Version 1
: Received: 10 July 2023 / Approved: 11 July 2023 / Online: 11 July 2023 (10:55:14 CEST)
How to cite:
Jeldu, F.A.; Feyisa, M.T.; Woldeamanuel, T. Functional and Species Diversity across Disturbance Levels and Environmental Variables in Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve, Southwest Ethiopia. Preprints2023, 2023070692. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202307.0692.v1
Jeldu, F.A.; Feyisa, M.T.; Woldeamanuel, T. Functional and Species Diversity across Disturbance Levels and Environmental Variables in Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve, Southwest Ethiopia. Preprints 2023, 2023070692. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202307.0692.v1
Jeldu, F.A.; Feyisa, M.T.; Woldeamanuel, T. Functional and Species Diversity across Disturbance Levels and Environmental Variables in Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve, Southwest Ethiopia. Preprints2023, 2023070692. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202307.0692.v1
APA Style
Jeldu, F.A., Feyisa, M.T., & Woldeamanuel, T. (2023). Functional and Species Diversity across Disturbance Levels and Environmental Variables in Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve, Southwest Ethiopia. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202307.0692.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Jeldu, F.A., Motuma Tolera Feyisa and Teshale Woldeamanuel. 2023 "Functional and Species Diversity across Disturbance Levels and Environmental Variables in Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve, Southwest Ethiopia" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202307.0692.v1
Abstract
In many previous studies, the conclusions for the effects of disturbance and environmental gradients on the diversity was remain controversial due to exclusions of trait-based diversity in their methodology. This study hypothesized trait-based indices are more likely to show monotonic and predictable relations than traditional based species diversity to guide effective restoration of tree species diversity against environmental change and anthropogenic factors. This study therefore, was initiated to access trait based functional diversity of Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve (YCFBR), Southwest Ethiopia. Data was collected from 90 proportionally distributed plots along disturbance levels from core, buffer and transitional zones. For functional trait diversity estimation, traits relevant to plant-life strategy, competition and response to disturbances and climate change were selected. Multiple regression model was used to test the response of species diversity and functional diversity to disturbance and environmental gradients. The result revealed that, anthropogenic disturbance and elevational gradients are the most important factors influencing functional diversity in the YCFBR. Overall this study demonstrates that, trait based functional diversity is useful to predict adaptation potentials of species in heterogeneous environments. Species with low specific leaf area & selective seed mass is recommended for the restoration of disturbed ecosystem.
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
