International Journal of Biodiversity and Conservation

Full Length Research Paper

Floristic composition, diversity and vegetation

structure of woody plant communities in Boda
dry evergreen Montane Forest, West Showa,
Ethiopia
Fikadu Erenso*, Melesse Maryo and Wendawek Abebe
Department of Biology, Dilla University, P.O Box 419, Ethiopia.
Receive 07 March, 2014; Accepted 15 April, 2014

This study was conducted on Boda Forest in West Showa Zone, Oromia National Regional State,
west Ethiopia with the objective of determining the floristic composition, species diversity and the
vegetation structure of the woody plant communities in Boda natural forest. Systematic sampling
method was used to collect the vegetation data. Accordingly, 60 plots of 20 x 20 m (400 m
2

) quadrats were laid at

every 50 m along five transect lines from south to north direction using compass. Vegetation
parameters such as diameter at breast height (DBH), height and density of the study woody
species were recorded, and all the collected vascular plant species were brought to National
Herbarium of Ethiopia for identification. Vegetation classification was performed using R program
Version 2.15.2 software vegan and labdsv packages. The Sorensens’s similarity coefficient and
Shannon-Wiener diversity index were also used to detect similarities among communities and to
compute species diversity and evenness between the plant communities, respectively. A total of
95 species belonging to 76 genera and 58 families were identified from the forest. The collected
species were composed of 34.7% trees, 45.2% shrubs, 13.6% liana, 3% epiphyte, 1% trees/shrubs
and 1% tree/liana. Five community types, Galiniera saxifrage-Maesa lanceolata, Juniperus
procera-Myrsine Africana, Carissa spinarum-Helichrysum citrispinum, Osyris quadripartite-Rhus
ruspolii and Acacia abyssinica-Gomphocarpus fruticosus were recognized from the hierarchical
cluster analysis. Generally, the forest was dominated by the small sized trees and shrubs
indicating that it is in the stage of secondary regeneration. The presence of strong anthropogenic
disturbance in the area necessitates the need for an immediate conservation action in order to
ensure the sustainable utilization and management of the forest.
Key words: Anthropogenic disturbance, diversity, floristic composition, plant community, population structure.
INTRODUCTION
Ethiopia is one of the countries in the world endowed with rich biological resources. One of these resources is
natural vegetation where floristic and faunistic life forms
dynamic ecosystems (Balcha, 2002). The major eco- logical systems in the country support large and highly varied
genetic resources along with its extremely
*Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected].
Author(s) agree that this article remain permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License
4.0 International License
Vol. 6(5), pp. 382-391, May 2014 DOI: 10.5897/IJBC2014.0703 Article Number: B467A9A44257 ISSN 2141-243X Copyright
© 2014 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article http://www.academicjournals.org/IJBC
variable agro-climatic conditions and the altitudinal ranges (-110 to 4,620 m a.s.l at Ras Dejen) (FAO, 1996). The
varied topography, the rift valley and the surrounding lowlands have given Ethiopia a wide spectrum of habitats and
a large number of endemic plants and animals (Teketay, 1999; Woldu, 1999).The size of Ethiopian flora is estimated
to be over 6500-7000 species of vascular plants, of which about 12% are considered endemic (Tewolde, 1991).
According to Kelbessa et al. (1992), 120 threatened endemic plant species are known from Ethiopia. Thirty five of
these species were from the dry afromontane forests of the country. Dry evergreen montane forest has a very
complex type of vegetation, roughly above 1500 m a.s.l. and below 3200 m a.s.l., with an average annual
temperature and rainfall of 14-25°C and 700-1100 mm, respectively (Friis, 1992; Woldu, 1999). The Boda dry
evergreen montane forest is one of the remnant dry afromontane forests that are found in the high lands of West
Showa next to Chilimo National forest. Settlements, illegal cutting, small patches of farmland, substitution by the
exotic species and open pasture fields are challenges that are facing this forest. Overgrazing and continuous human
interference are believed to lead to an irreversible change in the function of forests (Bishaw, 2001). It also frequently
leadto loss of forest cover and biodiversity, erosion, desertification and reduced water resources (Kelbessa and
Soromessa, 2008). Indigenous knowledge on medicinal and other useful plants is also eroded with destruction of
these forests (Hundera and Gadissa, 2008).
However, forest resources are the fruits of evolution that are developed through the combined influence of physical
environment and people, and play important economic, social and cultural roles, particularly in the lives of many
local communities. For instance, the multitude of uses, which could be obtained for trees and shrubs have been
categorized as timber, fuelwood and charcoal, food, forage, medicine, raw materials as well as protection and soil
improvement (Teketay and Bekele, 2005).
In order to maintain ecological equilibrium and to meet the forest product requirements, of the species diversity,
floristic composition and vegetation structure are important to judge the success of the conservation efforts of the
natural forests for their sustainability. No such study was done on Boda natural forest. There is a lack of knowledge
on the sustainable forest management in the local community. Currently, intensive use of land for agriculture, and
the high demand of wood for different purposes are leading to the loss of plant species. People were attracted only to
temporary yields obtained at the initial stage without realizing the outcome they would be facing in the long term
(Abebe, 2007). The present trend of forest management needs a step forward progress that depends on scientific data
or information to minimize uncontrolled exploitation and restrict the conversion of
Erenso et al. 383
forest into agricultural land, and the substitution by the exotic species. Otherwise, the small remnants of natural
forest left will be gone in the very near future. Based on this background and baseline, this study was undertaken
aiming at describing and providing available floristic information of Boda natural forest, including some impacts on
the vegetation of the study area.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The study area
The study area, Dendi district, is one of the eighteen districts of the West Showa zone of Oromia Regional State. The district
capital city, Ginchi, is located 77 km west of Addis Ababa, on the Addis Ababa-Naqamte Road. Geographically, the district lies
within the coordinates of 8°43'N-9°17' N and 37°47'E-38°20' E. The district covers about a total area of 104,680 ha. Of which 72,
836 ha is covered by farm land, 19,080 ha grazing-land, 9,685 ha forest and shrubs and others 3,079 ha with the population of
192,784 (99,475 males and 93309 females). The district has 48 farmers associations and five urban, out of which Ghinchi and
Olankomi have municipal governments (Dendi District Report, 2011).
Boda natural forest at Boda Bosoka has Farmers associations, 22 km away from the district’s capital city, along Ginchi- Busa
Road Figure 1. It covers around 20 ha.
The physiographic region of the district is characterized by one major escarpment running from east to west direction. The
steepness of the escarpment varies from place to place being generally steeper at the central part of the district. Both on the top
and bottom, the escarpment merges with flat lands largely used for farming. The altitudinal range of the district is between 2,000
to 3,288 m a.s.l. Besides, the relief feature of the area is characterized by rugged topography, which provides a variety of hills
having interesting scenes. The district is an important watershed area for Awash and Nile river basin (Bekele, 1994).
Climate
The district has three traditional agro-climatic regions namely: Dega (10%), Woina-Dega (60%) and Kolla (30%). The annual
average temperature of the study area is 17.5°C. The mean minimum and maximum temperature of the district is 9.3 and 23.8°C
respectively. The study area has two rainy seasons with an average annual precipitation of 1,225 mm where the minor rainy
season extend from March to May, and the major rainy season from June to September (Dendi District Report, 2011).
Soil
The majority of the soil of the district range from sandy to sandy- loams and clay-loams. Generally, the soils are reddish brown
and shallow at higher altitudes, while at lower altitudes they tend to become dark-gray and deep-gray. The soils in the
surrounding low plains are vertisols black soils with characteristics of high clay content (CNRASD, 1999; cited in Tamrat, 1993).
Vegetation and wildlife
Dendi District is covered with ever green forests with various types of vegetation. The entire high land of the district is believed
to have been covered once with dense forest. According to Friis (1992) the
384 Int. J. Biodivers. Conserv.
Figure 1. Location map of Dendi District and study site (ODA, 2011).
forest in the study area is considered as one of the remnant dry evergreen Afro-mountane forests of Ethiopia. The major tree
species in the canopy are Junipers procera, Podocarpus falcatus, Prunus africana, Olea europaea subsp. cuspiaata, Hagenia
abssinica, Ficus spp., Croton macrostachyus and Eucalyptus globulus. Besides, in the study area small indigenous flowering
grasses, herbs as well as bushes such as Carissa edulis and Rosa abyssinica are very common.
Wildlife species Phacochoerus africanus, Redunca redunca, Cercopithecus aethiops, Sylvicapra grimmia, Crocuta
crocuta and various types of bird species including Bostrychia carunculata, Cyanochen cyanoptera, Serinus
nigriceps, Poicephalus flavifrons, Agapornis taranta, Tauraco leucotis, Alcedo semitorquata are common.
Sampling design
The vegetation data were collected systematically from 60 plots of 20 x 20 m (400 m
much vegetation as possible that can represent the vegetation of the study area. Plant species in each plot was counted and
recorded at individual level, and voucher specimens was also collected, numbered, pressed and taken to the National Herbarium
of Ethiopia (ETH), Addis Ababa University, for identification and storage following standard taxonomic method (Bridson and
Forman, 1992).
Floristic data collection and identification
Additional plant species occurring outside the quadrats, but inside the forest within 10 m distance was also recorded only as
‘present’ for floristic composition, but they were not used in the subsequent vegetation data analysis (Bekele, 1994). The
vernacular (local) names were used when available. The altitude of each quadrat was recorded by using global Positioning
System (Garmin 12 channel GPS). Specimens with height >2 m were identified, counted and measured using a clinometers and
mater tape. Where topographic 2
) quadrats laid at every 50 m along 5 transect
features make it difficult to measure their height
were estimated lines from south-north direction using compass following the Braun-
visually. All individuals of the trees with a
circumference > 7 cm at Blanquet approach of phytosociology as modified by vander Maarel
breast height (DBH 2.50 m) were also measured and
recorded. The (1979). The distance between each transect line was 100 m in a
reported specimens of the woody species were
collected, identified zigzag form of starting point of laying plot. This is to include as
and deposited at the National Herbarium, Addis Ababa University.
Plant diversity and population structure data analysis
Biological diversity could be quantified in different ways. Shannon- Wiener diversity index and species richness were computed
to describe species diversity, and the population size of each of the species present (Mueller-Dombis and Ellennberg, 1974).
Shannon - Wiener diversity index is the most popular measure of species diversity because it accounts both for species richness
and evenness, and it is not affected by sample size (Kent and Coker, 1992; Krebs, 1999). Shannon-Wiener diversity index is
calculated as follows:
Where, H’ = Shannon diversity index; S = the number of species; Pi = the proportion of individuals or the abundance of the ith
species expressed as a proportion of total cover; ln = logbase
n
. The minimum value of H' is 0, which is the value for a community with a
single species, and increases as species richness and evenness increases (Manuel and Molles, 2007).
Evenness (Equitability) is measured as the relative abundance of the different species making up the richness of an area and
when compared the similarity of the population size of each of the species present. The species evenness that measures the equity
of species in a given sample area is represented by 0 and 1, where 0 indicates the abundance of few species and 1 indicates the
condition where all species are equally abundant (Whittaker, 1975). Shannon's equitability (J) or Evenness is calculated as
follows:
J = H/Hmax = H/lns
Where, J = Evenness, H’ = Shannon-Wiener diversity index and H’max = ln s, where s is the number of species.
Sorensen’s similarity index is used to evaluate woody species composition (tree/shrubs) and species distribution among the plant
communities. It was described using the following formula (Kent and Coker, 1992):
Ss = 2a/(2a+b+c),
Where: Ss = Sorensen’s similarity coefficient; a = number of species common to both communities; b = number of species in
community 1; c = number of species in community 2.
The diameter at breast height (DBH), basal area, tree density, height, frequency and importance value index were used for
description of vegetation structure. These vegetation data were computed and summarized using Microsoft Office Excel (2007)
spread sheet using the following formulae (Mueller-Dombois and Ellenberg, 1974; Kent and Coker, 1992). The frequency
distribution of tree species was calculated as: Frequency (F): The probability or chance of finding a species in a given sample area
or quadrat. It is dependent on quadrat size, plant size and patterning in the vegetation (Kent and Coker, 1992). It is calculated with
this formula:
Relative Frequency (RF): It is the frequency of species A/sum of frequencies of all species x100. Density of a species = is a count
of the numbers of individuals of a species within the quadrat (Kent and Coker, 1992). It is closely related to abundance but more
useful in estimating the importance

Erenso et al. 385

of a species. Counting is usually done in quadrats placed several times in the plant communities under study. Afterwards, the sum
of individuals per species is calculated in terms of species density per convenient area unit such as a hectare (Mueller-Dombois
and Ellenberg, 1974).
Relative density = Density of species A/total density of all species x 100. Basal area (BA): Basal area is the area outline of a plant
near ground surface. It is expressed in square m/hectare (Mueller- Dombois and Ellenberg, 1974). It is measured through
diameter, usually at breast height (DBH) that is 1.3 m above ground level. It is also used to calculate the species dominance. DBH
values were calculated from circumference measurements and used in the formula for the estimation of basal area as follows:
Where, BA = Basal Area in m2 per hectare; d = diameter at breast height in meter. d = C/π, where c = circumference, π= 3.14.
Dominance: It is the mean basal area per species time’s abundance of the species. Relative dominance (RDO): It is basal area of a
species /total basal area of all species x 100 Importance values index (IVI) was analyzed for woody species. IVI of a species was
calculated from the sum of relative dominance (RDO), relative density (RD) and relative frequency (RF) (Kent and Coker, 1992).
IVI = RDO + RD + RF
Plant community determination
The vegetation data analysis was made based on presence absence data. The R program Version 2.15.2 software vegan and labdsv
packages (The R Core Team, 2012) was used to classify the vegetation into communities. The community name was derived
based on the tree and/or shrub with high synoptic value.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Floristic plant species composition
A total of 95 specimens of woody plants (shrubs, trees, and lianas) were identified from the forest. The identified
species belong to 76 genera and 58 families. Two species were observed outside the sampling plots in the study area
within the ranges of ten meters distance from the plot boundary. These were Geranium arabicum and Opuntia ficus
indica. The collected species were composed of 34.7% trees, 45.2% shrubs, 13.6% liana, 3% epiphyte, 1%
trees/shrubs and 1% tree/liana.
Plant community classification
Cluster analysis was used to identify groups of sites (vegetation samples) that are similar in terms of their
386 Int. J. Biodivers. Conserv.
Figure 2. Dendrogram showing plant community types of the study area.

woody species composition. The abundance data of a species were used for the analysis. R program Version 2.15.2
software (The R Core Team, 2012) was used to perform a hierarchical cluster dendrogram, which depic- ted the
vegetation community of woody species. The five plant community types (clusters) at Boda natural forest (Figure 2)
and the five communities and distri-butions of the sample plots in the communities were identified (Table 1).
The indicator values for each species in each group and tests for statistical significance (P<0.05) were analyzed to
name the vegetation community (Table 2). The values are based only on the species abundance and frequency
comparisons. In order to obtain an effective description of community types and their environmental relations, both
classificatory and ordination techniques were employed.
Galiniera saxifrage-Maesa lanceolata community type
This community was represented by three plots and 53 woody plant species. Rhamnus staddo, Premna
schimpehi, Juniperus procera, Maytenus heterophylla and Hypericum quartineanum were the importance
species in the tree layer of the community. Canthium oligocarpum, Abrus schimperi, Sparmanna ricinocarpa and
Myrsine africana were important species in the shrub layer. The common Lianas in this community include Toddalia
asiatica and Gladiolus dalenii. Salvia nilotica, Pentas lanceola and Peperomia abyssinica were also importance herb
species in this community.
Juniperus procera-Myrsine africana community type
This community was represented by nine plots and 61 plant species. Maytenus addat, Hagenia abyssinica and Rhus
vulgaris were the importance species of the tree layer of the community.
In the shrub layer Hibiscus panduliformis, Myrsine africana and Carissa spinarum were the importance
species.
Carissa spinarum-Helichrysum citrispinum community type
This community was represented by 18 plots and 46 plant species. Acanthus polystachius, Sida schimperiana,
Erenso et al. 387
Table 1. The communities and distributions of the sample plots in the communities.
Community Number of plots Plots in the community I 3 25, 26, 33 II 9 43, 44, 45, 24, 27, 9, 10, 7, 2 III 18 51, 52, 53, 29, 30, 41,
42, 49, 45, 47, 43, 1, 11, 12, 21, 22, 19, 20 IV 6 4, 5, 6, 13, 14, 15 V 24 18, 37, 38, 39, 40, 56, 60, 23, 54, 55, 59, 57, 53, 34, 35,
31, 50, 2, 3, 32, 33, 16, 17
Table 2. Indicator plant species for each community and the test of significance (P*value) observed for each indicator species.
Indicator species Local name
I Communities
II III IV V
P*value
Galiniera saxifraga Mixoo 0.49 0.00 0.00 0.06 0.08 0.00 Maesa lanceolata Abayyii 0.42 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 Juniperus
procera Gaatiraa 0.21 0.41 0.10 0.21 0.00 0.21 Myrsine africana Qacama 0.16 0.37 0.02 0.14 0.00 0.00 Carissa spinarum Agamsa
0.20 0.20 0.36 0.20 0.20 0.90 Helichrysum citrispinum Mukaa gaguraa 0.00 0.00 0.65 0.02 0.00 0.00 Osyris quadripartita Waatoo
0.03 0.00 0.00 0.59 0.00 0.00 Rhus rus polii Daboobesaa 0.00 0.02 0.00 0.50 0.00 0.00 Acacia abyssinica Laafto 0.00 0.04 0.10
0.00 0.60 0.03 Gomphocarpus fluticosus Aanannoo 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.67 0.00
Table 3. Sorensen’s similarity coefficient among the plant communities.
Community I II III IV V I II 0.43 III 0.22 0.35 IV 0.37 0.38 0.31 V 0.23 0.23 0.21 0.24

and Solanum marginatum were the importance species of the shrub layer of the community. The common Lianas in
this community include Lagenaria abyssinica, Senna septemtrionalis and Clematis longicauda.
Osyris quadripartite- Rhus ruspolii community type
This community was represented by six plots and 38 plant species. Mimusops kummel, Clerodendrum mylicoides,
Juniperus procera, Maytenus addat and Maytenus heterophylla were the importance species of the tree layer of the
community. The shrub layer is dominated by Solanum anguivi and Lippia adoensis. The common climbers in this
community include Clematis
longicauda and Dregea abyssinica.
Acacia abyssinica-Gomphocarpus fruticosus community type
This community was represented by 25 plots and 31 plant species. Juniperus procera, Dovyalis
abyssinica, Cupressus lusitanica and Eucalyptus globulus were the importance species of the tree layer
of the community. The shrub layer is dominated by Canthium oligocarpum, Euphorbia schimperiana,
Carissa spinarum, Ocimum lamiifolium and Solanum giganteum.
Community similarity analysis
The Sorensen’s similarity index measures the degree to which the species composition of forest or samples is alike,
whereas dissimilarity coefficient assesses which two forest or samples differ in composition. Based on this, similarity
in species composition slightly varied among communities Table 3.
The highest similarity was observed between com- munities I and II (43%). The least similarity was observed
between community III and V (21%), followed by community I and III. Overall similarity coefficient ranges
388 Int. J. Biodivers. Conserv.
Table 4. Species richness, evenness and Shannon-Wiener diversity index of the plant community types.
Community Species richness Diversity index (H’) H’max Species evenness (J) I 53 1.72 1.9 0.09 II 61 1.79 2.0 0.09 III 46 1.66
1.8 0.08 IV 38 1.58 1.8 0.08 V 31 1.49 1.4 0.08

from 21-43% among all the communities. Thus, species composition dissimilarities account for 57% of the most
similar communities and 79% of those that share least similarity (community III and V)
Species diversity
The five communities have almost the same species distribution (equitability or evenness) but comparatively
community V has the least species evenness Table 4.
Vegetation structure
Frequency
We recorded a total of 682 woody plants per ha- from all quadrats. The most frequent of the tree species in this
forest found was J. procera (93.44%), occurring in almost all of the quadrats sampled, followed by Maytenus
heterophylla (49.18%) and Maytenus addat (44.26%), while species like Ficus vast, Euphorbia ampliphylla,
Podocarpus falcatus, Erithrina brueci and Maesa lanceolata were poorly represented.
Basal area
The total basal area of all tree species in Boda Forest was calculated from DBH data. It was found to be 114.64 m
trees in Boda Forest are J. procera, Maytenus heterophylla, Ficus vast, Mayteus addat, Eucalyptus
globulus, Rhamnus staddo, Ekebergia capensis and Premna schimpehi on the basis of their IVI values
relative to other species Table 5, but Bersama abyssinica, Acacia abyssinica, Cordia africana, Rhus rus
polii and Olea europaea are species among the lowest relative IVI values.
DISCUSSION
Floristic composition
In this study, a total of 95 woody species, including shrubs, trees, shrubs/trees, epiphyte, liana and tree/- liana), were
recorded. Overall diversity and evenness were 1.79 and 0.09, respectively. According to Kent and Coker (1992), the
Shannon-Weiner diversity index normally varies between 1.5 and 3.5 and rarely exceeds 4.5. In our study area,
however, there is high diversity and evenness showing more or less even representation of individuals of most woody
species in the sampled quadrats.
Vegetation structure
Vegetation classification is a powerful tool employed for several purposes, including: efficient communication, 2
/ha. J. procera has the highest basal area (25.5%) followed by Podocarpus falcatus (24.64%). On the other hand
the lowest (below 0.56 m
2

/ha) was recorded for most species like Rhamnus prinoides, Rhamnus staddo,
Dovyalis abyssinica, Maesa lanceolata. Thus, the species with the largest basal area could be considered the most
important species in the forest.
With regard to basal area, the most important species of the study forest includes Juniperus procera,
Podocarpus falcatus, Ekebergia capensis, Olea europaea, Ficus vasta, Cupressus lusitanica and
Eucalyptus globulus.
data reduction and synthesis, interpretation, and land management and planning. It also provides one way of
summarizing our knowledge of vegetation patterns (Dalle et al., 2005). The study identified five plant community
types (clusters) at Boda natural forest. Plant communities are conceived as types of vegetation recognized by their
floristic composition. The species compositions of com- munities better express their relationships to one another
and environment than any other characteristic.
Community types I and II, which is dominated by G. saxifrage, M. lanceolata J. procera and M. africana, is found in
specialized habitats such as along river courses. The stands sampled in this type are located at the middle of the
forest, which is less grazed by cattle and its human Importance value index (IVI)
impact is found to be low. Regenerating species of M. addat, H. abyssinica and R. vulgaris are common here. The
most leading dominant and ecologically significant
Community types III, is rich in shrub layer species and
Erenso et al. 389
Table 5. The high importance value index (IVI) of tree species in Boda Forest.
Botanical name RDO RD RF IVI IVI% Juniperus procera 10.96 41.76 15.7 68.42 22.81 Maytenus heterophylla 1.22 9.16 8.26
18.64 6.21 Ficus vasta 16.37 0.18 0.83 17.38 5.79 Mayteus addat 0.96 7.33 7.44 15.72 5.24 Eucalyptus globulus 11.78 2.81 1.1
15.69 5.23 Ekebergia capensis 7.27 1.95 3.03 12.25 4.08 Rhamnus staddo 1.22 4.33 6.61 12.17 4.05 Cordia africana 7.95 0.85
2.75 11.56 3.85 Cupressus lusitanica 8.66 2.08 0.83 11.56 3.85 Premna schimpehi 1.22 3 7.16 11.37 3.79 Olea europaea 2.54
1.95 4.96 9.45 3.15 Acacia abyssinica 2.95 2.81 3.03 8.79 2.93 Bersama abyssinica 1.82 2.75 1.38 5.94 1.98 Rhus ruspolii 1.22
1.1 2.2 4.52 1.51 Others 23.86 17.94 34.72 76.54 25.53 Total 100 100 100 300 100
RDO, Relative dominance; RD, relative density; RF, relative frequency; IVI, Importance values index.

woody climbers. The stands sampled in this community are located in an area having shallow soils with medium
human interference. In few of its stands introduced exotic species of C. lusitanica have been observed.
Community types V, is highly influenced by people collecting firewood, charcoal making and grazing animals.
During the survey of this study, in this community, illegal cutting by local people and introduced exotic species of C.
lusitanica and E. globules have been observed Plate 1. This is due to its being nearby to Boda town and having
species of plants suitable for charcoal making and firewood.
Low species evenness can be attributed to excessive environmental disturbances, variable conditions for
regeneration and selective exploitation of some species (Wassie and Teketay, 2006). Kidane (2003) also explained
that the highest species numbers are found at low disturbance intensities while there is a drastic decrease at high
disturbance intensity. The result of the present study agrees with this regarding species evenness. The five
communities have almost the same species distribution (equitability or evenness) but comparatively community V
has the least species evenness.
The patterns of plant species diversity have often been noted for prioritizing conservation activities because they
reflect the underlying ecological processes that are important for management (Lovett et al., 2000; Senbeta et al.,
2007). Based on similarity index measures, similarity in species composition slightly varied among communities.
The highest similarity was observed between communities I and II (43%) due to the communities having close
altitudinal similarity and
adaptation. The least similarity was observed between community III and V (21%), followed by community I and
III. This may be due to conservational variation and variation in disturbance due to anthropogenic activities. that is,
one area which is better protected varies from the one which is highly exposed to deforestation resulting in
communities’ variation. As it was reported by Denu (2007), in addition to altitudinal gradient, other environmental
factors such as aspect, slope, and soil physical and chemical properties have sound effects on patterns of vegetation
in communities. The present study agreed that high dissimilarity between species to communities may arise from the
altitudinal differences, degree of human impact (anthropogenic) action, over grazing and climatic conditions. For all
communities, the Sorensen’s similarity coefficient values were below 0.5, indicating the existence of low similarities
among the recognized communities which implies that all the communities are important in terms of floristic
diversity and needs attention from a conservation point of view.
According to Lamprecht (1989), species with the same importance value index (IVI) have the same or at least
similar population structure. The result indicates that high IVI was attributed to few species. These species are those
which are well adapted to the high pressure of disturbance, natural and environmental factors, and the effect of local
communities. In contrast to this idea, almost all species in this study showed variation in terms of their IVI, showing
different ecological importance of each species in the forest. In our study, basal area analysis across individual
species revealed that very few species had high dominance. J. procera was the leading dominant and other dominant
species in terms of basal
390 Int. J. Biodivers. Conserv.
Plate 1. Some areas of Boda natural forest (Photo by Fikadu, September, 2013G .C).

area were M. heterophylla, F. vast, M. addat, E. globulus, R. staddo, E. capensis and P. schimpehion. This implies
that these eight species are the most ecologically important woody species at Boda forest.
Conclusions
The results of the study indicated that the study forest had relatively high woody species diversity, that is, 95
specimens of plants (shrubs, trees, shrubs/trees, epiphyte, liana and tree/liana) and dominated by small sized tree and
shrub species in secondary stage of development, indicating that the forest was heavily exploited and affected in the
previous periods, but good regeneration is in process at the present time. Therefore, to improve the natural diversity
and structure of the forest, to minimize the influence of the surrounding communities and utilize the forest resources
sustainably for present and future generation, the following points were made as recommendations:
1. Initiate enrichment plantation program of those most leading dominant and ecologically significant trees, because
of the use of selective cutting by local peoples (e.g. P. falcatus, E. capensis and R. staddo). 2. Raising awareness of
local communities on the value of forest resources and ecological consequences of deforestation and device
mechanisms by which human
impacts can be minimized through discussion and consultation with the local communities with emphasis on
returning the benefits of the protected areas to those communities. 3. Use the cut and carry method for feeding
domestic animals than using free grazing method in the forest to enhance the germination capacity of the seeds in
the soil and seedling development of woody species.
Finally, further studies on soil properties, land use management system and detailed ethno-botanical studies are
also required to explore the wealth of indigenous knowledge on the diversity of plants and their implications in
conservation are also recommended
Conflict of Interests
The author(s) have not declared any conflict of interests.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to gratefully acknowledge Dilla University for financial support. Ginchi District, Agriculture and
Rural Development Offices for providing necessary information and to the communities that were helpful during the
field work and were kind enough to share their knowledge and experiences without reservations are highly
acknowledged.
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