Woody Plant Species Diversity, Relative Abundances and Distribution in Dire Dawa University

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the composition, diversity, distributional pattern, and present management of woody species in the Dire Dawa University (DDU) complex. Woody plant cultivation is a well-known land use practice at the university that serves instructional, windbreak, ornamental, recreational, and biodiversity protection purposes. This study's goal was to determine the relative richness, diversity, and density of woody plant species and how they are managed in the study area. From the 34 plots in the University Compound that were specifically chosen, several species were identified using a straightforward inventory procedure. In each plot, woody species were counted to evaluate the plantation's species richness and diversity evenness, diversity indices, relative frequency, and density were used. The management practice determine the plant species diversity with the plantation system during the past 12 or more years at the university was investigated using a focal person interview. For statistical analysis, Fast Software and Microsoft Excel 16 were employed. The study identified 41 distinct species of woody plants from 24 distinct families. There were more species in the families: Fabaceae, Bignoniaceae Malvaceae, and Moraceae had more than two species. In terms of habit, trees represented the majority (68.3%) of the species, while shrubs comprised the remainder (31.7%). The results of the finding for Shannon, Simpson, and evenness were, 2.882, 0.895, and 0.772, respectively. In the DDU compound, Azadirchta indica was the species that was most prevalent (27.71%), followed by Nerium oleander (7.9), Sophora japonica (6.6%), and Delonix regia (7%). The current findings showed that the studied area had a significant amount of genetic diversity. The plantation did not, however, achieve its objective as anticipated owing to a shortage of skilled employees and other related circumstances; as a result, management had to give proper attention to feature plantation. The research suggested that in the future, skilled staff should monitor, scale up, and further expand the plantation and management of valuable aesthetically pleasing and edible plant species in the university's assets for the coming generation.