Munessa forest is one of the undifferentiated afromontane forests in Ethiopia and that has threatened by deforestation, open grazing system and illegal logging operations. This study aimed to estimate the forest stand structure, tree species composition and diversity of tree species and regeneration status in Munessa natural forest. Vegetation data were collected from 54 plots of 20 m x 20 m for trees and 162 subplots of 5 m x 5 m for seedlings and saplings laid along six parallel transect lines. Floristic structure, basal area (BA), Importance value index (IVI) and species prioritization were analyzed using spreadsheet programs. Correlation coefficients, vegetation classification, Shannon diversity index and evenness were analyzed using RStudio 3.2.2. A total of 61 tree species (41 families) were recorded. Fabaceae was the most dominant family represented by four species followed by Oleaceae and Rutaceae, each having three species. The hierarchical cluster analysis revealed four community types, of which Syzygium guineense -Croton macrostachyus community type, exhibited the highest species diversity and evenness. The Shannon diversity and evenness index for the entire study area was 2.6 and 0.39 respectively. The correlation between elevation and species richness was negative and insignificant (r = -0.545, p < 0.05). The densities of seedlings, saplings and mature trees were 6,934, 1,686 and 481 individuals per ha respectively. This indicated that the regeneration status was significantly lower compared to other similar sites. The total BA of the forest was 91.75 m 2 per ha and its IVI ranged from 0.62 for Calpurnia aurea (Ait.) Benth. to 70.29 for Podocarpus falcatus (Thumb.) R.B.ex.Mirb. The estimated values of forest structure and regeneration status of the forest indicated that there was a huge disturbance induced by open grazing and illegal tree cutting. Therefore participatory forest management strategies need to be implemented to protect the forest sustainably.

Background Increasing evidence suggests that anthropogenic effects are responsible for drastic changes in landscape patterns and ecosystem services. This study aims to assess the effects of landscape change and agro-climatic variation on selected soil physical and chemical properties in the Bale Mountains national park. A combination of stratified and systematic sampling techniques was employed to draw representative soil samples. A total of 72 soil samples (3 agro-climatic zones × 3 land cover types × 2 habitat gradients × 4 replications = 72) at a depth of 0–20 cm were collected for the soil physical and chemical property analysis. A two-way analysis of variance was conducted to determine the level of variation in soil parameters. Tukey’s honest significance difference (HSD) test was used to compare treatment means at a 0.05 level of significance. Results The results suggest that soil parameters differed significantly (p < 0.05) among agro-climatic zones, land cover, and habitat gradients. The soil pH, SOC, TN, AP, CEC and clay content were significantly higher in the lower altitude, natural vegetation and interior habitat, whereas the soil sand and silt content as well as the soil bulk density were significantly higher in the farmland and edge habitat. Conclusions Conservation and restoration priority should be given to those vegetation types and ecosystems that are highly affected by human interferences such as the grassland in the middle altitude, ericaceous land in the higher altitude, and moist forest in the lower altitudes.

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