Journal de la biodiversité et des espèces menacées

Plant Community Composition and Structure of Asabot Dry Afromontane Forest, West Harare Zone, Ethiopia

Abstract

Tura TT*, Soromessa T, Leta S and Argaw M

Dry Afromontane forests are the most altered and threatened ecosystem. Indeed, having a diverse ecosystem and biodiversity designated as a priority site in conservation. The objective of this study was to demonstrate plant community structure, regeneration status, and conservation priority species. The study was conducted on Asabot mountain forest which is found in West Harare Zone, Oromia National Regional State, Ethiopia. The vegetation sampling was designed at clustered altitude through mixed spatial stratified-random sampling method to ensure a full coverage of environmental variation and habitat heterogeneity. The main parameters used in vegetation characterization was diameter at breast height (DBH), height, seedling, and sapling of wood species recorded at sampled quadrat. The study analyzed plant community indicator species, importance value index, and vegetation structure and regeneration status, and conservation priority of selected species. The plant community was described by 97 species of 90 genera and 52 families. The result showed that eight specific trends and three general trends of population structure based on DBH, seedling, sapling and mature trees or shrubs. The dominant classes of the Asabot dry Afromontane forest were small trees and shrubs which is an indication of secondary vegetation. The conservation priority classification and visual field observations of some woody species were required urgent management intervention. Furthermore, the detail botanical aspects of the forest, the reason for the absence of regeneration in some tree species and socio-economic aspect of the vicinity is strongly recommended farther research in order to inaugurate appropriate management intervention.