research article tree species composition and regeneration...

Research ArticleTree Species Composition and Regeneration Status of ShitalpurForest Beat under Chittagong North Forest Division Bangladesh

Asadozzaman Nur Rajasree NandiMohammed Jashimuddin andMohammed Akhter Hossain

Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences University of Chittagong Chittagong 4331 Bangladesh

Correspondence should be addressed to Rajasree Nandi rajasreenandigmailcom

Received 24 July 2016 Accepted 12 October 2016

Academic Editor Junbao Yu

Copyright copy 2016 Asadozzaman Nur et al This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons AttributionLicense which permits unrestricted use distribution and reproduction in any medium provided the original work is properlycited

Biodiversity erosion particularly in developing countries is a matter of great concern to the global ecological community Speciescomposition and regeneration indicate the health of forestThis study explored tree species composition and regeneration of naturalhill forest of Shitalpur under Chittagong North Forest Division through 27 sample plots of 20m times 20m for trees and 2m times 2m forregeneration A total of 47 tree species belonging to 29 families and 17 regenerating species belonging to 15 families were recordedThe tree stemdensity basal area andwood volumewere 049m2ha 1425 stemha and 1899m3ha respectivelyMean regenerationwas significantly higher in bottom hill (14374 seedlingsha) compared to top hill (9671 seedlingsha) Toona ciliata was highest(4444 seedlingsha) at the bottom hill compared to other hill positions The result shows that only 36 of the tree species (17out of 47) are regenerating in the study area meaning majority of the tree species (64) are not getting favorable conditions toregenerate This might be due to absence of mature tree species as a result of overexploitation by local people The findings mayhelp in monitoring the species composition changes over time and adopting specific conservation programs for Shitalpur Forest

1 Introduction

The total area of Bangladesh is 14757 million hectares ofwhich forest lands account for almost 175 (253 millionha) The total forest land includes classified and unclassifiedstate lands homestead forests and tea and rubber gardensBangladesh has a rich biological heritage containing about5700 species of angiosperms [1] During last few decades thewhole natural forest structure of Bangladesh was negativelychanged by both biotic and abiotic disturbances whichultimately affect the regeneration and population dynamics[2 3] Many forces are responsible for forest degradationcollectively and individually The trend of these forces isvery complex The major causes of forest degradation inBangladesh are agricultural expansion overextraction ofwood and nonwood resources infrastructure developmentpopulation growth deforestation settlement urbanizationand inappropriate management practices [4ndash6] The rapidloss and degradation of forests in Bangladesh have broughtabout an alarming rate of forest biodiversity depletion [1 7]

Many plant and animal species widely distributed in the pasthave either become extinct or can only be found in somelocalized areas at very low population densities

Forestry is an important sector in Bangladeshrsquos economywhich contributes about 128 of the countryrsquos gross domes-tic product (GDP) [8] The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT)in Bangladesh supports almost 80 of the countryrsquos totalbiodiversity [9] and is inhibited by people from 12 ethnicgroups [10ndash16] who depend largely on forest commons tofulfill their basic subsistence requirements and cash income[10 12 17] The wide variety of plants and animals ofthe hill forests has supported the livelihoods of the hillpeople including dwelling food clothing health care andfestivals For many centuries the indigenous communitieshave managed the forests in a sustainable manner by keepingthe rotation of their shifting cultivation long enough (15ndash20 years) [17 18] Population pressure overcropping soilerosion indiscriminate illegal logging in forest areas lackof suitable land shifting cultivation with shortened fallowperiod (3-4 years) [7 15 17ndash20] result in falling yields and

Hindawi Publishing CorporationAdvances in EcologyVolume 2016 Article ID 5947874 7 pageshttpdxdoiorg10115520165947874

2 Advances in Ecology

drastic loss of forest coverage leading to land degradation[21] Several studies were carried out in the recent years toinvestigate the plant diversity and community structure statusin Sitapahar reserve forest of Chittagong Hill Tracts (South)Forest Division Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary Ukhiya naturalforests of Coxrsquos-Bazar Forest Division and Bamu reserveforests of Coxrsquos Bazar But information on species compo-sition in Shitalpur Forest Beat was not available previouslyMoreover information on floristic composition and theirquantitative structure and diversity is vital for understandingthe functioning and dynamics of forest ecosystems [22]Therefore the main objective of the study was to investigatethe vegetative composition and species diversity and alsothe status of natural regeneration on different hill slopes inShitalpur Forest Beat under Kumira Range in ChittagongNorth Forest Division

2 Materials and Methods

21 Selection of the Study Area The study was conductedat Shitalpur Forest Beat under Kumira Range of ChittagongNorth Forest Division It is situated at the northwestern partof Chittagong district between 22∘2710158403110158401015840N and 22∘2710158403110158401015840Nlatitude and 91∘4710158400210158401015840 and 91∘4610158400710158401015840E longitude The totalarea of the beat was 1962 hectares of which 41 comprisedprotected forest and 37 vested forest and the remainingother forest A small area of around 100 ha under ShitalpurForest Beat situated adjacent to western boundary of Chit-tagong University campus was first selected for this studyTopographically the study area comprised mostly hills andvalleys The total area sampled under this study was 108hectares

The study was based on primary data collection regardingthe systematic survey on the status structure compositionand diversity of trees of the study area and the effects oftopography on natural regeneration Necessary informationwas collected through extensive field observation of the areaThe study was based on field data collection through physicalmeasurement in the field and review of relevant literatureon similar previous studies based on species composition inChittagong and Chittagong Hill Tracts The following stepshad been followed for the preparation of this paper

22 Data Collection and Analysis At first a reconnais-sance survey was conducted to become familiar with thestudy sites and the relevant information was collected fromNondonkanon Chittagong Range office and Shitalpur BeatOffice To have an idea of species composition of the wholestudy area a number of field visits were conducted at theadvent of the field work Two transect walks (one fromNorthto South and other from East to West) across the study areawas made with the help of Field Assistant as per [7] The aimof the walk was to be familiar with the vegetation in order toget a general idea of the site topography species compositionand natural regeneration of the study area

The Shannon-Wiener index [23] and Simpsonrsquos index [24]were used as diversity indices Statistical package SPSS 130was used to conduct the statistical analysis under this study

The basal area per tree and volume per tree were calculatedby the formula given by Chaturvedi and Khanna [25]

Basal area per tree = 314 times 1198632

4 (1)

where119863 is diameter at breast height in meter

Volume (119881) = Basal area times 119867 (2)

where119867 is total height in meterThen from the basal area and volume of individual tree

total basal area of each species was calculated and thenconverted to the basal area per hectare and volume perhectare for each species

23 Sampling Design The sample plots were selected bypurposive sampling method At first three hills situating ata distance of about 500m from each other were selectedintentionally from the study area In each of the selected hills9 sample plots (3 plots on each topography namely top hillmiddle hill and bottom hill about 100m apart from eachother) of sizes 20mtimes 20mwere demarcated for final study Inthis way a total of 27 sample plots were demarcated for datacollection For regeneration study 2m times 2m subplots weretaken at the corner point of each of the 27 sample plots andthus a total of 108 regeneration subplots were studied fromthe study area All the sample plots and subplots were welldemarcated their corners were marked with pegs and thenall the tree species including seedlings and saplings in eachplot were identified and recorded

3 Results

31 Tree Species Composition In the study area a total of 47different tree species comprising 29 families were recordedAmong the families Moraceae (5 species) comprises thehighest number of species followed by Apocynaceae (3species) Euphorbiaceae (3 species) Leguminosae (3 species)and Verbenaceae (3 species) and the rest of the familiescomprise one or two species (Table 1)

32 Structural Composition of Tree Species at Different HillPosition The study revealed that the tree basal area wasfound higher in top hill (089m2ha) followed by bottom hill(036m2ha) and middle hill (022m2ha) with an averagebasal area of 049m2ha in the study area However middlehill showed highest tree density (1566 stemsha) comparedto bottom hill (1466 stemsha) and top hill (1244 stemsha)positions with an average of 1425 stemsha in the study area(Table 2) Tree volume was also found higher in the bottomhill (24879m3ha) followed by top hill (20102m3ha) andmiddle hill (12002m3ha) having an average volume of1899 (m3ha) in the study area (Table 2)

33 Species Diversity Analysis Diversity index was calculatedfor tree species The Shannon-Wiener index value was found349 in case of tree species which indicates that the plantdiversity of the study area is less diverse whereas Simpsonrsquos

Advances in Ecology 3

Table 1 List of tree species with their families and stemsha in thestudy area

Sl number Name of family Scientific name

1 Anacardiaceae Lannea coromandelicaSpondias pinnata

2 ApocynaceaeBrownlowia elataAlstonia scholaris

Holarrhena antidysenterica3 Bignoniaceae Stereospermum chelonoides4 Bombacaceae Bombax ceiba5 Burseraceae Bursera serrata6 Caesalpiniaceae Cassia fistula

7 Combretaceae Terminalia belliricaTerminalia catappa

8 Cycadaceae Cycas pectinata

9 Dilleniaceae Dillenia pentagynaDillenia indica

10 Ebenaceae Diospyros toposia

11 EuphorbiaceaeMacaranga denticulata

Aporusa oblongaPhyllanthus emblica

12 Fabaceae Erythrina strictaDerris robusta

13 Fagaceae Castanopsis tribuloides14 Flacourtiaceae Flacourtia jangomas

15 Lauraceae Beilschmiedia PseudomicrocarpaLitsea monopetala

16 LeguminosaeAlbizia procera

Erythrina variegateAlbizia chinensis

17 Lythraceae Lagerstroemia speciosa18 Meliaceae Toona ciliata

19 Moraceae

Ficus hispidaFicus pyriformisFicus racemosa

Artocarpus lacuchaArtocarpus chaplasha

20 Musaceae Musa textiles21 Myrtaceae Syzygium fruticosum22 Papilionaceae Derris trifoliate23 Rutaceae Feronia limonia24 Sapindaceae Erioglossum edule

25 Sterculiaceae Abroma augustaPterospermum canescens

26 Tiliaceae Microcos paniculata27 Vaticeae Vitis glabrata

28 VerbenaceaeCallicarpa macrophyllaVitex peduncularisGmelina arborea

29 Rubiaceae Anthocephalus chinensis

index value is 004 which represents that the area is notdominated by only a single species it is dominated by fewtree species (Table 3)

34 Structural Composition of Naturally Regenerated SeedlingIn the study area a total of 17 species belonging to 15

Table 2 Growth performance of tree species in different hillposition of the study area

Variables Top hill Middle hill Bottom hill AverageBasal area(m2ha) 0888889 0222222 0361111 049

Tree density(stemsha) 1244 1566 1466 142533

Tree volume(m3 ha) 20102 12002 24879 1899

Table 3 Important biodiversity indices calculated for the study area

Index ValueShannon-Wiener index 349Simpsonrsquos index 004

families were found to regenerate naturally at different hillpositions (Table 4) Among the families only Euphorbiaceaeand Moraceae showed more than one species to regenerateAll these regenerating species were observed at their treephases

35Quantitative Structure of Naturally Regenerated Seedling atDifferent Hill Position The regeneration study shows that thenumber of regenerating seedlingswas foundhigher forBurseraserrata (2292 seedlingsha) at the top hill fol lowed by Stereo-spermumchelonoides (1250 seedlingsha)Phyllanthus emblica(972 seedlingsha)Dillenia pentagyna (917 seedlingsha) andMacaranga denticulata (833 seedlingsha) (Table 4) At themiddle hill Ficus hispida showedhigher number of regenerat-ing seedlings (2917 seedlingsha) followed by Bursera serrata(1575 seedlingsha) and Ficus racemosa (1319 seedlingsha)On the other hand at the bottom hill Toona ciliata showedhigher number of regeneration seedlings (4444 seedlingsha)followed by Bursera serrata (2708 seedlingsha) Syzygiumfruticosum (1736 seedlingsha) and Stereospermum che-lonoides (1458 seedlingsha) On average Bursera serrata(2192 seedlingsha) showed highest regeneration followed byToona ciliata (1481 seedlingsha) Stereospermum chelonoides(1253 seedlingsha) Ficus hispida (1181 seedlingsha) andMacaranga denticulata (1088 seedlingsha) compared toother species irrespective of hill positions However Toonaciliata showed remarkably higher regeneration at thebottom hill position compared to other regenerating specieswhich might be due to favorable condition prevailing atthe study area for this species It was also observed thatnumber of species at the regeneration stage was lowest atthe bottom hill position (8 species) compared to top hill(11 species) and middle hill (11 species) Regeneration ofseedlings per hectare was found to have occurred more inbottom hill (14374 seedlingsha) compared to middle hill(13097 seedlingsha) and top hill (9671 seedlingsha) showingan average regeneration of 12381 seedlingsha Again amongthe tree species Toona ciliata (4444 seedlingsha) Beilschmi-edia psudomicrocarpa (903 seedlingsha) and Microcospaniculata (1181 seedlingsha) were found regenerating at thebottomhillMusa textiles (1313 seedlingsha)Abromaaugusta


Table 4 List of naturally regenerated seedlings with their families in the study area

Sl number Family Scientific name Local name1 Apocynaceae Holarrhena antidysenterica Kuruch2 Bignoniaceae Stereospermum chelonoides Darmara3 Burseraceae Bursera serrata Gutgutia4 Combretaceae Terminalia bellirica Bohera5 Dilleniaceae Dillenia pentagyna Hargaza

6 Euphorbiaceae Phyllanthus emblica AmlokiMacaranga denticulate Bura

7 Lauraceae Beilschmiedia Pseudomicrocarpa Tuangiri8 Leguminosae Erythrina variegate Madar9 Meliaceae Toona ciliata Toon

10 Moraceae Ficus racemosa Joigga dumurFicus hispida Dumur

11 Musaceae Musa textiles Pahari kola12 Myrtaceae Syzygium fruticosum Puti Jam13 Sterculiaceae Abroma augusta Ulat kombol14 Tiliaceae Microcos paniculata Achargula15 Verbenaceae Callicarpa macrophylla Bormala

Table 5 Quantitative structure of naturally regenerated seedlings found in the study area

Sl number Scientific name Regeneration density (seedlingsha)Top hill Middle hill Bottom hill Average

1 Macaranga denticulate 833 1111 1319 10882 Ficus hispida 625 2917 mdash 11813 Phyllanthus emblica 972 mdash mdash 3244 Callicarpa macrophylla 644 972 625 7475 Dillenia pentagyna 917 833 mdash 5836 Bursera serrata 2292 1575 2708 21927 Stereospermum chelonoides 1250 1050 1458 12538 Terminalia bellirica 486 788 mdash 4259 Ficus racemosa 541 1319 mdash 62010 Holarrhena antidysenterica 764 mdash mdash 25511 Musa textiles mdash 1313 mdash 43812 Syzygium fruticosum 347 mdash 1736 69413 Erythrina variegate mdash 694 mdash 23114 Abroma augusta mdash 525 mdash 17515 Toona ciliata mdash mdash 4444 148116 Beilschmiedia pseudomicrocarpa mdash mdash 903 30117 Microcos paniculata mdash mdash 1181 394Total 9671 13097 14374 12381

(694 seedlingsha) andErythrina variegata (525 seedlingsha)at the middle hill and Phyllanthus emblica (972 seedlingsha)and Holarrhena antidysenterica (764 seedlingsha) at the tophill positions only (Table 5)

36 Changes in Species Composition among Tree PhasesStudy result also reveals that tree species diversity (Tables1 and 2) is higher than the regenerating species diversity(Tables 4 and 5) Among 47 tree species growing in thestudy area only 17 tree species (36)were found regeneratingand the remaining 30 tree species (64) did not show any

regeneration at the study (Table 6) This may be due to theanthropogenic disturbances that cause disruption of foreststructure and changes in species composition ultimatelyleading to reduction of tree species richness and abundance

37 Effects of Hill Position on Natural Regeneration From thestudy it was observed that the highest amount of regenerationwas found in the bottom and lowest amount of regenerationwas found in the top hill (Table 7) Significant differencewas observed between top hill and bottom hill positions


Table 6 List of species that did not show regeneration at the studyarea

SI number Family Scientific name


2 Apocynaceae Brownlowia elataAlstonia scholaris

3 Bombacaceae Bombax ceiba4 Caesalpiniaceae Cassia fistula5 Combretaceae Terminalia catappa6 Cycadaceae Cycas pectinata7 Dilleniaceae Dillenia indica8 Ebenaceae Diospyros toposia


10 Fagaceae Castanopsis tribuloides11 Flacourtiaceae Flacourtia jangomas12 Rubiaceae Anthocephalus chinensis13 Lauraceae Litsea monopetala

14 Leguminosae Albizia proceraAlbizia chinensis

15 Lythraceae Lagerstroemia speciosa16 Meliaceae Ficus pyriformis

17 Moraceae Artocarpus lacuchaArtocarpus chaplasha

18 Papilionaceae Derris trifoliate19 Rutaceae Feronia limonia20 Sapindaceae Erioglossum edule

21 Sterculiaceae Pterospermum canescensAbroma augusta

22 Vaticeae Vitis glabrata

23 Verbenaceae Vitex peduncularisGmelina arborea

Table 7 Regeneration of species in different position of the hill inShitalpur Forest

Hill position Mean amount of regeneration (seedlingsha)Top 9671b

Middle 13097ab

Bottom 14374a

Note ababdifferent superscripts in a column indicate the least significantdifferences at lt005

However middle hill did not show any significant differencein regeneration compared to top and bottom hill positions

4 Discussion

Species composition density and regeneration status can beconsidered important factors to judge the status of a forest Atotal of 47 different tree species comprising 29 families wererecorded from the study area of which about 62 of the fami-lies are represented by only one species 21 of the families bytwo species 14 of the families by three species and only 3

of the families by more than three speciesThe findings of thepresent study showed better species composition comparedto a study [26] conducted by Ahmed and Haque where38 tree species were identified whereas other studies [27ndash31] found better species composition than the present studyshowing 64 species 85 tree species 92 tree species 163species and 62 tree species respectively Moraceae was thedominant family (5 species) with naturally growing fruitspecies like Artocarpus chaplasha Artocarpus lacucha Ficushispida Ficus pyriformis and Ficus racemosa that providefood and shelter to wildlife species The dominance of thisfamily might be due to the excellent dispersal capacitiesof their seeds pollen grains and so forth by wind waterbirds mammals and humans Similar studies by Newaz[32] also recorded maximum number of species from thefamily Leguminosae followed by Moraceae and Myrtaceaeand Das [33] documented that Leguminosae contains highernumber of species than Bignoniaceae followed by MoraceaeSapindaceae and Myrtaceae and some other families Thissuggests that Moraceae is a more or less common family inthe hill ecosystems

The study reveals a degraded forest status with lesstree density (1425 stemsha) and species regeneration(12381 seedlingsha) compared to some previous studyconducted in different parts of greater Chittagong region[27 33 34] The reason behind less tree density andspecies regeneration might be due to the degradedenvironmental condition at the study area and at thesame time overexploitation by the local people as theycollect bigger trees for their own consumption and extraincome This way local people are also disturbing theforest floor and contributing greatly towards biodiversityloss However the present study shows better tree density(1425 stemsha) in comparison to 381 stemsha in Sitapaharreserve forest of Chittagong Hill Tracts (South) ForestDivision [35] 459 stemsha in ChunatiWS [29] 257 stemshain Ukhiya natural forests of Coxrsquos-Bazar Forest Division [26]369 stemsha in Bamu reserve forests of Coxrsquos Bazar [28]and 384 stemsha in a Dipterocarpus forest in Bangladesh[36] Middle hill showed highest tree density (1566 stemsha)compared to bottom hill (1466 stemsha) and top hill(1244 stemsha) positions Study conducted by [37] alsoobserved highest density at mid altitude site comparedto lower and lowest altitude site although [38] reportedsignificantly negative correlation of density and speciesrichness with altitude and slope Bursera serrata Toonaciliata Stereospermum chelonoides Ficus hispidaMacarangadenticulataCallicarpamacrophylla and Syzygium fruticosumwere found dominating (higher numbers of seedlingsha)among the regenerated tree species

The Shannon-Wiener index (349) represents less plantdiversity of the study area whereas Simpsonrsquos index (004)depicts fewer numbers of species growing in the studyarea (Table 3) Nandi and Vacik [39] also observed lessspecies diversity with trees under dbh gt 6 cm category atthe Sitakunda Botanical Garden and Eco-Park Chittagongwhich is adjoining the study area Though Sitakunda Botan-ical Garden and Eco-Park once under the jurisdiction ofShitalpur Forest Beat is managed as a special protected area


for more than 15 years the species diversity is still showing ameager valueThismeans that the anthropogenic disturbancemay be the major cause of deforestation and forest degrada-tion leading to less species diversity surrounding the studyarea The same may also be true for the study area

Our result indicates that Bursera serrata possess thehighest number of seedlings per ha at the top hill followedby Stereospermum chelonoides Phyllanthus emblica Dilleniapentagyna and Macaranga denticulata While [32] foundthat top and middle hill were dominated by Stereospermumchelonoides the valley was dominated by Ficus auriculata Soit is seen that Stereospermum chelonoides species is a commonspecies at the secondary forest of Chittagong Forest DivisionMoreover regeneration of specieswas found to have occurredmore in bottom hill and middle hill compared to top hillin this study area whereas [40] showed denser regenerationin nearly leveled hill tops and gentle slopes and moderatelydense generation in medium slopes at the Sitakunda Botan-ical Garden and Eco-Park Chittagong Bangladesh Study[33] also found highest seedlingha at middle hill followedby top hill and bottom hill We did find significant differencebetween the top hill and bottom hill position in terms ofregeneration

Change in species composition across mature and regen-erating tree phases was observed at the study area In thisstudy we found species without regenerating phases whichis example of discontinuous population structures Most ofthe tree species were absent at their regeneration stage atthe study area Only 36 of the tree species (17 out of47) are regenerating in the study area meaning majority ofthe tree species (64) are not getting favorable conditionsto regenerate Such example was found in [41] The sizeclass structures of trees indicate the probability of speciespersistence into the future this information is very valuablein the design of management strategies aiming to improvestand structure and species diversity Changes in speciescomposition and recruitment of new species in differentvegetation types are indicative of future species compositionin changing environments [41]

5 Conclusion

The study revealed that Shitalpur Forest Beat is underthreat of overextraction and illegal cutting which in thefuture may reduce both tree density and diversity drasticallySuch detrimental interferencesmust be stopped immediatelyotherwise this will reduce natural forest restoration capacityThe ecologically important plant species may be conservedthrough both in situ and ex situ conservation methods Itcame out from the study that most of the people living nearthe forest area are poor so they depend on forest for theirlivelihood It has been observed that there exists a greatdemand and supply gap of fuel wood and other associatedtimber in this area which ultimately increases the pressureof pilferage and illicit felling of trees from forest To mitigatethese problems and to maintain the complexity speciesdiversity normal composition and natural environment ofShitalpur Forest large scale reforestation program can becarried out However adequate information and knowledge

on the sustainable management of existing and potentialresources in the study area is not available So there is aneed to have a well-organized database on Shitalpur Forestresources for the purpose of forest protection and biodiversityconservation

Competing Interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to express gratitude to the Directorof the Institute of Forestry and Environmental SciencesUniversity of Chittagong Bangladesh for his cooperation toconduct the study The authors also express appreciation tofield staff of Shitalpur Forest Beat for their cooperation duringdata collection

References

[1] M K Hossain ldquoA review of forest biodiversity conservation inBangladeshrdquo Journal of Forestry and Environment vol 25 no 1pp 102ndash110 2001

[2] P B Shafroth J C Stromberg and D T Patten ldquoRiparianvegetation response to altered disturbance and stress regimesrdquoEcological Applications vol 12 no 1 pp 107ndash123 2002

[3] C Kwit andW J Platt ldquoDisturbance history influences regener-ation of non-pioneer understory treesrdquo Ecology vol 84 no 10pp 2575ndash2581 2003

[4] M A Salam T Noguchi and M Koike ldquoThe causes of forestcover loss in the Hill Forests in Bangladeshrdquo GeoJournal vol47 no 4 pp 539ndash549 1999

[5] M Hasan and A A Alam ldquoLand degradation situation inbangladesh and role of agroforestryrdquo Journal of Agriculture ampRural Development vol 4 no 1 pp 19ndash25 2008

[6] M K Hossain M K Alam and Md Danesh Miah ldquoForestrestoration and rehabilitation in Bangladeshrdquo in Keep AsiaGreenVolume III SouthAsia D K Lee Ed vol 20ndash23 of IUFROWorld Series pp 21ndash65 IUFRO Vienna Austria 2008

[7] M A Rahman M H Rashid and C C Wilcock ldquoDiversityecology distribution and ethnobotany of the apocynaceae ofBangladeshrdquo Bangladesh Journal of Plant Taxonomy vol 7 pp57ndash76 2000

[8] BBS 2012 httpwwwbbsgovbd[9] A Nishat and S R Biswas ldquoCommunity based restoration of

degraded tropical hill forests experiences fromKrykhong paraChittagong Hill Tracts Bangladeshrdquo Bulletin of the NationalInstitute of Ecology India vol 16 pp 1ndash11 2005

[10] G Rasul ldquoPolitical ecology of the degradation of forest com-mons in theChittagongHill Tracts of BangladeshrdquoEnvironmen-tal Conservation vol 34 no 2 pp 153ndash163 2007

[11] G B Thapa and G Rasul ldquoImplications of changing nationalpolicies on land use in the Chittagong Hill Tracts ofBangladeshrdquo Journal of Environmental Management vol81 no 4 pp 441ndash453 2006

[12] M D Miah and M S H Chowdhury ldquoTraditional forestutilization practice by the Mro tribe in the Bandarban regionBangladeshrdquo Swiss Forestry Journal vol 155 no 3-4 pp 65ndash702004


[13] M D Miah and M S H Chowdhury ldquoIndigenous healthcarepractice throughmedicinal plants from forests by theMro tribein Bandarban region Bangladeshrdquo Indilinga vol 2 no 2 pp59ndash74 2003

[14] W Van SchendelWMey and A K DewanTheChittagong HillTracts Living in a Boarderland The University Press DhakaBangladesh 2001

[15] R C K Roy Land Rights of the Indigenous Peoples of theChittagong Hill Tracts Bangladesh International Work Groupfor Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA) Copenhagen Denmark 2000

[16] J Nasreen and M Togawa ldquoPolitics of development lsquoPahari-Bengalirsquo discourse in the Chittagong Hill Tractsrdquo Journal ofInternational Development and Cooperation vol 9 pp 97ndash1122002

[17] G Rasul andG BThapa ldquoShifting cultivation in themountainsof South and Southeast Asia regional patterns and factorsinfluencing the changerdquo Land Degradation and Developmentvol 14 no 5 pp 495ndash508 2003

[18] S TiwariChittagong Hill Tracts A Preliminary Study on Genderand Natural Resource Management IDRC Ottawa Canada2003

[19] R D Roy and S Halim ldquoValuing Village commons in forestryrdquoIndigenous Perspectives vol 5 pp 9ndash38 2002

[20] S A RahmanM F Rahman A L Codilan and KM FarhanaldquoAnalysis of the economic benefits from systematic improve-ments to shifting cultivation and its evolution towards stablecontinuous agroforestry in the upland of Eastern BangladeshrdquoInternational Forestry Review vol 9 no 1 pp 536ndash547 2007

[21] T K Nath and M Inoue ldquoThe upland settlement projectof Bangladesh as a means of reducing land degradation andimproving rural livelihoodsrdquo Small-Scale Forestry vol 7 no 2pp 163ndash182 2008

[22] C S Reddy B Shilpa A Giriraj K N Reddy and K TRao ldquoStructure and floristic composition of tree diversityin tropical dry deciduous forest of Eastern Ghatsrdquo SouthernAndhra Pradesh India Asian Journal of Scientific Research vol1 pp 57ndash64 2008

[23] T K Nath M K Hossain and M K Alam ldquoAssessment of treespecies diversity of Sitapahar Forest Reserve Chittagong HillTracts (South) Forest Division Bangladeshrdquo Indian Forestervol 126 no 1 pp 16ndash21 2000

[24] E H Simpson ldquoMeasurement of diversityrdquoNature vol 163 no4148 p 688 1949

[25] A N Chaturvedi and S L Khanna Forest Mensuration Inter-national Book Distributors Dehra Dun India 1982

[26] G U Ahmed and S M S Haque ldquoPercentage distributionof species and diameter class in natural forest of BangladeshrdquoUniversity of Science Studies vol 17 no 1 pp 109ndash113 1993

[27] M K Hossain M Lutfor Rahman A T M Rafiqul Hoque andM Khairul Alam ldquoComparative regeneration status in a naturalforest and enrichment plantations of Chittagong (south) forestdivision Bangladeshrdquo Journal of Forestry Research vol 15 no4 pp 255ndash260 2004

[28] M K Hossain M Hossain and M K Alam ldquoDiversity andstructural composition of trees in Bamu reserved forest of CoxrsquosBazar forest division Bangladeshrdquo Bangladesh Journal of ForestScience vol 25 no 1 pp 31ndash42 1996

[29] M L Rahman and M K Hossain ldquoStatus of fodder and non-fodder tree species onChunatiWildlife Sanctuary ofChittagongForest Division Bangladeshrdquo International Journal of ForestUsufructs Management vol 4 no 2 pp 9ndash14 2003

[30] M Jashimuddin and M Inoue ldquoManagement of village com-mon forests in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh His-torical background and current issues in terms of sustainabilityrdquoOpen Journal of Forestry vol 2 no 3 pp 118ndash134 2012

[31] M A Motaleb andM K Hossain ldquoTree species diversity in theTankawati natural forest of Chittagong South Forest DivisionrdquoJournal of Eco-Friendly Agriculture vol 4 no 2 pp 542ndash5452011

[32] M D S Newaz ldquoDiversity and composition of treespecies regeneration in the secondary forests of chittagongBangladeshrdquo Indian Forester vol 132 no 11 pp 1419ndash14282006

[33] K Das Effects of plantaion and topography on natural regenera-tion in Sitakund Eco-Park Chittagong Bangladesh [MS thesis]2008

[34] M A Hossain M K Hossain M A Salam and S RahmanldquoComposition and diversity of tree species in dudhpukuria-dhopachori wildlife sanctuary of chittagong (South) forestdivision Bangladeshrdquo Journal of Pharmaceutical Chemical andBiological Sciences vol 4 no 2 pp 1447ndash1457 2013

[35] T K Nath M K Hossain and M K Alam ldquoDiversity andcomposition of trees in Sitapahar forest reserve of ChittagongHill Tracts (South) Forest Division Bangladeshrdquo Annals ofForestry vol 6 no 1 pp 1ndash9 1998

[36] S R Biswas and KMisbahuzzaman ldquoTree species diversity andregeneration traits of the dominant species in a dipterocarp for-est in Bangladesh implications for conservationrdquo InternationalJournal of Biodiversity Science andManagement vol 4 no 2 pp81ndash91 2008

[37] S Bharali A Paul M L Khan and B Singha Lal ldquoImpactof altitude on population structure and regeneration status oftwo rhododendron species in a temperate broad leaved forestof arunachal Pradesh Indiardquo International Journal of Ecosystemvol 2 no 1 pp 19ndash27 2012

[38] C M Sharma S Suyal S Gairola and S K Ghildiyal ldquoSpeciesrichness and diversity along an altitudinal gradient in moisttemperate forest of Garhwal Himalayardquo Journal of AmericanScience vol 5 no 5 pp 119ndash128 2009

[39] R Nandi and H Vacik ldquoRegeneration and tree species diver-sity of Sitakund Botanical Garden and Eco-park ChittagongBangladeshrdquo Journal of Mountain Science vol 11 no 4 pp 950ndash958 2014

[40] K Misbahuzzaman and M J Alam ldquoEcological restoration ofrainforest through aided natural regeneration in the denudedhills of Sitakund Chittagong Bangladeshrdquo International Jour-nal of Agriculture and Biology vol 8 no 1 pp 778ndash782 2006

[41] R Jayakumar and K K N Nair ldquoSpecies diversity and treeregeneration patterns in tropical forests of the Western GhatsIndiardquo ISRN Ecology vol 2013 Article ID 890862 14 pages2013

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Forestry ResearchInternational Journal of

Hindawi Publishing Corporationhttpwwwhindawicom Volume 2014

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drastic loss of forest coverage leading to land degradation[21] Several studies were carried out in the recent years toinvestigate the plant diversity and community structure statusin Sitapahar reserve forest of Chittagong Hill Tracts (South)Forest Division Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary Ukhiya naturalforests of Coxrsquos-Bazar Forest Division and Bamu reserveforests of Coxrsquos Bazar But information on species compo-sition in Shitalpur Forest Beat was not available previouslyMoreover information on floristic composition and theirquantitative structure and diversity is vital for understandingthe functioning and dynamics of forest ecosystems [22]Therefore the main objective of the study was to investigatethe vegetative composition and species diversity and alsothe status of natural regeneration on different hill slopes inShitalpur Forest Beat under Kumira Range in ChittagongNorth Forest Division

2 Materials and Methods

21 Selection of the Study Area The study was conductedat Shitalpur Forest Beat under Kumira Range of ChittagongNorth Forest Division It is situated at the northwestern partof Chittagong district between 22∘2710158403110158401015840N and 22∘2710158403110158401015840Nlatitude and 91∘4710158400210158401015840 and 91∘4610158400710158401015840E longitude The totalarea of the beat was 1962 hectares of which 41 comprisedprotected forest and 37 vested forest and the remainingother forest A small area of around 100 ha under ShitalpurForest Beat situated adjacent to western boundary of Chit-tagong University campus was first selected for this studyTopographically the study area comprised mostly hills andvalleys The total area sampled under this study was 108hectares

The study was based on primary data collection regardingthe systematic survey on the status structure compositionand diversity of trees of the study area and the effects oftopography on natural regeneration Necessary informationwas collected through extensive field observation of the areaThe study was based on field data collection through physicalmeasurement in the field and review of relevant literatureon similar previous studies based on species composition inChittagong and Chittagong Hill Tracts The following stepshad been followed for the preparation of this paper

22 Data Collection and Analysis At first a reconnais-sance survey was conducted to become familiar with thestudy sites and the relevant information was collected fromNondonkanon Chittagong Range office and Shitalpur BeatOffice To have an idea of species composition of the wholestudy area a number of field visits were conducted at theadvent of the field work Two transect walks (one fromNorthto South and other from East to West) across the study areawas made with the help of Field Assistant as per [7] The aimof the walk was to be familiar with the vegetation in order toget a general idea of the site topography species compositionand natural regeneration of the study area

The Shannon-Wiener index [23] and Simpsonrsquos index [24]were used as diversity indices Statistical package SPSS 130was used to conduct the statistical analysis under this study

The basal area per tree and volume per tree were calculatedby the formula given by Chaturvedi and Khanna [25]

Basal area per tree = 314 times 1198632

4 (1)

where119863 is diameter at breast height in meter

Volume (119881) = Basal area times 119867 (2)

where119867 is total height in meterThen from the basal area and volume of individual tree

total basal area of each species was calculated and thenconverted to the basal area per hectare and volume perhectare for each species

23 Sampling Design The sample plots were selected bypurposive sampling method At first three hills situating ata distance of about 500m from each other were selectedintentionally from the study area In each of the selected hills9 sample plots (3 plots on each topography namely top hillmiddle hill and bottom hill about 100m apart from eachother) of sizes 20mtimes 20mwere demarcated for final study Inthis way a total of 27 sample plots were demarcated for datacollection For regeneration study 2m times 2m subplots weretaken at the corner point of each of the 27 sample plots andthus a total of 108 regeneration subplots were studied fromthe study area All the sample plots and subplots were welldemarcated their corners were marked with pegs and thenall the tree species including seedlings and saplings in eachplot were identified and recorded

3 Results

31 Tree Species Composition In the study area a total of 47different tree species comprising 29 families were recordedAmong the families Moraceae (5 species) comprises thehighest number of species followed by Apocynaceae (3species) Euphorbiaceae (3 species) Leguminosae (3 species)and Verbenaceae (3 species) and the rest of the familiescomprise one or two species (Table 1)

32 Structural Composition of Tree Species at Different HillPosition The study revealed that the tree basal area wasfound higher in top hill (089m2ha) followed by bottom hill(036m2ha) and middle hill (022m2ha) with an averagebasal area of 049m2ha in the study area However middlehill showed highest tree density (1566 stemsha) comparedto bottom hill (1466 stemsha) and top hill (1244 stemsha)positions with an average of 1425 stemsha in the study area(Table 2) Tree volume was also found higher in the bottomhill (24879m3ha) followed by top hill (20102m3ha) andmiddle hill (12002m3ha) having an average volume of1899 (m3ha) in the study area (Table 2)

33 Species Diversity Analysis Diversity index was calculatedfor tree species The Shannon-Wiener index value was found349 in case of tree species which indicates that the plantdiversity of the study area is less diverse whereas Simpsonrsquos



















19 Moraceae













Tree volume(m3 ha) 20102 12002 24879 1899




































Middle 13097ab

Bottom 14374a



4 Discussion









5 Conclusion



Competing Interests


Acknowledgments


References















































Journal of












Volume 2014

Advances in









Geophysics
































19 Moraceae













Tree volume(m3 ha) 20102 12002 24879 1899




































Middle 13097ab

Bottom 14374a



4 Discussion









5 Conclusion



Competing Interests


Acknowledgments


References















































Journal of












Volume 2014

Advances in









Geophysics













































Middle 13097ab

Bottom 14374a



4 Discussion









5 Conclusion



Competing Interests


Acknowledgments


References















































Journal of












Volume 2014

Advances in









Geophysics


















5 Conclusion



Competing Interests


Acknowledgments


References















































Journal of












Volume 2014

Advances in









Geophysics
















































Journal of












Volume 2014

Advances in









Geophysics














research article tree species composition and regeneration...

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