WITHDRAWN:Evaluation of Brachiaria hybrid Mulato II hay as a basal diet for growing Farta lambs in Ethiopia.

Ahead of Print article withdrawn by publisher.

Diversity and composition of farm plantation tree/shrub species along altitudinal gradients in North-eastern Ethiopia: implication for conservation.

On-farm tree plantation is a form of land use where trees are planted at the edge or interspersed with crops. It has been practiced in different parts of Ethiopia due to its contribution to the household economy and soil fertility. This study was carried out to evaluate the variation in tree/shrub plantations along altitudinal gradients and plantation niches, and farmers' on-farm tree plantation practices at Kobo and Guba Lafto districts, North-eastern Ethiopia. Transect walks and semi-structured questionnaire were administered to appraise farmers' tree/shrub plantation practices and compositions between August and December 2020. A total of 135 plots along altitudinal gradients (Forty-five sample plots per altitude) and 135 retrieved questionnaires (45 per altitude) were analyzed. At each plot, tree/shrub richness, diversity, stem density, and important value index (IVI) were computed. Multivariate analysis, descriptive statistics, and preference rankings were used to evaluate vegetation data and farmers' perceptions on tree/shrub plantations. The results showed that most farmers (78.5 %) integrate trees with their crops for household use and soil fertility maintenance. The multivariate analysis revealed a significant reduction in the number of taxa, stem density, richness, and diversity with increasing elevation, from homestead to the boundary and on-farm plantation niches. Ziziphus spina-christi and Cordia africana were the most preferred tree species; Fabaceae was the dominant family representing 18.9 % of the species. The results emphasized considerable variations in relative density, relative dominance, and important value index (IVI) across altitudinal gradients and plantation niches. Acacia seyal and Z. spina-christi contributed the highest IVI at lower and middle elevations, whereas Eucalyptus globulus had high IVI at a higher elevation. In the study districts, the distribution of multifunctional indigenous tree plantations gradually decreases with the entire altitudinal gradients compared to exotic trees/shrubs. This calls for substantial efforts on the propagation and conservation of native tree and shrub genetic resources.

A Review on Medicinal Plants Used in the Management of Respiratory Problems in Ethiopia over a Twenty-Year Period (2000-2021).

This review is aimed at assessing and compiling the different ethnomedicinal studies in different parts of Ethiopia used to treat respiratory diseases. The data were collected from different published research papers through searching the web sources such as PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and other related websites. The important search terminologies included ethnobotany, respiratory diseases, medicinal plants, and Ethiopia. For this, a total of 65 articles of recent publications (from 2000 to May 2021 years) that provided full information about the use of medicinal plant species to treat respiratory disorder diseases in Ethiopia were consulted. Based on this, a total of 96 medicinal plants belonging to 57 families were reviewed. The commonly recorded families used to manage respiratory problems were Asteraceae, Lamiaceae, Solanaceae, and Fabaceae. Herbs and shrubs were the dominant plant growth forms. Due to the easiest form of their preparation for treating respiratory disorders, leaves are the most cited plant parts followed by roots. Crushing and pounding are useful methods of remedy preparation to treat respiratory diseases. This review concluded that different medicinal plants have a significant contribution in combating serious respiratory problems in Ethiopia. Hence, the complied review of medicinal plants on the treatment of respiratory problems would play a great role in further pharmacological and phytochemical investigations in developing new drugs used for the treatment of respiratory problems and in the conservation of these important medicinal plants.

COVID-19 lockdown and natural resources: a global assessment on the challenges, opportunities, and the way forward.

BACKGROUND: The Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a global pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2, which has an enormous effect on human lives and the global environment. This review aimed to assess the global scientific evidence on the impact of COVID-19 lockdown on natural resources using international databases and search engines. Thus, the unprecedented anthropause due to COVID-19 has positive and negative effects on natural resources. MAIN BODY: This review showed that the unprecedented pandemic lockdown events brought a negative impact on the physical environment, including pollution associated with a drastic increase in person protective equipment, deforestation, illegal poaching and logging, overfishing, disruption of the conservation program and projects. It is noted that the spread of pandemic diseases could be aggravated by environmental pollution and a rapid increase in the global population. Despite these negative impacts of COVID-19, the anthropause appear to have also several positive effects on natural resources such as short term reduction of indoor and outdoor environmental pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, NO2, SO2, CO, and CO2), reduction in noise pollutions from ships, boats, vehicles, and planes which have positive effects on aquatic ecosystems, water quality, birds behaviour, wildlife biodiversity, and ecosystem restoration. CONCLUSION: Therefore, governments and scientific communities across the globe have called for a green recovery to COVID-19 and implement multi-actor interventions and environmentally friendly technologies to improve and safeguard sustainable environmental and biodiversity management and halt the next pandemic.

Human disturbance impacts the integrity of sacred church forests, Ethiopia.

Land-use change can have profound effects on forest communities, compromising seedling recruitment and growth, and long-term persistence of forests on the landscape. Continued forest conversion to agriculture causes forest fragmentation which decreases forest size, increases edge effects and forest isolation, all of which negatively impact forest health. These fragmentation effects are magnified by human use of forests, which can compromise the continued persistence of species in these forests and the ability of the forests to support the communities that depend on them. We examined the extent and influence of human disturbance (e.g. weedy taxa, native and exotic tree plantations, clearings, buildings) on the ecological status of sacred church forests in the northern highlands of South Gondar, Ethiopia and hypothesized that disturbance would have a negative effect. We found that disturbance was high across all forests (56%) and was negatively associated with tree species richness, density, and biomass and seedling richness and density. Contrary to expectation, we found that forests < 15.5 ha show no difference in disturbance level with distance from population center. Based on our findings, we recommend that local conservation strategies not only protect large forests, but also the small and highly used forests in South Gondar which are critical to the needs of local people, including preserving large trees for seed sources, removing exotic and weedy species from forests, and reducing clearings and trails within forests.

Survey on composition of perennial vegetation in Sesa Mariam Monastery, Northwestern Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Sustainable use of natural resources is one of the leading agenda because anthropogenic activities are leading to the depletion of these resources. Ethiopia is one of the biodiversity reach areas in the world, but the floral diversity is being threatened before they are fully explored. In line with this, very little is known about the flora of Sesa Mariam monastery, found in northwest Ethiopia. The area is one of the few remnant monastery forests in the country with old aged tree species. The aim of the study was to explore and document the floristic composition, density and regeneration status of perennial plant species in order to provide base line information for the sustainable utilization and management of the forest resources. METHODOLOGY: Fifty-one (51) quadrats (20 m × 20 m each) were laid along established transect lines for census of perennial plant species. Two nested quadrats (2 m × 10 m) were also used at the beginning and at the end of every main quadrat for the assessment of seedlings and saplings. All woody plant species in each quadrat were counted and identified. Species diversity, richness and evenness were measured. RESULTS: One hundred and thirteen (113) plant species belonging to 89 genera and 54 families were identified. Moreover, there were 7 more species outside the study quadrats. Of these plant species 10 were endemic, 92 were indigenous, and the remaining 11 were exotic cultivated trees and shrubs. Fabaceae is the most dominant family with 14 species followed by Euphorbiaceae and Rutaceae, each with 6 species. The total basal area of the matured woody plants of the forest was 94.81 m(2) ha(-1) and the density was 1960.78 individuals ha(-1). The overall diversity and evenness of woody species were 3.81 and 0.85, respectively. When compared to other forests found in Ethiopia, it is better protected. CONCLUSION: The data from this study showed a relatively good conservation status. However, analysis from individual woody plant structure, and count of seedlings and saplings showed a need for conservation. Stopping or minimizing grazing by livestock and selective tree cuttings are the first measures to be taken for conservation.