs/ha per year and 0·5–0·9 TreM‐bearing trees/ha per year in the subnatural forests studied. Synthesis and applications: This method makes rigorous modelling of the formation of TreMs possible during the growth of trees and forest stands. The quantitative evaluation of TreM fluxes will help to design forest biodiversity conservation strategies favouring the development and temporal continuity of TreMs.

Empirical Analysis of the Reality of Gender Inclusiveness of Participatory Forest Management Approach: The Case of Chilimo-Gaji Forest, West Shewa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia

Governments from the commencement of nation-states have usurped forest management and use rights from local forest dependent societies as they perceive these societies as being opportunistic non-conservationists, thus dismissing their capability to manage their forests on a sustainable basis. As a result of this, the Conventional forest management system and practice have failed to improve the forest condition as well as to sustainably address the livelihood of the local community. In recognition of continued deforestation, degradation and loss of biodiversity associated with the mainstream “fences and fines’’ forest management system a new regime has practiced in a few national forest priority areas since 1990s, emphasizing the need to incorporate the aspiration of local people in forest conservation strategies in Ethiopia. This study was conducted in Chilimo-Gaji forest which is one of the oldest PFM intervention sites in Ethiopia. The main purpose of this study was to analyze the reality of gender inclusiveness of the newly introduced forest management system. Both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection particularly, semi-structured questionnaire survey, focus group discussions and key informant interviews were employed. Analysis of the data reveals that participatory forest management process in the study area was women’s exclusionary in reality even from the lowest nominal typology of participation to the highest in hierarchy of participation, interactive and empowerment in entire participatory forest management process. The study also identified the exclusionary factors which are constraining gender participation such as exclusionary membership rules, gender division of labour, poor educational back grounds, and poor enactment of already established rules and so on. So, the study suggests serious empowerment and awareness creation interventions should be taken and membership rules and women’s inclusion in key decision-making positions should receive due attention.

Environmental factors–ecological species group relationships in the Surash lowland‐mountain forests in northern Iran

Identification of the primary factors that influence the ecological distribution of species groups is important to managers of lowland‐mountain forests in northern Iran. The aim of this study was to identify main ecological species groups, describe the site conditions associated with these species groups and the relationships between environmental factors and the distribution of ecological species groups using multi‐variate analysis (Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) and Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA)). For this purpose, 50 relevés (400 m2 each) were sampled using the Braun‐Blanquet method. Vegetation was classified into three ecological species groups using a modified two‐way indicator species analysis (TWINSPAN). In each relevé, environmental factors (topographic and soil variables) were measured and analysed using one‐way ANOVA and Pearson r statistics. Further, species diversity indices were determined for the identified ecological species groups. Our results show that the environmental factors, e.g. elevation, slope, slope aspect, soil texture, pH and organic matter, were the most important factors explaining the distribution of the three ecological species groups in the study area. The diversity of the ecological species groups decreased with elevation. The results provide an ecological basis for forest management and for developing strategies for forest conservation in the study area.

Insights about past forest dynamics as a tool for present and future forest management in Switzerland

Mountain forest ecosystems in central Europe are a product of millennia of land use and climate change, and this historical legacy shapes their vulnerability to projected climate change and related disturbance regimes (e.g. fire, wind throw, insect outbreaks). The transitional and highly dynamic state of present-day forests raises questions about the use of modern ecological observations and modeling approaches to predict their response to future climate change. We draw on records from the different subregions (northern, central and southern Alps and their forelands) in and around the Swiss Alps, which has one of the longest evidence of human land-use in Europe, to illustrate the importance of paleoecological information for guiding forest management and conservation strategies. The records suggest that past land use had different impacts on the abundance and distribution of woody species, depending on their ecology and economic value. Some taxas were disadvantaged by intensified burning and browsing (e.g. Abies alba, Ulmus, Tilia, Fraxinus, Pinus cembra and the evergreen Ilex aquifolium and Hedera helix); others were selected for food and fiber (e.g. Castanea sativa, Juglans regia) or increased in abundance as consequence of their utility (charcoal, acorns, litter and other products) or resistance to disturbance (e.g. Picea abies, Fagus sylvatica, Pinus sylvestris, and deciduous Quercus). Another group of trees increased in distribution as an indirect result of human-caused disturbance (e.g. Betula, Alnus viridis, Juniperus, and Pinus mugo). Knowledge of past species distribution, abundance and responses under a wide range of climate, land use and disturbance conditions is critical for setting silvicultural priorities to maintain healthy forests in the future.

Evaluating the Effectiveness of Conservation on Mangroves: A Remote Sensing-Based Comparison for Two Adjacent Protected Areas in Shenzhen and Hong Kong, China

Mangroves are ecologically important ecosystems and globally protected. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of mangrove conservation efforts in two adjacent protected areas in China that were under the management policies of the Ramsar Convention (Mai Po Marshes Nature Reserve (MPMNR), Hong Kong) and China’s National Nature Reserve System (Futian Mangrove National Nature Reserve (FMNNR), Shenzhen). To achieve this goal, eleven Landsat images were chosen and classified, areal extent and landscape metrics were then calculated. The results showed that: from 1973–2015, the areal extent of mangroves in both reserves increased, but the net change for the MPMNR (281.43 hm2) was much higher than those of the FMNNR (101.97 hm2). In general, the area-weighted centroid of the mangroves in FMNNR moved seaward by approximately 120 m, whereas in the MPMNR, the centroid moved seaward even farther (410 m). Although both reserves saw increased integrality and connectivity of the mangrove patches, the patches in the MPMNR always had higher integrality than those in the FMNNR. We concluded that the mangroves in the MPMNR were more effectively protected than those in the FMNNR. This study may provide assistance to the formulation of generally accepted criteria for remote sensing-based evaluation of conservation effectiveness, and may facilitate the development of appropriate mangrove forest conservation and management strategies in other counties.

CONOCIMIENTO TRADICIONAL Y VULNERABILIDAD DE HONGOS COMESTIBLES EN UN EJIDO DENTRO DE UN ÁREA NATURAL PROTEGIDA

The area of protection flora and fauna “Nevado de Toluca” is subject to be vulnerable in the presence of internal and external environmental, social, economic and cultural forces. Traditional knowledge is used to identify the relationship between the use and management of fungi and the disruption of their habitat. Was recorded 18 categories for the socioeconomic factor, 48 for the anthropic, seven for the socioterritorial and seven for the natural. Through the logistic regression was identified 36 critical categories from a total of 80. Then 16 species of fungi of 50 of them were chosen from its cultural importance, they contrasted with the categories of the socioeconomic factor by means of logistic regression, evidenced that preference, quantity of daily collection, place of sale and price explained 95% of pressure in the extraction of fungi of cultural significance. The human interaction on the habitat of the fungi has resulted that anthropic and socioeconomic factors have intervened with an 84% in the natural reproduction of this resource. Was proposed to agrobiodiversity and agroforestry to generate sources of employment, food and income. Traditional knowledge allowed to visualize the forest ecosystem conservation strategies.

Mapping Deforestation and Forest Degradation Patterns in Western Himalaya, Pakistan

The Himalayan mountain forest ecosystem has been degrading since the British ruled the area in the 1850s. Local understanding of the patterns and processes of degradation is desperately required to devise management strategies to halt this degradation and provide long-term sustainability. This work comprises a satellite image based study in combination with national expert validation to generate sub-district level statistics for forest cover over the Western Himalaya, Pakistan, which accounts for approximately 67% of the total forest cover of the country. The time series of forest cover maps (1990, 2000, 2010) reveal extensive deforestation in the area. Indeed, approximately 170,684 ha of forest has been lost, which amounts to 0.38% per year clear cut or severely degraded during the last 20 years. A significant increase in the rate of deforestation is observed in the second half of the study period, where much of the loss occurs at the western borders along with Afghanistan. The current study is the first systematic and comprehensive effort to map changes to forest cover in Northern Pakistan. Deforestation hotspots identified at the sub-district level provide important insight into deforestation patterns, which may facilitate the development of appropriate forest conservation and management strategies in the country.