Multiple uses of tropical mosaic landscapes
Research highlights benefits of wild plants in fallow land and other ecosystems in Madagascar

Date:
July 14, 2023
Source:
University of Go"ttingen
Summary:
Many landscapes in the tropics consist of a mosaic of different
types of land use. How people make use of these different
ecosystems, with their particular plant communities, was unclear
until now. Researchers, many of them from Madagascar, have now
investigated this. When considering biodiversity, forests often get
the most attention. But this research shows that rural households
use a wide range of plant species and services provided by many
nearby ecosystem types.


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FULL STORY ==========================================================================
Many landscapes in the tropics consist of a mosaic of different types of
land use. How people make use of these different ecosystems, with their particular plant communities, was unclear until now. Researchers, many of
them from Madagascar, have now investigated this in an interdisciplinary Malagasy research project at the University of Go"ttingen. When
considering biodiversity, forests often get the most attention. But this research shows that rural households use a wide range of plant species
and services provided by many nearby ecosystem types. 285 plant species,
almost half of which are found only in Madagascar, are used for food,
fodder for livestock, medicine, construction and weaving. Of all the
diverse types of land, surprisingly, fallow land is especially important
for people. The researchers conclude that there must be a balance between
the needs of society and the conservation of species-rich landscapes. The results were published in the journalAmbio.

The research team interviewed 320 households about their use and the
benefits of the main types of land. These include virgin forests,
fragments of forest, vanilla agroforestry systems, woody fallow land, herbaceous fallow land and rice fields. The interviews show that virgin
forests and forest fragments are important for water regulation, for
example. Fallow land and vanilla agroforestry systems provide food,
medicine and fodder. People collect the most plants from woody fallow
areas, which are then used for firewood and charcoal, for instance. In contrast, they use plants from forest fragments for building and
weaving. Fallow land -- contrary to the widespread belief that it is
of little value -- makes a major contribution to rural households in
Madagascar in terms of health, food and energy supply, as well as animal
feed and as a source of building materials.

The results have important findings for nature conservation: "It is
important not just to consider the conservation of the impressive
diversity of species on Madagascar, but also the benefits of this
species richness for the local population," says first author Dr Estelle Raveloaritiana, whose PhD research was part of this project. Dr Annemarie
Wurz, now a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Marburg, and
Professor Teja Tscharntke, at Go"ttingen University's Agroecology Group,
add: "Nature conservation should take into account the interests of the
local population, at the same time as biodiversity-friendly, diverse
land management, when designing conservation and development strategies."
* RELATED_TOPICS
o Plants_&_Animals
# Endangered_Plants # Nature # Ecology_Research #
Agriculture_and_Food
o Earth_&_Climate
# Ecology # Sustainability # Rainforests # Ecosystems
* RELATED_TERMS
o Biodiversity o Plant_cell o Biodiversity_hotspot o
Sustainable_land_management o Forest o Tamarix o Deforestation
o Hydroponics

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Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Go"ttingen. Note:
Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Estelle Raveloaritiana, Annemarie Wurz, Kristina Osen, Marie Rolande
Soazafy, Ingo Grass, Dominic Andreas Martin, Claudine Bemamy,
Hery Lisy Tiana Ranarijaona, Cortni Borgerson, Holger Kreft, Dirk
Ho"lscher, Bakolimalala Rakouth, Teja Tscharntke. Complementary
ecosystem services from multiple land uses highlight the
importance of tropical mosaic landscapes. Ambio, 2023; DOI:
10.1007/s13280-023-01888-3 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/07/230714131126.htm

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