Diversity and Conservation status of vascular plants of Dir Kohistan valley, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province
Journal Title: Journal of Biodiversity and Environmental Sciences (JBES) - Year 2014, Vol 4, Issue 7
Abstract
In this research effort have made to document the diversity and conservation status of important medicinal plants found in Dir Kohistan valley. This is ever first record of the flora of this area. The area has many climatic and vegetation zones. Locals residing in mountainous areas belonging to various ethnic groups are traditionally utilizing plants over many generations. The rural population of the valley is dependent on the forest wood and medicinal plants to fulfill their fuel, shelter and livestock fodder demands. In the present study 83 plant species belongs to 50 families have been reported. Out of 83 species, 43 threatened plant species has been reported from Dir Kohistan Valley, of which 22 % species were ranked as endangered, 20 % species vulnerable and 10 % species are rare. Many of these medicinal plants are used in local community. Colchicum luteum, Geranium wallichiana, Paeonia emodi, Podophylum emodi, Valeriana jatamans and Viola biflora are some of the most threatened species and need special attention. Furthermore, out of the total 83 plant species, 80% were medicinal plant species, 47% were used as fuel wood and 33 % were fodder species. Over exploitation of plant resources combined with improper harvesting and post harvesting techniques have intensified pressure on plants of area. The major factors contributing towards plant diversity loss found were poverty, grazing of pasture, forest encroachment, medicinal plant collection, agro-system threats, fuel collection, forest fire, soil-slope erosion and invasive species intensify the environment. Further extensive field conservation/management research is needed.
Authors and Affiliations
Gul Jan, Farzana Gul Jan, Muhammad Hamayun, Khalid Khan, Aman Khan
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP37779
- DOI -
- Views 186
- Downloads 0
Using geostatistical method for prediction the spatial variability of soil texture and its effect on environmnet (case study: farahan plain of markazi province, Iran)
Soil texture is one of the most important soil properties governing most of the physical, chemical and hydrological properties of soils. Variability in soil texture may contribute to the variation in nutrient storage an...
Prognostication of the quantity of reclamation water requirement for salt leaching of problematic soils via empirical simulation models in South of Iran
Study area called “Mianab – Shushtar” is located in the middle part of the Khuzestan province, Iran. Soil survey and land evaluation conducted in the area should that from the total area of about 41855 ha, almost over 1...
A fraction of angiosperms of Tehsil Banda Daud Shah district Karak Pakistan
The Flora of Banda Daud Shah is interesting because of the presence of both hills and plains in the area. The hills in most part of the area seem to be barren but many are rich in grasses, Rhazia stricta, Dodonaea visco...
Effects of recreational activities on some stand parameters and biodiversity indicators in Fandoghlou forests, Northwestern Iran
In the current study, the impacts of different intensities of small-scale recreational activities, including noimpacted, slightly impacted, moderately impacted and severely impacted, were analyzed on some stand paramete...
Inhibition of persian walnut (Juglans regia L.) microcuttings browning by utilizing different methods
Microcuttings browning and eventual death of the tissue during the initial stage of walnut tissue culture is a frequent problem. In this research, three different experiments were conducted to inhibition microcuttings...