Author(s)

Francis Artur Gomez, Ismaïla Coly^*, Arfang Ousmane Kémo Goudiaby, Mohamed Ndao

Agroforestry and Ecology Laboratory (LAFE), Department of Agroforestry, Assane Seck University, Ziguinchor, Senegal.

Woody vegetation provides a number of ecosystem services, including soil protection, carbon sequestration and oxygen production. Despite its important role in maintaining ecological balance, woody vegetation is currently undergoing continuous degradation due to climatic hazards and anthropogenic actions. As a result, it is essential to gather information for the sustainable and rational management of woody formations. It is with this in mind that this study aims to contribute to a better understanding of the state of woody vegetation in the different land-use types in Basse Casamance. To this end, stratified random sampling of woody vegetation was carried out in the different land-use types (fields, fallow land and forests) of the Coubalan commune. The sampling unit for fields and fallows was a 2500 m² plot, and for forests was a 900 m² plot. A total of 53 species, divided into 48 genera belonging to 22 families, were inventoried in the commune. Structural parameters were higher in the forest, with 1321.3 ± 635.8 individuals/ha, 13.09 ± 0.1 m² and 79.25% ± 21.08% respectively for observed density, basal area and cover rate. As for dendrometric parameters, they are higher in the fields, with 20.4 ± 13.6 cm and 7.4 ± 3.8 m respectively for trunk diameter and woody height. Fallow land is characterized by species with low dendrometric parameters. These results provide a useful database for rational management of the various land-use types in the commune of Coubalan.

Lower Casamance, Forest, Fallow Field, Woody Vegetation

Gomez, F. , Coly, I. , Goudiaby, A. and Ndao, M. (2023) Characterization of Woody Vegetation in Different Land Uses in the Commune of Coubalan (Bignona Department, Senegal). American Journal of Plant Sciences, 14, 1343-1359. doi: 10.4236/ajps.2023.1411091.