International Journal of Mol. Ecol. and Conserv 2015, Vol.5, No.5, 1-6
5
Table 3 Herb species producing valuable forest products in Ikot Efre Itak community forest, Uyo Local Government Area, Nigeria
Herb species
Population (ha)
Frequency (%)
H1
1
Costus afar
Ker
-
Gawl.
53
75.72
-
0.091 5
2
3
Hippocratea africana
11
15.72
-
0.127 3
Thevetia peruviana
4
5.72
-
0.073 3
4
Carpolobia lutea
G. Don
3
4.29
-
0.058 7
5
Combretum zenkeri
1
1.43
-
0.026 4
6
Crinum jagus
1
1.43
-
0.026 4
7
Gongronema latifolium
Benth.
3
4.29
-
0.058 7
Total
70
100
-
0.462 5
Note: Shrub species diversity indices
-
0.462 5, Richness 3.251 9, Evenness
-
0.5
Table 4 Climber species producing valuable forest products in Ikot Efre Itak community forest, Uyo Local Government Area, Nigeria
Climber species
Population (ha)
Frequency (%)
H1
1
Piper guineensis
Schum and Thonn.
2
15.38
-
0.123 6
2
3
Gnetum africanum
Welw.
3
23.08
-
0.146 8
Cissus quadrangularis
7
53.85
-
0.144 5
4
Dioscorea bulbifera
Linn.
1
7.69
-
0.080 8
Total
13
100
-
0.495 7
Note: Climber species diversity indices
-
0.495 7, Richness 2.693 1, Evenness
-
0.823 3
Table 5 Palm species producing valuable forest products in Ikot Efre Itak community forest, Uyo Local Government Area, Nigeria
Palm species
Population (ha)
Frequency (%)
H1
1
Elaeis guineensis
Jacq.
9
26.47
-
0.152 1
2
3
Ancistrophyllum secondiflorum
(P. Beauv) Wendl. 23
67.65
-
0.113 9
Raphia hookeri
Mann and Wendl.
2
5.88
-
0.073 3
4
Total
34
100
-
0.339 3
Note: Climber species diversity indices
-
0.339 3, Richness 1.305 9, Evenness
-
0.711 1
2.5 Palm species population density, diversity index,
richness and evenness
Table 5 indicates that
Ancistrophyllum secondiflorum
had the highest palm population density of 23
individual/0.6 ha and
Elaeis guineensis
2
individual/0.6 ha while
Raphia hookeri
had the lowest
population density of 2/0.6 ha. The Species diversity
index, Richness and Evenness of palm was
-
0.339 3,
1.305 9,
-
0.711 1 respectively.
3 Discussion
The existence and population density of a plant
species in a tract of a rainforest is a function of the
availability of its seeds or propagules and favorable
micro
-
climate for germination and growth (Udo et al.,
2009). Furthermore, the abundance and rarity of a
plant species, especially those of great economic value,
is a function of the intensity and pattern of
exploitation which the forest is generally subjected to
(Adekunle et al., 2010). Consequently, the high
population of tree species, diversity index, Richness
and Species evenness encountered in the study area
can be attributed to the favorable micro
-
climate which
included adequate sunlight, created by the canopy gap
and the ban on the exploitation of trees in the area for
timber as a result of the consecration of the area as a
sacred forest, the sanctity of which has been held for
generations. This finding agrees with similar works
carried out in the tropical rainforest ecosystem that
higher population of trees are usually observed in an
undisturbed tropical rainforest when compared with
those of the disturbed tropical rainforest (Nath et al.,
2005; Udo et al., 2009; Adekunle et al., 2010).
The low density of shrubs, herbs, climbers and palms
species observed in the forest tract could be attributed
to the unfavorable micro
-
climate and paucity of
viable seeds to sustain regeneration. It could also be
attributed to over
-
exploitation for poles and Non
Timber Forest Products (NTFP’s collection in the
