Comparing the Use of Indigenous Knowledge with Classification and Ordination Techniques for Assessing the Species Composition and Structure of Vegetation in a Tropical Forest

dentification of groups that are similar in their floristic composition and structure (habitat types) is essential for conservation and forest managers to allocate high priority areas and to designate areas for reserves, refuges, and other protected areas. In this study, the use of indigenous knowledge for the identification of habitat types in the field was compared against an ecological characterization of habitat types, including their species composition obtained by using classification and ordination techniques for a tropical landscape mosaic in a rural Mayan area of Quintana Roo, Mexico. Plant diversity data calculated from 141 sampled sites chosen randomly on a vegetation class’s thematic map obtained by multispectral satellite image classification were used for this propose. Results indicated high similarity in the categorization of vegetation types between the Mayan classification and those obtained by cluster and detrended correspondence analysis. This suggests that indigenous knowledge has a practical use and can be comparable to that obtained by using science-based methods. Finally, identification and mapping of vegetation classes (habitat types) using satellite image classification allowed us to discriminate significantly different species compositions, in such a way that they can provide a useful mechanism for interpolating diversity values over the entire landscape.     

Living Amidst Large Wildlife: Livestock and Crop Depredation by Large Mammals in the Interior Villages of Bhadra Tiger Reserve,South India

Conflict with humans over livestock and crops seriously undermines the conservation prospects of India's large and potentially dangerous mammals such as the tiger (Panthera tigris) and elephant (Elephas maximus). This study, carried out in Bhadra Tiger Reserve in south India, estimates the extent of material and monetary loss incurred by resident villagers between 1996 and 1999 in conflicts with large felines and elephants, describes the spatiotemporal patterns of animal damage, and evaluates the success of compensation schemes that have formed the mainstay of loss-alleviation measures. Annually each household lost an estimated 12% (0.9 head) of their total holding to large felines, and approximately 11% of their annual grain production (0.82 tonnes per family) to elephants. Compensations awarded offset only 5% of the livestock loss and 14% of crop losses and were accompanied by protracted delays in the processing of claims. Although the compensation scheme has largely failed to achieve its objective of alleviating loss, its implementation requires urgent improvement if reprisal against large wild mammals is to be minimized. Furthermore, innovative schemes of livestock and crop insurance need to be tested as alternatives to compensations.     

Explaining human settlement patterns in a recreational lake district: Vilas County,Wisconsin, USA

Lakeshore development in Vilas County, northern Wisconsin (USA) is heterogeneous, ranging from lakes that are surrounded by homes and commercial establishments to lakes that have no buildings on their shorelines. Development in this recreational area has increased, and since the 1960s over half of new homes have been built on the lakeshore. We examined building density around lakes in relationship to 11 variables, including in-lake, shoreline, and social characteristics. Buildings in many parts of northern Wisconsin tend to be concentrated around shorelines; in Vilas County 61% of all medium-sized buildings (our proxy for residential development) on private land were ≤100 m of a lake. The probability of development on a lake was largely related to lake surface area, with larger, more accessible lakes showing a higher probability of development. Building density along shorelines varied with travel cost, lake surface area, presence of wetlands, and extent of public land ownership. Building density was greater on larger, more accessible lakes that were surrounded by forest (as opposed to wetlands) and public lands. Gaining a more precise understanding of human settlement patterns can help direct planning and resource protection efforts to lakes most likely to experience future development.     

Basic principles and ecological consequences of changing water regimes: riparian plant communities

Recent research has emphasized the importance of riparian ecosystems as centers of biodiversity and links between terrestrial and aquatic systems. Riparian ecosystems also belong among the environments that are most disturbed by humans and are in need of restoration to maintain biodiversity and ecological integrity. To facilitate the completion of this task, researchers have an important function to communicate their knowledge to policy-makers and managers. This article presents some fundamental qualities of riparian systems, articulated as three basic principles. The basic principles proposed are: (1) The flow regime determines the successional evolution of riparian plant communities and ecological processes. (2) The riparian corridor serves as a pathway for redistribution of organic and inorganic material that influences plant communities along rivers. (3) The riparian system is a transition zone between land and water ecosystems and is disproportionately plant species-rich when compared to surrounding ecosystems. Translating these principles into management directives requires more information about how much water a river needs and when and how, i.e., flow variables described by magnitude, frequency, timing, duration, and rate of change. It also requires information about how various groups of organisms are affected by habitat fragmentation, especially in terms of their dispersal. Finally, it requires information about how effects of hydrologic alterations vary between different types of riparian systems and with the location within the watershed.     

Tropical montane cloud forests: current threats and opportunities for their conservation and sustainable management in Mexico

Tropical montane cloud forests (TMCF) are among the most threatened ecosystems globally in spite of their high strategic value for sustainable development due to the key role played by these forests in hydrological cycle maintenance and as reservoirs of endemic biodiversity. Resources for effective conservation and management programs are rarely sufficient, and criteria must be applied to prioritize TMCF for conservation action. This paper reports a priority analysis of the 13 main regions of TMCF distribution in Mexico, based on four criteria: (1) forest quality, (2) threats to forest permanence, (3) threats to forest integrity, and (4) opportunities for conservation. Due to the diverse socio-environmental conditions of the local communities living in Mexican TMCF regions, their associated social characteristics were also evaluated to provide a background for the planning of conservation actions. A set of indicators was defined for the measurement of each criterion. To assign priority values for subregions within each main region, an international team of 40 participants evaluated all the indicators using multicriteria decision-making analysis. This procedure enabled the identification of 15 subregions of critical priority, 17 of high priority, and 10 of medium priority; three more were not analysed due to lack of information. The evaluation revealed a number of subjects that had hitherto been undetected and that may prove useful for prioritization efforts in other regions where TMCF is similarly documented and faces equally severe threats. Based on this analysis, key recommendations are outlined to advance conservation objectives in those TMCF areas that are subjected to high pressure on forest resources.     

Amenity Values of Public and Private Forests: Examining the Value–Attitude Relationship

Public values toward forests have changed since the late 1980s, from a commodity-oriented perspective toward a more inclusive (commodity and non-commodity) orientation. This study examines the influence of four indicators of population diversity (age, ethnic background, place of residence, and gender) on amenity values of forests, environmental attitudes, and forest value—attitude correspondence. Four values of public and private forests were assessed, wood production (utilitarian value), clean air (a life support value), scenic beauty (an aesthetic value), and heritage (a spiritual value). Environmental attitudes were measured using a modified version of the New Environmental Paradigm scale. Five hundred and forty-eight randomly selected residents of households in 13 states of the Southern United States participated in a telephone interview. Age and ethnic background were found to moderate the value—attitude relationship, with the strength of the association being dependent upon the type of forest (i.e., public or private) and the forest value (i.e., utilitarian, life support, spiritual, and aesthetic). Females, younger persons (less than 43 years old), and whites reported lower utilitarian values of forests than their respective counterparts. Results are interpreted within the context of an emerging post-material society, in which a biocentric orientation to forests and the natural environment may be favored more by a younger (versus older) generation and increasingly racially diverse U.S. population. Implications for managing forests using a multiple-values (versus multiple-uses) approach are discussed.     

Traditional Land-Use Systems and Patterns of Forest Fragmentation in the Highlands of Chiapas, Mexico

The influence of slash-and-burn agriculture and tree extraction on the spatial and temporal pattern of forest fragmentation in two municipalities in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico was analyzed. The data series were derived from two subsets of satellite images taken in 1974 and 1996. The analysis was based on area, edge, shape, core area, and neighbor indices. During the 22 years, the dense forest decreased by 8.9%/yr in Huistán and by 8.6%/yr in Chanal, while open/disturbed forest, secondary vegetation, and developed area increased in both municipalities. The total number of fragments increased by 1.4%/yr and 2.3%/yr in Huistán and Chanal, respectively. Dense forest showed the highest increase in the number of fragments (6%/yr in Huistán and 12%/yr in Chanal), while edge length, core area, and number of dense forest core areas decreased. The larger fragments of dense forest present in 1974 were divided into smaller fragments in 1996; at the same time, they experienced a process of degradation toward open/disturbed forest and secondary vegetation. Two different fragmentation patterns could be distinguished based on agricultural or forestry activities. Forest fragmentation did not occur as a continuous process; the pattern and degree of fragmentation were functions of land tenure, environmental conditions, and productive activities. The prevalence of rather poor soil conditions, small-holdings, growing human population densities, increasing poverty, and the absence of alternative economic options will maintain a high rate of deforestation and forest fragmentation in the studied region.     

Sediment Flux to the Sea as Influenced by Changing Human Activities and Precipitation: Example of the Yellow River,China

Since the 1970s, the sediment flux of the Yellow River to the sea has shown a marked tendency to decrease, which is unfavorable for wetland protection and oil extraction in the Yellow River delta. Thus, an effort has been made to elucidate the relation between the sediment flux to the sea and the drainage basin factors including climate and human activities. The results show that the sediment flux to the sea responds to the changed precipitation in different ways for different runoff and sediment source areas in the drainage basin. If other factors are assumed to be constant, when the annual precipitation in the area between Longmen and Sanmenxia decreases by 10 mm, the sediment flux to the sea will decrease by 27.5 million t/yr; when the precipitation in the area between Hekouzhen and Longmen decreases by 10 mm, the sediment flux to the sea will decrease by 14.3 million t/yr; when the precipitation in the area above Lanzhou decreases by 10 mm, the sediment flux to the sea will decrease by 17.4 million t/yr. A multiple regression equation has been established between the sediment flux to the sea and the influencing factors, such as the area of land terracing and tree and grass planting, the area of the land created by the sediment trapped by check dams, the annual precipitation, and the annual quantity of water diversion by man. The equation may be used to estimate the change in the sediment flux to the sea when the influencing variables are further changed, to provide useful knowledge for the environmental planning of the Yellow River drainage basin and its delta.     

Stifled stakeholders and subdued participation: interpreting local responses toward Shimentai Nature Reserve in South China

In recent decades, protected-area management in many developing countries has been molded to win the support and participation of local people. Increasingly, research initiatives are undertaken to enhance understanding of the perceptions and attitudes of rural stakeholders. The effectiveness of the expanding protected-area system in China is critically constrained by similar considerations of community mentality. This paper provides an empirical assessment of local responses towards conservation efforts based on a case study of the recently established Shimentai Nature Reserve (SNR) situated in Yingde, Guangdong Province, China. Questionnaire surveys, face-to-face interviews, and group discussions were employed to gauge local residents' knowledge, perceptions, and expectations towards the SNR. The study covered seven villages situated in and around the reserve, grouped into far-zone (floodplain) and near-zone (upland) categories, accommodating Hakka (Han) and minority Yao peoples. Many respondents had inadequate knowledge, understanding, and perceptions of the reserve. Although most respondents welcomed the expected park-related dividends, the most affected near-zone villagers anticipated losses due to restriction on traditional resource-extraction activities in the forest. The local expectations were influenced by place of residence, emigration of rural young, and household affluence. The lack of local participation in management and inadequate dissemination of information posed obstacles to effective conservation. The high expectation of accruing benefits from development projects, including tourism, might be misplaced and might not be realized. The present honeymoon period of positive attitudes could end soon if the hopes remain unfulfilled for too long. The need to win sustained local support and provide alternative means of livelihood is emphasized.     

Strategic Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programs: A Methodology for Estimating Effects on Biodiversity

We developed a methodology for biodiversity evaluations within the process of Strategic Environmental Assessment and we applied it to the estimation of the effect of two Regional Plans of Development on all bird species inhabiting the Castilla y León region (northwestern Spain). The methodology is based on the evaluation of the effects of main development actions on the habitat requirements of species. From these evaluations, and from data on the current distribution and population size (number of individuals) of each species, we estimated the most likely pattern of distribution and population size after the full implementation of the plans for each species. The impacts of the plans were quantified as the differences between the pre- and postproject patterns after codifying them to compensate for differences in the quality of the information available among species. Overall, we conclude that the proposed methodology fulfills the requirements for its use within the SEA process as it allows for the assessment of cumulative impacts on every species, highlighting the development directions and the habitat types with major impacts, and ascertaining whether impacts affect species with either low or high conservation and/or economic value. Generalization of the proposed methodology to other regions or species will require wildlife-habitat models adequate for SEA analyses, so that we also propose guidelines for the development and validation of these models.