Current floristic composition, life form and productivity of the grasslands in the Hunting Zone of Djona (Benin)

Abstract

Objectives: This paper addressed temporal changes in floristic composition, plant communities’ structures and productivity of grasslands. The study was conducted in the Hunting zone of Djona in the Transboundary Biosphere Reserve of W (TBRW) Benin.
Methodology and Results: For these purpose 30 plots of 900m² were used and “phytosociological relevés” were done following ecological uniformity, floristic homogeneity and samples representativeness to established plants communities. Biomass was estimated in 30 plots of 100 m². Results showed that the greatest productivity value (8320 ± 0.21 kg DM/ha) was observed in Andropogon gayanus-Schizachyrium sanguineum grassland. The dominant life forms in all plants communities of the study area are the phanerophytes followed by therophytes. For chorological types, all plants communities are dominated by the species of the Sudanian base element and species with broad distribution.
Conclusions and application of findings: The identified life forms and chorological types showed an evolution of the post farming pastures to woodlands and savannas vegetation, which explains the current floristic composition of the area. Moreover, it will be possible to model the impact of grasslands exploitation on the viability of the protected area particularly in the context of climate change and for this, it’s important to undertake a long-term study in order to take into account all variations and all causes of these variations.

Keywords: Grasslands; productivity; floristic composition; protected area;Benin.