Impact of Human Settlements on Diversity of Range Vegetation

Abstract

The rapidly increasing population of human beings in semi-arid areas is often considered as a major factor of land degradation. Only a few studies have examined the dynamics of human settlements on the composition, diversity, structure and palatability of range vegetation in Southern Punjab Pakistan. The current study aims to assess whether the distance from settlements had any effect on the range vegetation’s diversity and cover. In order to determine the impact of human settlements on the vegetation, the sampling area (Thal rangeland) was classified into three categories, i.e., Near (1–2 km from human communities), Away (2–4 km from human communities), and Far (4–6 km from human settlements). A total of 75 transects in all of the three sites were placed in the study sites. Along the transects, a quadrate of 1 m2 after every 10 m was randomly placed. The study site yielded floral diversity of a total of 29 species, representing 23 genera and belonging to 9 families. Results showed that the areas away from the human communities had higher species diversity (20), while the site near to human settlements depicted lower diversity (14). It was observed that, although the site near to communities had lower diversity, it depicted higher plant density, while the highest diversity along with the lowest plant density was observed in sites away from the communities. The study concluded that the diversity of range grasses, especially desirable species, was affected by distance to human settlements. These findings could be useful to detect flora changes, establish habitat protection priorities and improve efforts for conserving natural landscapes.

Influence of Pastoral Settlements Gradient on Vegetation Dynamics and Nutritional Characteristics in Arid Rangelands

“…Thus depicting lower vegetation cover as the distance from the villages increased. Further, it is also in line with Jamil et al [21], which also depicts the vegetation cover decreasing as the distance from the human settlements is increased. Our results are in accordance with a spatio-temporal determination of vegetation canopy cover using remote sensing, in which the authors concluded anthropogenic drivers, mainly distance from rural settlements and livestock density, had a major role to play in governing the vegetation cover of grasslands [58,59].…”

“…However, a recent study conducted in the arid rangelands of southern Pakistan depicted heavy grazing in areas far from pastoral settlements. This study found that regions further away from the settlements had lower plant density and sparse vegetation cover compared to nearer sites [21].…”

“…Heavy grazing on perennial species can alter competitive interactions between palatable perennial species and lower-palatable annual species [22]. This causes a shift in vegetation and can result in the dominance of unpalatable and grazing-tolerant annual species [21].…”

Distribution, Conservation Status and Effects of Threats on Relative Abundance of Warburgia ugandensis Tree Species. A Case Study of Katimok Forest Reserve, Kenya

“…The quadrats near the forest edge had a comparatively higher number of cow dung. The results are consistent with another study (Jamil et al, 2022) which showed livestock grazing intensity being higher closer to human settlement than in locations far away from human settlement.…”

Exploiting morphobiometric and genomic variability of African indigenous camel populations-A review

“…Rangelands help in the preservation of biodiversity and some of the species of plants that are used for medical purposes. Rangeland policies and implementations with respect to conservation are necessary for sustainable management ( Coppock et al, 2022 ; Farid et al, 2022 ; Jamil et al, 2022 ; Machan et al, 2022 ). It will assist in the nutrition of camels for improvement in their productive and reproductive performances ( Kuria et al, 2021 ).…”