ABSTRACT
Due to anthropogenic pressures, Ethiopian Afromontane forests, particularly Lewi Mountain and Wetland, are threatened and require urgent restoration planning and implementation. However, there is a lack of scientific baseline information to provide efficient restoration planning and implementation. Thus, this scientific research is being conducted to evaluate the condition of the vegetation and soil properties, specific to environmental variability in the study area. The study area was stratified as a natural forest patch, plantation stands, and wetland, and transect lines were established at a distance of 200 m across the elevation. The 0.04-ha plots were established at transects with a distance of 200 m. The biophysical and environmental data were collected and analyzed at each plot using descriptive and inferential statistics. The vegetation and soil parameters of natural forest patches, slopes, aspects, and elevation gradients vary considerably (p 0.029). The natural forest patches, gentle slopes, lower elevations, and northeast-facing gradients had the largest species diversity (1.7-2.4) and carbon stock (1105.9 tons ha-1). At the natural forest patch, there was significant human and livestock disturbance (3) and sporadic vegetation cover (< 50%). Natural forest patches and plantation stands had the best textural proportion, organic carbon (2.5-2.63%), total nitrogen (0.22-0.23%), available phosphorus (27.9 ppm), and available potassium (11.3-12.9 ppm). The study discovered that the soil and vegetation state at Lewi Mountain and the wetland fluctuated in response to environmental changes, necessitating restoration design and implementation tailored to environmental variability. This data is critical as a foundation for local, national, and international ecological restoration agents.
Subject(s)
Soil , Wetlands , Humans , Ethiopia , Environmental Monitoring , Forests , Carbon/analysisABSTRACT
Almost all habitats on the planet are home to birds, from the lowest deserts to the highest mountains. Birds have proved to be excellent indicators of biodiversity or productivity as they are easily observed and are relatively well known compared to other animals. Although bird species are distributed across the globe, habitat destruction, fragmentation, and loss have adversely affected their survival and distribution. Therefore, this study is an attempt to prepare a baseline data on avifaunal diversity with their relative abundance and species richness in different habitats within Lewi Mountain Awi zone, Ethiopia from December 2018 to October 2020, including both the wet and dry seasons. The sampling sites were stratified based on land cover features, and transect count techniques were employed. The data were summarized per season and habitat type in the excel spreadsheet throughout the study period. In this study, one-way ANOVA was used to determine the effect of habitat type on species diversity and abundance. T-tests are also use to analyze bird populations among seasons. A total of 1591 individuals, 56 bird species belonging to 29 families and 12 orders were identified during the two seasons. The Wetland habitat had the highest species diversity index (H' = 3) with high evenness index (J = 0.88) during the dry season followed by the open shrubs habitat (H' = 2.97) with the highest evenness index (J = 0.95). The settlement had the lowest species diversity (H' = 2.17) and the lowest evenness index (J = 0.8) in the same season. During the wet season, disturbed forests recorded the highest Shannon-Weiner diversity index (H' = 3.2) with the highest evenness (J = 0.92) followed by Wetland habitat (H' = 2.97) with high evenness index (J = 0.87). During dry and wet seasons, the abundance of birds' species in different habitat types did not differ significantly (F = 1.91, p = 0.193, dƒ = 3) and (F = 1.579, p = 0.199, dƒ = 3), respectively. From all studied habitats, the overall mean abundance of bird species between dry and wet seasons was significantly different (F = 3642, P ≤ 0.001, dƒ = 1). In conclusion, settlement had the lowest species diversity and the lowest evenness index in the research area for the entire season. The habitats are important to the conservation of birds, so good habitat management is required, such as minimizing agricultural expansion and overgrazing, demarcating the forest habitats for wild species only, and creating awareness among local communities.
