The ecology and management of non-timber forest resources

Abstract

No AccessStand Alone Books1 Feb 2013The ecology and management of non-timber forest resourcesAuthors/Editors: Charles M. Peters, World BankCharles M. Peters, World Bankhttps://doi.org/10.1596/0-8213-3619-3SectionsAboutPDF (0.9 MB) ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareFacebookTwitterLinked In Abstract:Tropical forests contain an incredible diversity of fruit, nuts, oil seeds, latexes, resins, gums, spices, and medicinal plants of great potential economic value. This report summarizes the current state of knowledge on the ecology of these non-timber resources and outlines a series of management recommendations for their sustainable harvest. The discussion is divided into four parts. The first part summarizes the basic characteristics of tropical plant populations that limit the nature and intensity of resource exploitation. The major problem areas include the diversity and low-density of tree species, the complexity of flowering and fruiting, the specificity of microsites for successful regeneration and growth, and the labile response of population structure to changes in the level of recruitment. The second part discusses the potential long-term ecological impacts resulting from the selective harvest of different plant tissues such as reproductive propagules (fruits, nuts, and oils seeds), plant exudates (latexes, resins, and gums), and vegetative structures (fibers, medicinals, rattans, and thatch). It is argued that most of the current commercial exploitation of non-timber resources is plagued by destructive harvesting, over-exploitation, and a basic disregard for the functional ecology of tropical plant populations. The third part outlines the basic inventory and yield data needed to develop a program of sustainable resource use. Two different methodologies for defining a sustainable level of harvest are discussed. The first, a conceptually simple, inexpensive, and straightforward process called successive approximation, monitors the population impact of exploitation and sequentially adjusts harvest levels over time to obtain a sustainable yield. The second method uses plant demography, matrix models and computer simulations to estimate the maximum quantity of resources that can be harvested from the forest without damaging the long-term regeneration of the species under exploitation. The fourth part provides an overview of conventional and indigenous forms of forest management and proposes a general sequence of silvicultural operations for enhancing the regeneration, growth, and productivity of different non-timber forest resources. Brief summaries are included at the end of each chapter and boxes are used to present supplementary material and to give examples of certain statistical procedures. FiguresreferencesRecommendeddetailsCited byNon-Timber Forest Products: Small Matters, Big Significance, and the Complexity of Reaching a Workable Definition for SustainabilitySmall-scale Forestry, Vol.22, No.117 June 2022Long-term monitoring of Aloidendron dichotomum populations: Does tracking individuals make a difference to general demographic findings?South African Journal of Botany, Vol.152Sustainable Harvesting System for Wild Plants with Medicinal Properties for the People of Muna Regency, IndonesiaInternational Journal of Scientific Research in Science, Engineering and Technology1 June 2022Effects of climate and protection status on growth and fruit yield of Strychnos spinosa Lam., a tropical wild fruit tree in West AfricaTrees, Vol.36, No.39 February 2022Demographic and growth patterns of Pentaclethra macroloba (Willd.) Kuntze, a hyperdominant tree in the Amazon River estuaryPopulation Ecology, Vol.64, No.217 January 2022Lomami Buffer Zone (DRC): Forest composition, structure, and the sustainability of its use by local communitiesBiotropica, Vol.54, No.227 December 2021From Tree Species to Forest Services: Ethnic Differences in Lomami, Democratic Republic of the CongoEconomic Botany, Vol.75, No.3-410 September 2021Woody Species Composition, Vegetation Structure, and Regeneration Status of Majang Forest Biosphere Reserves in Southwestern EthiopiaInternational Journal of Forestry Research, Vol.2021Structure and regeneration status of woody species in the Munessa Forest, Southern EthiopiaJournal of Forestry Research, Vol.32, No.213 April 2020Socioeconomic Factors Determining Extraction of Non-timber Forest Products on the Slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro, TanzaniaHuman Ecology, Vol.48, No.610 November 2020Local knowledge about sustainable harvesting and availability of wild medicinal plant species in Lemnos island, GreeceJournal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, Vol.16, No.119 June 2020Hanging in there: Aloe lettyae populations in Critically Endangered grassland fragmentsSouth African Journal of Botany, Vol.131Ethnobotany and Management of Dimorphandra gardneriana in a Protected Area of Chapada do Araripe Semiarid Ceará, Northeastern BrazilEnvironmental Management, Vol.65, No.320 January 2020