Assessment of Threat Status in the Northern Woodlands of the Bale Mountains, Ethiopia: Indicator for Management Effectiveness

Abstract

The present study was carried out to identify the types and quantify the magnitude of human disturbances in six forest patches in the northern Bale Mountains, southeast Ethiopia. The principal objective was to compare three protected forest patches within the Bale Mountains National Park with three unprotected patches outside the park in terms of the severity of human-induced disturbances. Data was collected along five 1-km long transects in each patch. Eight major disturbance types were identified and quantified in the six forest patches: settlement, agriculture, selective logging, livestock herbivory, fuel wood collection, charcoal production, path/track formation and forest-fire. Results showed some degree of human disturbances in all patches, with logging, fuel wood collection, path/track formation and livestock grazing being the most widespread. Crop production, settlement and charcoal making, however, were only recorded in unprotected patches. Sixty percent and 47% of transects in these patches showed crop cultivation and houses respectively, covering 40% ha^-1.  The unprotected patches were characterized by significantly higher level of incidences of logged trees, fuel wood collection and livestock herbivory compared to the protected patches. For tree logging, this difference was however only observed for trees logged in recent years (estimated to be logged < 20 years) with  logging of larger trees (DBH > 10 cm) than smaller trees. Generally the protected areas had reduced human disturbance as indicated by low logging activity. This is a positive indicator of effective management practices in the protected area. 

Key Words: Bale Mountains, Disturbance, Logging, Management effectiveness, Threat