Assessing forest products usage and local residents' perception of environmental changes in peri-urban and rural mangroves of Cameroon, Central Africa

Abstract

BackgroundDeforestation is one of the most ubiquitous forms of land degradation worldwide. Although remote sensing and aerial photographs can supply valuable information on land/use cover changes, they may not regularly be available for some tropical coasts (e.g., Cameroon estuary) where cloud cover is frequent. With respect to mangroves, researchers are now employing local knowledge as an alternative means of understanding forest disturbances. This paper was primarily aimed at assessing the mangrove forest products usage, along with the local people's perceptions on environmental changes, between Littoral (Cameroon estuary) and Southern (mouth of the Nyong River and Mpalla village) regions of Cameroon.MethodsThe data from both locations were obtained through conducting household interviews and field observations.ResultsIn the Cameroon estuary (Littoral region), 69.23% of respondents (mostly elders) could distinguish two to four mangrove plants, whereas the informants (65.45%) in the mouth of the Nyong River and Mpalla village (mostly young people interviewed from the Southern region) are familiar with only one or two commonly found mangroves. Also, more respondents from the Cameroon estuary are depending on mangroves for fuelwood (Rhizophora spp.) and housing (Rhizophora spp., Avicennia germinans (L.) Stearn and Nypa fruticans (Thumb.) Wurmb.) purposes, in contrast to Nyong River mouth and Mpalla village. Although local people perceived wood extraction as a greater disruptive factor, there are several causes for mangrove depletion in the Cameroon estuary. Among others, over-harvesting, clear-felled corridors, sand extraction and housing were found important. Furthermore, a decline in mangrove fauna composition (in terms of fishery products) was recorded in the Littoral as well as Southern regions. However, the causes of such perceived negative changes were not similar in both cases.ConclusionsFindings of this study highlight the need to improve sustainable management of the mangrove ecosystems through afforestation (in large impacted areas), selective removal of senescent tree stems and branches (in little damage stands), regulating sand extraction and housing activities, and creating awareness and law enforcement.

Molluscs’ Composition and Distribution in Mangroves of the Cameroon Central Coast

“…Six sampling stations were selected based on the level of vegetation degradation. The climate, soil and biological conditions of the areas have been well described by previous documents [11,14,15,16,17,18,22]. …”

“…These first results presume a decline in the species number of mollusc's community due to the damage experiences encountered in mangrove ecosystems in Cameroon [16,18]. However, the present study with 34 species demonstrates easily that certain molluscs, especially some gastropods, are not greatly affected by the loss of vegetation cover; as they are able to quickly colonize disturbed areas [32].…”

Diversity Shifts in the Mangrove Vegetation of the Rio del ReyEstuary (Cameroon)

“…In the monospecific stand, intra-specific competition prevent a large number of young plants reaching the mature age and canopy closure is a limiting factor for the growth of individuals [55]. This phenomenon is also observed in the Wouri estuary mangroves [18,20,37].…”

“…It is now commonly recognized that mangrove wood harvesting is a core economic activity for coastal communities in Cameroon and the rest of Central and Western Africa [17,18,19,20]. The unsustainable use of mangrove resources as a result of increasing population size and loss through ecosystems conversion for development activities is fragmenting and depleting this system on a large scale [21,22].…”

Effect of Anthropogenic Activities on Mangrove Crab Diversity in Cameroon Atlantic Coast

“…Wood harvesting making place to ancillary activities such as agriculture (12.5%), dwellings (5.4%), breeding (3.1%), brackish water aquaculture (1.5%) and Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) (1.2%). Moreover, damming up activities (for housing) followed by excavation of sediments (by sand extraction) also has an impact on mangrove biodiversity loss through the ground modification and habitat loss for some animals [19]. Human activities are known to have a massive impact on mangrove ecosystem, especially through deforestation [44].…”