South Sudanian Zone Research Articles

Effectiveness of Four Integrated Pest Management Approaches in the Control of Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) in Mango Agro-Ecosystems in the South-Sudanian Zone of Burkina Faso

Effectiveness of Four Integrated Pest Management Approaches in the Control of Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) in Mango Agro-Ecosystems in the South-Sudanian Zone of Burkina Faso

Leaf and fruit characteristics of Parkia biglobosa (Jacq.) Benth according to agro climatic zones and land use in Southern Mali

A study was conducted in southern Mali to characterized Parkia biglobosa populations in the aim to contribute to the domestication of the species. Fields and fallows in the north sudanian, south sudanian and north guinean zones were concerned. Adult trees were marked in plots of 0.25 ha each and leaves and fruits were harvested from each tree for characterization. Petiole and laminar length, number of pairs of pinnae and leaflets, pedicel and pod length, pod wide, pod and seed weight, number of seed per pod were measured. The north guinean zone showed the highest number of pairs of pinnae and leaflets, the longest pods (23.06±9.91 cm in the fields), the highest mean seed weight (3.74±0.96 g in the fields) and the highest mean number of seeds per pod (17 ± 3 seeds in the fields). The South Sudanian zone showed the longest pedicels (3.85±1.08 cm in the fallows), the highest mean laminar length (18.02 cm) and mean petiole length (6.45 cm) in the fields but the same mean number of seeds per pod as for the north Guinean. The north Sudanian zone showed the widest (17.88±7.98 cm in the fields and 18.24±2.11 cm in the fallows) and heaviest (14.87±3.95 g in the fallows) pods. Leaf variables like the number of pairs of pinnae and leaflets seem to be influenced by the climatic gradient. The others leaf, pod and seed variables seem not to be influenced by the climatic gradient. These findings suggest that many leaf and fruit variables are controlled by endogenous factor that could be genetic. However, the manifestation of the endogenous factor seems to be influenced by factors such as environment and management practices.

Effectiveness of Four Integrated Pest Management Approaches in the Control of Fruit Flies of Economic Importance in South-Sudanian Zone of Burkina Faso

Effectiveness of Four Integrated Pest Management Approaches in the Control of Fruit Flies of Economic Importance in South-Sudanian Zone of Burkina Faso

English

Parkia biglobosa (Jacq.) Benth commonly called néré in French-speaking Africa is a semi-domesticated indigenous tree with a multi-purpose and highly appreciated use. Its pod-shaped fruits contain a yellowish floury pulp, eaten raw or used to make drinks, couscous and for raw or cooked dough. The objective of this study was to determine the profiles of minerals (Fe, K, Mg, Zn, Ca), beta-carotene, protein, ash, lipid and total sugar content as well as pH and acidity of the pulps from three ecoregions of Burkina Faso. The results showed quantitative difference in the composition of Parkia biglobosa (Jacq.) Benth pulp from the different ecoregions. Pulp from tree of South Sahelian zone contained the highest concentration of beta-carotene and carbohydrates (530.52±68.11 µg/100g; 64.96±8.9% DW, respectively). Whereas, the North Sudanian zone exceeded the others ecoregion in terms of K (3 301.25±872.85 mg/100 g DW); Mg (257.63±90.15 mg/100 g DW); Zn (1.28±0.37 mg/100 g DW); Ca (519.41±591.13 mg/100g DW) and protein (3.76±0.39 g/100 g DW). The South Sudanian zone displays the highest content in Fe (1.92±1.37 mg/100 g DW). As for the equivalent citric acid quantified in this study, the North Sudanian zone had the highest concentrations (0.96 ± 0.18 g/100 g DW) in the pulp. The observed variation has implications regarding the use of these data in food and nutrition programs, and in selecting sources of planting material for reforestation initiatives and agroforestry systems.   Key words: Parkia biglobosa (Jacq.) Benth pulp, nutritional composition, physicochemical characteristics, ecoregions.

IMPACT OF LAND USE AND LAND USE HISTORY ON FRUITS PRODUCTION OF VITELLARIA PARADOXA (SHEA TREE) ACCORDING TO AGROCLIMATIC ZONES IN MALI (WEST AFRICA)

To understand how various factors influence phenological patterns like fruit production and the extent of phenological variability as survival strategy in different environments, fruit production of shea trees was studied in different agroclimatic zones (North Sudanian, South Sudanian and North Guinean) in Mali. Three sites were selected for this study and in each site; two stands (field and fallow) were concerned. For each stand, three “land use history or land management" i.e. new fields/fallows (1-5 years), medium (6-10 years) and old (10 years) were considered and permanent plots of 0.25 ha were established. 60 adult shea trees (DBH) ≥ 10 cm) were selected by site and monitored for fruit production assessment. The nested analysis of variance on the yield showed a significant site effect and significant effect of land use history within stand. However, stand effect within site was not significant. Factors like site and land management (land use history) appear to be determinant for fruit production of V. paradoxa. The site of Mperesso in the South Sudanian zone showed the highest fruit mean yield (11 kg/tree), significantly higher than the fruit mean yield observed at Daelan (7 kg/tree) in the North Sudanian zone and that observed at Nafégué (6 kg/tree) in the North Guinean zone. For field stand, old fields showed highest mean yield in all sites. For fallow stand, old fallows showed the lowest mean yield in most of cases. Different pattern was observed between field and fallow stands regarding the effect of land management. More fields are aged, more they influence positively fruit production whereas more fallows are aged, and more they influence negatively fruit production. This study highlighted the importance of land management practices and therefore, any domestication program to be successful should consider the potential effect of management practices.

Traditional knowledge regarding edible insects in Burkina Faso

BackgroundInsects play an important role as a diet supplement in Burkina Faso, but the preferred insect species vary according to the phytogeographical zone, ethnic groups, and gender. The present study aims at documenting indigenous knowledge on edible insects in Burkina Faso.MethodsA structured ethno-sociological survey was conducted with 360 informants in nine villages located in two phytogeographical zones of Burkina Faso. Identification of the insects was done according to the classification of Scholtz. Chi-square tests and principal component analysis were performed to test for significant differences in edible insect species preferences among phytogeographical zones, villages, ethnic groups, and gender.ResultsEdible insects were available at different times of the year. They were collected by hand picking, digging in the soil, and luring them into water traps. The edible insects collected were consumed fried, roasted, or grilled. All species were indifferently consumed by children, women, and men without regard to their ages. A total of seven edible insect species belonging to five orders were cited in the Sudanian zone of Burkina Faso. Macrotermes subhyalinus (Rambur), Cirina butyrospermi (Vuillet, 1911), Kraussaria angulifera (Krauss, 1877), Gryllus campestris (Linnaeus, 1758), and Carbula marginella (Thunberg) (35.66–8.47% of the citations) were most cited whereas Rhynchophorus phoenicis (Fabricius, 1801) and Oryctes sp. (3.41–0.27%) were least cited. Cirina butyrospermi was most cited in the South Sudanian zone, whereas Macrotermes subhyalinus and Kraussaria angulifera were most cited in the North Sudanian zone but were cited in all nine villages. Cirina butyrospermi was preferred by Bobo, Guin, Sambla, Senoufo, and Turka ethnic groups whereas Macrotermes subhyalinus was preferred by Fulani, Mossi, and Toussian ethnic groups. Oryctes sp. was cited only by the Toussian.ConclusionA diversity of edible insects was consumed in both the South and North Sudanian zone of Burkina Faso with significant differences in species preferences according to phytogeographical zones, villages, ethnic groups, and gender.

Impact of human disturbance on bee pollinator communities in savanna and agricultural sites in Burkina Faso, West Africa.

All over the world, pollinators are threatened by land‐use change involving degradation of seminatural habitats or conversion into agricultural land. Such disturbance often leads to lowered pollinator abundance and/or diversity, which might reduce crop yield in adjacent agricultural areas. For West Africa, changes in bee communities across disturbance gradients from savanna to agricultural land are mainly unknown. In this study, we monitored for the impact of human disturbance on bee communities in savanna and crop fields. We chose three savanna areas of varying disturbance intensity (low, medium, and high) in the South Sudanian zone of Burkina Faso, based on land‐use/land cover data via Landsat images, and selected nearby cotton and sesame fields. During 21 months covering two rainy and two dry seasons in 2014 and 2015, we captured bees using pan traps. Spatial and temporal patterns of bee species abundance, richness, evenness and community structure were assessed. In total, 35,469 bee specimens were caught on 12 savanna sites and 22 fields, comprising 97 species of 32 genera. Bee abundance was highest at intermediate disturbance in the rainy season. Species richness and evenness did not differ significantly. Bee communities at medium and highly disturbed savanna sites comprised only subsets of those at low disturbed sites. An across‐habitat spillover of bees (mostly abundant social bee species) from savanna into crop fields was observed during the rainy season when crops are mass‐flowering, whereas most savanna plants are not in bloom. Despite disturbance intensification, our findings suggest that wild bee communities can persist in anthropogenic landscapes and that some species even benefitted disproportionally. West African areas of crop production such as for cotton and sesame may serve as important food resources for bee species in times when resources in the savanna are scarce and receive at the same time considerable pollination service.

Effects of Piliostigma reticulatum on the Vegetation Dynamic in Sudanian Zone of Burkina Faso

This study aims at identifying the effect of P. reticulatum on the vegetation regeneration dynamic in Sudanian fallows of Burkina Faso. Two fallows of about twenty years old have been considered. The point quadrat method was used for herbaceous inventory. Aboveground biomass has been estimated. Moreover, effect of P. reticulatum on the regeneration of others woody species has been studied under, at the limit and out of the shrub canopy. In north Sudanian zone, inventory recorded 39 herbaceous species of which 23 species under the canopy and 16 in open grassland, distributed in 12 families and 22 genera. In south Sudanian zone, species diversity is 41 species from which 23 under the canopy and 18 out of, spread in 16 families and 26 genera. Species higher than 80 cm have been observed only under P. reticulatum canopy in south and north Sudanian zone. In addition, no species of striga met in open sunlight has been observed under the shrub canopy. East and West directions recorded the important proportions of species with individuals belonging to the stratum superior to 100 cm (3.13 and 4.81 % in north direction, 1.47 and 1.73% in south directions).

Evaluating fire severity in Sudanian ecosystems of Burkina Faso using Landsat 8 satellite images

The fire severity of the 2013–2014 fire season within Sudanian ecosystems in Burkina Faso was evaluated from Landsat 8 images using derivatives of the Normalized Burn Ratio algorithm (NBR). The relationship between the image-derived severity and the field observed severity i.e. Composite Burn Index (CBI) was best described by a nonlinear model of the form y = a + b*EXP(CBI *c) (R2 = 0.66). Classification of the image-derived burned area into burn severity classes achieved a classification Kappa accuracy statistic of 0.56. Highly severely burned areas were mapped with the highest accuracy (user's accuracy 77%, producer's accuracy 86%). The severity of the burn varied across phyto-geographical zones, protected status, land cover regimes, and forest management practices. The south Sudanian zone burned with a higher severity (low = 7%, moderate = 16% and high = 13%) than the north Sudanian zone (low = 5%, moderate = 10% and high = 5%). The mean of the highly severely burned areas differed significantly among the forest management practices (P = 0.005). A pair-wise comparison of the severity mean area indicated that the highly burned areas within forests managed for wildlife purposes differed significantly with that of both forests under the joint management (P = 0.006) and those under no management (P = 0.024). Among the management practices, forests jointly managed by the local communities and the government had the highest unburned area and the least highly severely burned areas reflecting the impacts of bottom-up forestry management where the local communities are actively involved in the management.

Natural Enemies of <i>Calidea panaethiopica</i> (Heteroptera: Scutelleridae): An Insect Pest of <i>Jatropha curcas</i> L. in the South-Sudanian Zone of Burkina Faso

Jatropha curcas L. is a non-edible oleaginous plant of Euphorbiacea family. Its seeds provide oil for industrial use, and when grown as a biofuel, J. curcas can be used to restore degraded soil by improving their fertility and by controlling water and wind erosion. The plant also reduces CO2 emission by carbon sequestration. However, J. curcas is attacked by many insect pests including C. panaethiopica, a polyphagous heteroptera of the Scutelleridae family. Larvae and adults of the insect pest feed on J. curcas flowers, fruit, and seeds, thereby causing quantitative and qualitative losses. Despite the economic importance of this insect pest, there is little known about its potential natural enemies. A survey of the natural enemies of C. panaethiopica was carried out from 3rd June 2013 to 29th May 2014 on three J. curcas production sites in the South-Sudanian zone of Burkina Faso. Three Hymenopteran egg parasitoids all belonging to the Scelionidae family were found. These included Trissolcus basalis (Wollaston), Psixstriaticeps (Dodd), and Gryon sp. Several predator species belonging to the Araneae, Tarachodidae and Mantidae families were also found. The egg parasitism increased progressively between June and September 2013, reaching a peak (43%) in September 2013. The number of spiders and mantises was higher between July and August 2013. The highest numbers of natural enemies associated with the insect pest were recorded in J. curcas monoculture plantations.

Impact of <i>Jatropha</i> plantation on soil chemical and biological properties in the South Sudanian region in Burkina Faso

In Burkina Faso, about 100,000 ha of Jatropha were planted during the past 10 years. Despite this enthusiasm, few results exist on the impact of the plant on soil properties. This study contributes to better knowledge of Jatropha farming and was carried out in 2013 with Jatropha farmers in Torokoro and Tin villages in the south Sudanian zone of Burkina Faso (rainfall 900-1200 mm). Data collection plots of 400 m2 repeated 3 times were installed in 3 farmers’ fields in each village. Soil samples were collected at 3 distances (D0= under the crown, D1= 1m and D2= 2m) from the Jatropha trees lines and in a fallow as a control sample for each field. The results showed significant differences between distances for soil pH. Soil nutrients increase with distance from the crown (from 9.33% to 12.20%) for available phosphorus in Torokoro-6 years and decrease from 22.45% to 23.71% in Torokoro-2 years). Soil respiration and microbial biomass decreases also with distance. The density of spores of mycorrhizal fungi is higher for the control soils (14.64%) and it decreases from crown to 2m (from 2.22% to 9.53% in Tin-2 years). The study showed the contribution of Jatropha trees on soil fertility improvement.© 2015 International Formulae Group. All rights reserved.Keywords: Jatropha, soil biology, microbial biomass, carbon, nitrogen, Burkina Faso

The Vascular Plant Diversity of Burkina Faso (West Africa) — A Quantitative Analysis and Implications for Conservation

Zizka, A., A. Thiombiano, S. Dressler, B. M. I. Nacoulma, A. Ouédraogo, I. Ouédraogo, O. ouédraogo, G. Zizka, K. Hahn & M. Schmidt (2015). The vascular plant diversity of Burkina Faso (West Africa) — a quantitative analysis and implications for conservation. Candollea 70: 9–20 In English, English and French abstracts.Based on a species inventory and the related distribution dataset, the authors present a quantitative analysis of the vascular plant diversity of Burkina Faso (BFA) and its four phytogeographic zones. We analyzed species richness, higher taxon diversity, life forms, chorological types, introduced species, habitat preferences and the number of rare species. The flora of BFA comprises 1972 non-cultivated vascular plant species in 752 genera and 145 families. Species richness and plant family richness are highest in the South Sudanian zone in the South of the country. Fabaceae, Poaceae and Cyperaceae are the most species rich plant families. Only one species (Isoetes jaegeri Pitot) is endemic to the country, whereas the vast majority occurs throughout Africa. The flora is dominated by therophytes and phanerophytes. Our results show a good representation of the West African flora in BFA. The flora and vegetation of the four phytogeographic zones within BFA is determined by the latitudinal climatic gradient of the region. The relative number of phanerophytes and forest species decrease along the gradient, while the relative number of therophytes increase. Based on the specimen record we classified 38% of the plant species as “rare” to BFA. The analyses show that the south-west of BFA is a center of national biodiversity and a potential “hotspot” for conservation. In addition to its high species richness this area harbors the highest number of rare species (409 species, 29%) including the endemic species.

Rootstock Propagation Methods Affect the Growth and Productivity of Three Improved Cultivars of Ber in Mali, West Africa

The adaptation of three improved cultivars of ber (Ziziphus mauritiana) from India to farming conditions in the Sudanian zone of the Sahel region was tested in Mali. The three cultivars used as scions were Seb, Umran, and Sotubata. The use of coppices of local ber resulted in a significantly better growth and higher fruit production on all the grafts of the three cultivars when compared with nursery seedling rootstocks. The cultivars also performed significantly better in the South Sudanian zone than in the more-arid North Sudanian zone. The highest fruit yield of 38 kg per tree was achieved on coppices in the South Sudanian zone. It was concluded that the high success of this experiment offers a great opportunity for adoption of the three improved cultivars of ber using coppice shoots as rootstock to optimize their use in parkland agroforestry systems in the South Sudanian zone of the Sahel region of West Africa.

Assessment of possible hybridization between Bt cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) and other Malvaceae species (Abelmoschus spp. and Hibiscus spp.) cultivated in Burkina Faso

The cultivation of transgenic cotton in Burkina Faso should consider the possible hybridizations with cultivated cotton relatives like okra (Abelmoschus spp.) and roselle (Hibiscus spp.), when these crops are often sympatric and co-flowering. The possibility for Bt cotton and these crops to outcross was investigated in Farako-Bâ research centre, in the south sudanian zone. The study was carried out in 2007 using both open-pollinated and artificial pollination experimental designs. Results show that the studied species are effectively reproductively isolated because of low overlapping of their optimum flowering periods. In the case of the artificial crossings (direct and reciprocal) between the studied species and the Bt cotton, the results show that fruits were produced at different rates depending on the species being crossed and the crossing direction. Immunological tests done on progeny seeds resulting from the crosses with transgenic cotton as the male parent confirmed that there was a transfer of transgenes from Bt cotton to the conventional cotton (99.2%). The absence of the transgenes in the seeds of okra and roselle means that these seeds are not the result of intergeneric hybridization but could be attributed to self-pollination or parthenogenetic development of un-fertilized ovules. Key words: Transgenic cotton, relatives’ species, intergenera hybridizations, immunological test, Burkina Faso.

Evidence for important genetic differentiation between provenances of Parkia biglobosa from the Sudano-Sahelian zone of West Africa

Parkia biglobosa is a traditional economic tree legume of considerable multipurpose importance in the sudano-sahelian region in Africa. The species grows in multiple climatic zones with precipitation ranging from 600 to 2,500 mm a year and its natural distribution extends from Senegal and Guinea in West Africa to Uganda in Central Africa. In the present paper, a range wide sample of 25 provenances of P. biglobosa was tested in Burkina Faso, West Africa at two sites; Gonse (latitude 12°25′N; longitude 1°20′W; altitude 280 m) in the north-sudanian zone and at Dinderesso (latitude 11°18′N; longitude 4°35′W; altitude 425 m) in the south-sudanian zone. Based on analysis of survival and growth traits, we provide evidence of substantial genetic differentiation between P. biglobosa populations within West Africa. Height growth was best at Gonse, while the survival rate was higher at Dinderesso (61%) compared to Gonse (35%). Links between geographical parameters and the provenances performance were significant, and interesting geographic patterns were observed. Our results point towards superior fitness of the local Burkina Faso populations, and we speculate that presence of a continuum of locally adapted populations can be a part of the explanation for the species’ ability to thrive under quite different climatic conditions across West Africa. Based on the findings, we suggest recommendations for seed deployment and conservation strategies of the species in the West African Sahel. This is particularly important when considering the on-going climate change.

Epidémiologie de la maladie de Newcastle en milieu rural au Mali

La maladie de Newcastle constitue une des principales contraintes au développement de l’aviculture villageoise au Mali. Les mortalités sont très élevées faute d’un plan de lutte adéquat. La présente étude, réalisée de 1996 à 2000, a eu pour but d’apporter une contribution à l’étude des particularités épidémiologiques de la maladie de Newcastle en milieu rural. Quatre sites ont été choisis dans les zones agroclimatiques soudanienne Sud, soudanienne Nord, sahélienne et du delta intérieur du Niger. Un observateur chargé du suivi clinicoépidémiologique dans les élevages a été basé dans chaque site. Dans chaque cas d’éclatement de foyer, des prélèvements ont été envoyés au Laboratoire central vétérinaire pour être analysés. L’étude a permis d’établir que le taux moyen de prévalence était de 32,9 p. 100 avec une variation entre 12,1 p. 100 en zone soudanienne Sud et 38,8 p. 100 en zone sahélienne. La saison sèche froide, avec 63 p. 100 des cas, a été la période favorable à l’éclosion des foyers, comparativement à la saison pluvieuse au cours de laquelle a été enregistré un taux de 15 p. 100. Les espèces aviaires affectées ont été le poulet, la pintade et le dindon. Les taux de morbidité, de mortalité et de létalité ont varié respectivement entre 8 et 100 p. 100, entre 5,7 et 82 p. 100, et entre 10 et 100 p. 100. Trois périodes de pics ont été établies : janvier, mai et novembre. En 1998 a été enregistré le nombre le plus élevé de cas de la maladie.

Regeneration capacity and productivity of natural forest in Burkina Faso

In 1983 trials were established at four sites in Burkina Faso to study, through annual inventories, the potential regeneration capacity and productivity of natural forest in a coppice exploitation. The trials, planned for a period of 20 years, are in the Sudano-Sahelian zone (Yabo), North-Sudanian zone (Bissiga and Sâ) and South-Sudanian zone (Toumousséni). After 5 years, good regeneration was found at all sites. The original felled population showed a mortality varying from 11.1% (Sâ) to 17.6% (Yabo), and the average dominant height varied from 2.12 m (Yabo) to 3.07 m (Sâ). The strong initial increase of the dominant height fell back sharply after 2 years for Yabo and Bissiga and after 3 years for Sâ. Toumousséni showed poor initial height growth but good growth for the following 3 years. In 1988 the trials were partially felled to establish volume equations. Estimated average productivity over a period of 5 years in m 3 ha −1 year −1 was 0.61 (Yabo), 0.80 (Bissiga), 1.04 (Sâ) and 0.93 (Toumousséni). It is provisionally expected that the maximum average productivity will be reached in the seventh or eighth year for Yabo and Bissiga, and a few years after that for Sâ. The regeneration at Toumousséni sustained a major setback during the first years due to dense grass development after the felling, but it has recovered well and its average productivity will soon surpass that at Sâ. As a separate part of the trial a number of plots were felled on four different dates, of which three were felled after the first rainy season of the main trial had passed. It was found that these younger plots showed, for two investigated years, the same irregular height growth pattern as the older plots. A relation with rainfall figures was not found.

Impact of land use and land use history on fruits production of Vitellaria paradoxa (Shea tree) according to agroclimatic zones in Mali (West Africa)

To understand how various factors influence phenological patterns like fruit production and the extent of phenological variability as survival strategy in different environments, fruit production of shea trees was studied in different agroclimatic zones (North Sudanian, South Sudanian and North Guinean) in Mali. Three sites were selected for this study and in each site; two stands (field and fallow) were concerned. For each stand, three “land use history or land management" i.e. new fields/fallows (1-5 years), medium (6-10 years) and old (10 years) were considered and permanent plots of 0.25 ha were established. 60 adult shea trees (DBH) ? 10 cm) were selected by site and monitored for fruit production assessment. The nested analysis of variance on the yield showed a significant site effect and significant effect of land use history within stand. However, stand effect within site was not significant. Factors like site and land management (land use history) appear to be determinant for fruit production of V. paradoxa. The site of Mperesso in the South Sudanian zone showed the highest fruit mean yield (11 kg/tree), significantly higher than the fruit mean yield observed at Daelan (7 kg/tree) in the North Sudanian zone and that observed at Nafégué (6 kg/tree) in the North Guinean zone. For field stand, old fields showed highest mean yield in all sites. For fallow stand, old fallows showed the lowest mean yield in most of cases. Different pattern was observed between field and fallow stands regarding the effect of land management. More fields are aged, more they influence positively fruit production whereas more fallows are aged, and more they influence negatively fruit production. This study highlighted the importance of land management practices and therefore, any domestication program to be successful should consider the potential effect of management practices.