Uses and Conservation of Plant Species in a NationalPark-A Case Study of Ben En, Vietnam. This paper surveys the use of wild and cultivated plants by local people in Ben En National Park, Vietnam, and analyzes its impact on the conservation status of some of the utilized species. A total of 208 species used for a range of nonmedicinal purposes are listed. See Hoang et al. (2008a) for 230 medicinal plants used in the park. Most species are used for food. The use of plants contributes very significantly to the livelihood of local people in the park, but the current use patterns are not sustainable and would lead to local extinction of rare and endangered species if no additional conservation measures are introduced. Men collect nonmedicinal plants more often than women. A total of 38 useful plant species are commercialized, and contribute 12% of the average income of individual households. Bamboo shoots of Schizostachyum funghomii (Poaceae) are the most important for income generation. The monetary equivalent of noncommercialized useful plants probably far exceeds the value of the traded plant products. Plant use is independent of the ethnicity of the different populations living in the park.Larger households make use of a greater variety of useful plant species than small families. Abundant species in the forest have a higher use index (UI) than less common species. Out of the 208 useful species, as many as 27 were found to be endangered locally, many more than the 11 or 8 endangered species included in national or global red lists. Currently, useful plants, especially important timber trees, are more abundant in the less disturbed parts of the park, far away from the villages, indicating the pressures of illegal logging and harvesting near villages on the ecosystems.
The conversion of natural forests to different land uses still occurs in various parts of Southeast Asia with poor records of impact on ecosystem services and biodiversity. We quantified such impacts on earthworm diversity in two communes of Quang Nam province, Vietnam. Both communes are situated within buffer zones of a nature reserve where remaining natural forests are under threat of continued conversion. We identified 25 different earthworm species, out of which 21 were found in natural forests, 15 in agroforestry, 14 in planted forests, and seven each in annual croplands and home gardens. Out of the six species that were omnipresent inhabitants of all observed habitats, Pontoscolex corethrurus largely dominated habitats with intensive anthropogenic activities but was rare in natural forests. Natural and regenerated forests had a much denser earthworm population in the top 10 cm of soil rather than in deeper soil layers. We conclude that the conversion of natural forests into different land uses has reduced earthworm diversity which can substantially affect soil health and ecosystem functions in the two communes. Protection of the remaining natural forests is urgent, while the promotion of a tree-based farming system such as agroforestry can reconcile earthworm conservation and local livelihoods.
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