RESUMO
Celtis toka (C. toka), a critically endangered mystical plant, is a highly valued and overharvested multiuse tree species by local population in Burkina Faso. The ethnobotany of C. toka can lead to its sustainable use, therefore it is a great challenge because little information is available on this aspect concerning the species in Burkina Faso as well as in Africa. Thus, this study aims to assess the sustainable use and management of C. toka in Burkina Faso. The study was conducted along a climate gradient (Sudanian and Sudano-Sahelian climatic zones) in Burkina Faso. Data were collected randomly through selected semi-structured interviews with 405 informants (148 women and 257 men) randomly selected from 34 villages and 25 ethnolinguistic groups. Frequency of citation was computed. Kruskal-Wallis test, Mann-Whitney test and Generalized Linear Models analyses were performed to determine whatever information varied according to site and socio-demographic parameters. Among eight use categories, food (27.89%), livestock (18.97%), shade (16.23%), and pharmacopeia (14.92%) were the most recorded. Leaves (63.83%), roots (19.20%), and bark (17.11%) were the most valued plant parts. All plant parts were used to heal 29 ailments in 37 ways. The most common diseases treated by C. toka were vitamin deficiencies (FL = 8.84%), malaria (FL = 8.44%), cast (FL = 5.84%), madness (FL = 3.25%), eye ache (FL = 2.77%) and yellow fever (FL = 2.60%). Sacred forests (39%) and protected areas (27%) were the key biotopes of C. toka. Value of C. toka was well-treasured in the study sites. The frequency of citation of some use patterns and plant parts varied significantly across some ethnolinguistic groups, sex and generation levels (p < 0.05). Management such as sowing (0%), seedling transplantation (0%) and assisted natural regeneration (0%) were lacking. Sacred (37.99%), taboo (25.04%), mystic (11.62%), magic (10.28%) fetish (8.96%) and medico-magic (6.12%) characters of C. toka determined the traditional conservation strategies of the species in Burkina Faso. Our results recommend that the conservation policies and sustainable use of C. toka should be prioritized. Furthermore, studies should thus emphasize the domestication potential of C. toka for its plant parts.
RESUMO
Afzelia africana Sm - a multipurpose leguminous tree species - is threatened in West Africa - a climate change hotspot region. Yet, although the impacts of land use on this species dynamics have been widely reported, there is a little literature on the impacts of climate change on its spatial distribution. This study aimed to predict the impacts of climate change on the geographic distribution of A. africana in Burkina Faso. A total of 4,066 records of A. africana was compiled from personal fieldwork and vegetation database. Current and future bioclimatic variables were obtained from WorldClim website. For future climatic projections, six global climate models (GCMs) were selected under two emission scenarios (RCP 4.5 & RCP 8.5) and two horizons (2050 & 2070). Presence data and bioclimatic variables were processed in ArcGIS software and used in the algorithm MaxEnt (maximum of entropy) to predict the species distribution. Findings showed that maximum temperature of warmest month and mean temperature of coldest quarter mostly affect the habitat suitability of A. africana. About 25.54% of Burkina Faso land surface was currently suitable for A. africana conservation. Under future climatic projections, all the climate models predict climate-driven habitat loss of the species with a southward range shift. Across the two emission scenarios, the spatial extent of suitable habitats was predicted to decline from 9.43 to 23.99% and from 12.29 to 25% by the horizons 2050 and 2070, respectively. Habitat loss and range shifts predicted in this study underline the high vulnerability of A. africana to future climate change. Reforestation actions and the protection of predicted suitable habitats are recommended to sustain the species conservation.
