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Walnut fruit forests represent both a valuable hotspot of biological diversity and have significant economic value for the livelihoods of local communities. However, the sustainable management of these forests is a complex task requiring the successful juggling of the different interests of local stakeholders, including fulfilling their economic, social and ecological demands. Birds were chosen as the indicator of biodiversity with which to evaluate the effects of forest management activities. A research study was conducted in 2005 during the birds' breeding season in five different habitats (primary and secondary forests, plantation, agroforestry and brushwood) using the point sampling method. A total of 23 species were recorded. According to the various diversity indices employed, the best habitats for species richness were areas of agroforestry, while primary forests were found to be the best habitats in terms of species abundance. In contrast, the lowest bird diversity was observed in plantations due to their structural homogeneity. In addition, habitat suitability was assessed according to both horizontal and vertical structural parameters and tested using five selected indicator bird species. The results reveal a link between birds and vegetation, with abundance of old trees, availability of deadwood and habitat understorey density found to be the most important indicators of bird survival. Our research findings highlight that it is imperative to protect existing primary forests which are genetic diversity hotspots for endemic species such as Dendrocopos leucopterus. Although areas under agroforestry were primarily found to be relatively promising habitats in terms of species richness, these intensively managed ecosystems may also be useful for simultaneously fulfilling the needs of local people, if such projects are carefully planned and managed.

The management of the walnut fruit forests is one of the key issues of the forest sector in Kyrgyzstan to address the challenges in conserving forest resources, assure socio-economice efficiency and the livelihood of people. However, there is an urgent demand to assess sustainable forest management (SFM), which generally involves the use of Criteria and Indicators (C&I). In our case study Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) techniques have been applied following five steps: environmental setting, development of C&I, analysis of preferences, development of management strategies and selecting the best alternative. The approach was applied at forestry management unit. In general, 7 criteria and 45 ind icators have been identified using rating, ranking and pairwise comparion techniques within the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). The priorities derived by the individual pairwise comparions were aggregated for all stakeholders groups by using the geometric mean. Futhermore, four different management strategies have been developed and the performances of the strategies were assessed wthin a AHP model. Accordingly, the results in the case study supported the practical use of the MCA approach taken, as the interests and preferences were systematically analysed and the expectations of different stakeholders were identified. However, to adapt the process of MCA it was found that more time and efforts are needed in order to create a participatory environment in the context of Kyrgyzstan. It is discussed that in practical operational planning the government has to initiate and stimulate such a participatory process for sustainable forest management by providing financial subsidies and practical help.