DIVERSITY AND ETHNOBOTANICAL USES OF PLANTS IN PROPOSED APRA HILLS FOREST RESERVE IN SOUTHERN GHANA BY ADEOYE ADENIYI (10435562) THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF M.PHIL BOTANY DEGREE DEPARTMENT OF BOTANY, UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON JULY, 2015 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh i DIVERSITY AND ETHNOBOTANICAL USES OF PLANTS IN PROPOSED APRA HILLS FOREST RESERVE IN SOUTHERN GHANA BY ADEOYE ADENIYI (10435562) THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF M.PHIL BOTANY DEGREE DEPARTMENT OF BOTANY, UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON JULY, 2015 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ii DECLARATION I, the undersigned, Adeoye Adeniyi, author of this thesis hereby declare that the work presented in this thesis "DIVERSITY AND ETHNOBOTANICAL USES OF PLANTS IN PROPOSED APRA HILLS FOREST RESERVE IN SOUTHERN GHANA" was done entirely by me under the supervision of Prof. Alex Asase of the Department of Botany, University of Ghana, Legon, from August 2014 to July 2015. This work has never been presented either in part or in whole, for any degree of this University or elsewhere. SIGN.......................................................... DATE......................................................... ADEOYE ADENIYI (STUDENT) SIGN............................................................ DATE........................................................... PROF. ALEX ASASE (SUPERVISOR) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iii DEDICATION This work is first and foremost dedicated to Almighty God. Secondly to my parents, Alhaji M.A Adeoye and Alhaja Taibat Adeoye. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I owe my supervisor, Prof. Alex Asase from the Department of Botany, University of Ghana, gratitude for his guidance which led to the successful completion of this research work. I am also indebted to Prof. Gabriel Ameka, Head of Botany Department, University of Legon, Ghana, Mr. Wilson Owusu Asare, Mr. Boafo Ofei, Mr. Kwame Afeez (Forest Guard) of Forestry Commission Winneba District and Chief's of Akrampa, Apra and Loye who hosted me throughout my visit to the study area. I am grateful to Mr. Patrick Ekpe (Department of Botany, University of Ghana) who assisted me in identifying most of the plant species present at the proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve in Southern Ghana. My sincere thanks to Mr. Bismarck Asitoakor, Mr. AnthonyAdu-Gyamfi, Mr. Prosper Avekor who assisted me throughout my visit to the study site. I also want to extend my sincere gratitude to Alhaji M.A Adeoye and Alhaja Taibat Adeoye who financed this project work. My appreciation goes to Elizabeth Mariam Lamina, Nana Opuni, and Janatu Veronica Sesay. Finally, I am grateful to everyone whose prayers and support saw me through. I appreciate you and God bless you all. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh v TABLE OF CONTENTS Content Page CHAPTER ONE .......................................................................................................................1 1.0 INTRODUCTION ...............................................................................................................1 1.1 Background .........................................................................................................................1 1.2 Problem Statement ..............................................................................................................2 1.3 Justification of the study .....................................................................................................3 1.4 Research Objectives ............................................................................................................3 CHAPTER TWO.......................................................................................................................4 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW ....................................................................................................4 2.1 Biodiversity .........................................................................................................................4 2.2 Forest Biodiversity in Ghana...............................................................................................5 2.3 Deforestation .......................................................................................................................6 2.4 Land use change ..................................................................................................................8 2.5 Major causes of deforestation and forest degradation in Ghana .........................................9 2.5.1 Agriculture .......................................................................................................................9 2.5.2 Logging and timber extraction .........................................................................................9 2.5.3 Bush burning ..................................................................................................................10 2.5.4 Fuelwood collection and charcoal production ...............................................................10 2.5.5 Mining ............................................................................................................................10 2.8 Ethnobotany ......................................................................................................................11 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh vi 2.8.1 Field interview................................................................................................................12 2.8.2 Household to household interview .................................................................................12 2.8.3 Focal group interview ....................................................................................................13 CHAPTER THREE .................................................................................................................14 3.0 MATERIALS AND METHODS ......................................................................................14 3.1 Study Area .........................................................................................................................14 3.1.1 Vegetation ......................................................................................................................14 3.1.2 Land uses ........................................................................................................................17 3.1.3 History ............................................................................................................................17 3.1.4 Geology, soil and topography ........................................................................................18 3.1.5 Ethnography ...................................................................................................................18 3.2 Methods .............................................................................................................................20 3.2.1Field reconnaissance survey ............................................................................................20 3.2.2 Plant inventory ...............................................................................................................20 3.2.3 Ethnobotanical survey ....................................................................................................21 3.3. Data Analysis ...................................................................................................................23 3.3.1 Species accumulation curve and diversity index ............................................................23 3.3.2 Inventory completeness ..................................................................................................24 3.3.3 Family Importance Value index (FIV) ...........................................................................24 3.3.4 Species Importance Value index (IVI) ...........................................................................24 3.3.5 Use Value (UV) ..............................................................................................................26 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh vii 3.3.6 Informant Consensus Factor (Fic) ...................................................................................26 CHAPTER FOUR ...................................................................................................................28 4.0 RESULTS..........................................................................................................................28 4.1 General plant diversity ......................................................................................................28 4.2. Vegetation types and species composition .......................................................................40 4.2.1 Open Canopy Forest .......................................................................................................40 4.2.2 Closed Canopy Forest ....................................................................................................40 4.2.3 Seasonal Flooded Forest.................................................................................................41 4.2.4 Thicket forest..................................................................................................................41 4.3 Diversity, abundance and distribution of trees ..................................................................43 4.5 Ethnobotanical Studies ......................................................................................................48 4.5.1 Social-economic background of informants ..................................................................48 4.6 Use Categories, Use-Value (UV) and Informant Consensus factor (Fic) ..........................49 4.6.1 Medicinal uses of plants .................................................................................................55 4.6.2 Plant parts and use-categories ........................................................................................60 4.7 Relationships between plant diversity and ethnobotanical use .........................................62 CHAPTER FIVE .....................................................................................................................68 5.0 DISCUSSION ...................................................................................................................68 5.1 Plant diversity ....................................................................................................................68 5.2Ethnobotanical use .............................................................................................................69 5.3 Relationship between plant diversity and ethnobotanical use ...........................................71 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh viii CHAPTER SIX .......................................................................................................................72 6.0 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...........................................................72 6.1 Conclusions .......................................................................................................................72 6.2 Recommendations.............................................................................................................73 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................75 APPENDICES .........................................................................................................................88 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ix LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Checklist of plants identified in the proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve in southern Ghana...................................................................................................................................29 Table 2: Inventory Completeness ratio (C).....................................................................................36 Table 3: Family composition of plants in the study area................................................................37 Table 4: Family Importance Value Index of trees...........................................................................44 Table 5: Species abundance and Importance Value Index of Trees................................................45 Table 6: List of plants used in communities around proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve.............50 Table 7: Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) for commonly used plants.........................................54 Table 8: Medicinal plants used in communities around proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve..............................................................................................................................56 Table 9: Informant Consensus factor for medicinal plants.............................................................59 Table 10: Use categories and plant parts used................................................................................61 Table 11: Relationship between plant diversity study and ethnobotanical study using plots.........64 Table 12: Relationship between plant diversity study and ethnobotanical study using vegetation types...............................................................................................................64 Table 13: Results of correlation analysis between plant diversity study and ethnobotanical study within plots............................................................................................................65 Table 14: Results of correlation analysis between plant diversity study and ethnobotanical study within different vegetation types..........................................................................65 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh x LIST OF FIGURES Fig. 1.1: Topography and contour map of the study area................................................................15 Fig. 1.2: Satellite image of the study area.......................................................................................16 Fig. 1.3: A paranomic view of proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve..............................................19 Fig. 1.4: An illustration to show line transect from bottom to top of proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve...................................................................................................................22 Fig. 1.5: Photograph taken during an interview with an informant...............................................23 Fig. 2 : Species accumulation curve................................................................................................35 Fig. 3: Growth form of plants in the sampled area..........................................................................36 Fig. 4: Vegetation types within proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve.............................................41 Fig.5 : DBH of tree species at different intervals............................................................................43 Fig. 6: Socio-economic background of informant in the study area...............................................47 Fig. 7: Plant use category in the study area.....................................................................................49 Fig. 8: Collection of fuelwood from the proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve...............................49 Fig. 9: Plant parts used by informant in the study area...................................................................60 Fig. 10: Harvesting of the stem bark of Swietenia macrophylla in the study area..........................60 Fig. 11: A relationship graph of plant diversity study and ethnobotanical study within plots........64 Fig. 12: Collection of plant resources by informants in the study area...........................................66 Fig. 13: Photograph showing evidence of illegal logging in proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve................................................................................................................................67 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xi ACRONYMS CBD - Convention of Biological Diversity DBH - Diameter at breast height DID - Dermatological infections/diseases FIVI - Family Importance Value Index GH - General health GIA - Gastro-intestinal ailment GUA - Genio-urinary ailments HEM - Hemorrhoids ICF - Informant Consensus Factor IPD - Infectious and parasitic diseases IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature IVI - Species Importance Value Index MCT - Musculoskeletal and connective tissue REDD - Reducing Emission for Deforestation and Forest Degradation RSD - Respiratory system disease SMSD - Skeleton-muscular system disorder UV - Use Value University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xii ABSTRACT The Southern Margin forest type in Ghana now occur in small forest fragments due to the overharvesting of plant resources for purpose of food, medicine, construction and fuelwood. The proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve is one of the remaining forest fragments of this forest type in southern Ghana although there are no previous in depth studies to support effective forest management of its plant resources. In order to achieve the objectives of this study, plant diversity study and ethnobotanical study was carried out. Nine plots of 25 m x 25 m was established in four vegetation types (Open canopy forest, closed canopy forest, seasonal flooded forest and thicket forest) within the study area. A total of 296 individual plants belonging to 127 taxa were identified. Of the 127 taxa, 114 were identified to species level belonging to 45 families, 10 were identified to genus level, 4 were identified to the family level and 9 taxa were undetermined. Nine of the 114 species identified have been assigned IUCN conservation rating. These species included Afzelia africana, Alafia sp., Albizia ferruginea, Nesogordonia papaverifera rated as vulnerable and Hunteria ghanensis was rated as an endangered species. Inventory completeness ratio was 0.6 (SE ± 0.05) and mean Shannon-Weiner diversity index was 2.0 (SE ± 0.09) for trees, the family sterculiaceae had the highest FIVI value and Hildergardia barteri had the highest IVI value. The DBH distribution pattern of trees showed an inverted J shape. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to interview 74 informants living in three communities around the proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve to investigate the ethnobotanical use. Results obtained from the ethnobotanical study showed that 35 plant species were reported being used by informants. Nine species, namely were recorded both in the plant diversity and ethnobotanical studies, whereas the following 12 species namely, Afraegle paniculata, Jatropha gossipifolia, Mangifera indica, Milicia excelsa, Paulina pinnata, Senna siamea, Sida acuta Burm, Solanum torvum, Spondias mombin, Strophantus hispidus, Swietenia macrophylla and Zanthoxylum xantholoides were not observed in the plant diversity study but were mentioned by the informants during the University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xiii interview. In terms of use-values (UV) for the 35 species, Swietenia macrophylla had the highest value of 2.0 whereas Momordica charantia had the least value of 0.1. In terms of use categories medicine had the highest ICF value of 39.2 and 19.8. Leaves of plants had the highest use reports and fruits had the least use reports. About 65 % of the indigenes collect plants from proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve on a weekly basis which account for the depletion of species in the area. Bushfire was mostly cited that threaten plant diversity by the informants. Correlation coefficient was positive and statistically significant (p < 0.05 for all analysis) between number of useful plants and medicinal plants, against species richness and species abundance whereas the relationships between the number of useful plants and vegetation types were insignificant (p > 0.05 for all analysis). Further studies in the proposed reserve should investigate carbon stocks as well as soil characteristics. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 1 CHAPTER ONE 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background In West Africa, biological diversity is an integral part of the rural economy, providing sources of materials for food, construction, medicine, energy and goods such as mats, baskets, furniture and dyes for many communities (Falconer, 1992; Banahene, 1997). In spite of the important roles biological diversity plays in the life of mankind, anthropogenic activities such as logging, bush burning, farming and mining has contributed significantly to loss of biodiversity (Veblen and Lorenz, 1987; Terborgh, 1992). Losses of biodiversity has various impacts including climate change, loss of ecosystem services, floods and disease introduction on human population (Ahmed, 2008). About 70 % of the world's plants are used for construction, furniture and medicine (FAO, 2001). The high use of plant resources for several purposes has led to the depletion of forest biodiversity. For example, due to the domestic and industrial demand for plants, there has been increased in logging activities both in Ghana and West Africa (ITTO and IUCN, 2005). Logging action, overharvesting and exportation of biodiversity has caused deforestation and forest degradation in Ghana (Benhin and Barbier, 2004). Ghana has one of the highest rates of deforestation in West Africa (Damnya et al., 2011). The rate of deforestation is estimated to be 2.19 % per annum between 2005 and 2010 for Ghana (FAO, 2010). About 70 % of deforestation in Ghana is cause by farming activities (Ahmed, 2008). Empirical studies on the cost of deforestation in monetary terms are few despite the fact that in the period of 1990– 2005, 1.9 million ha of Ghana's forest cover was lost (Damnya et al., 2011). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 2 Over the years, the Government of Ghana has been concerned about the extent of deforestation and forest degradation in the country. For this reason, efforts are being made to combat deforestation through sustainable management and rehabilitation measures, including tree planting on degraded forestlands (FAO, 2012). 1.2 Problem Statement Deforestation and forest degradation is a major environmental problem worldwide. The rate of forest cover loss is estimated to be 16 million hectares in 1990, 5.2 million hectares per year from 2000 to 2010 (FAO, 2010). Consequences of deforestation and forest degradation are biodiversity loss and socio-economic implications. The forests of Ghana contribute significantly both to rural and urban life, providing fodder, building materials, herbal medicines, and household items, as well as intangible benefits, such as cultural symbols, ritual artifacts and sacred sites (Appiah, 2003) but these forests continue to be degraded at a very alarming rate. The Ghana Forest and Wildlife Policy (2012) aims to manage and enhance the ecological integrity of all forest types in Ghana. The forest vegetation types in Ghana include Wet Evergreen; Moist Evergreen; Moist Semi-Deciduous; Dry Semi-Deciduous; Southern marginal, South-east outlier; and Upland Evergreen (Hall and Swaine, 1981). In recent years there has been an urgent need to rehabilitate deforested areas in Ghana as well as to restore the original forest using native tree species (Ministry of Lands and Forestry, 1994). The Southern Margin forest is one of the most degraded forest types in Ghana. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 3 1.3 Justification of the study The Southern Marginal forest is found in the south east of the country in areas with rainfall between 1000-1250 mm. Most of the characteristic species are herbaceous, rather than woody and less than 5 % of the species is deciduous. The forest canopy rarely exceeds 30 m whilst the undergrowth is thick and characteristically has high densities of gregarious species. The Southern Margin forest type in Ghana occurs mostly as small forest fragments largely in reserves and sacred groves (Hall and Swaine,1981). These forest fragments are usually close to most coastal towns and may have suffered from continuous anthropogenic pressure for farmlands and collection of plants fuel wood and other uses for centuries. There are very few forest reserves within Southern Margin forest type in Ghana. The proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve is one of best remaining forest patches of this forest type in Ghana. The proposed reserved is being managed by traditional authorities. However, to the best of our knowledge there are no previous studies on the biodiversity in the reserve in order to support effective management of its forest resources. This study is about the plant diversity in the proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve. 1.4 Research Objectives The overall goal of this study was to investigate diversity and ethnobotanical uses of plants in proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve towards sustainable management of its forest resources. Specifically, the objectives of the study are to: 1. Determine floristic diversity and species composition in the proposed forest reserve. 2. Document traditional uses of plants by the communities living around the proposed reserve and, 4. explore relationships between plant diversity and ethnobotanical use. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 4 CHAPTER TWO 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Biodiversity "Biological diversity" means the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems (CBD, 2006).Biological diversity is subdivided into three levels, namely, genetic diversity, species diversity, and ecological diversity. Genetic diversity refers to the variation in genetic information between species as well as variation between individuals of same species (Veblen and Lorenz, 1987). Genetic diversity determines the extent to which a given population adapt to environmental changes and diseases (Addo-Danso, 2010).Genes play a very important part in the resilience of biodiversity to world changes, such as climate change (Assefa et al., 2007). Genetic diversity is the ―raw material‖ that allow species to adapt to a changing world whether these changes are caused naturally or by human (Maclaurin and Sterelny, 2008). Species diversity is a measure of the number of species in a community (species richness) and the evenness of species abundance. Therefore, a community with abundant species are considered to be more diverse and undisturbed than a community with lesser species and can be concluded to be less diverse or disturbed (Maclaurin and Sterelny, 2008).Ecosystem diversity is a measure of various ecosystem types, diversity of habitats and ecosystem functions within all of them (Addo-Danso, 2010). Ecosystem diversity refers to the conditions and processes which natural ecosystems and the species that make them up, sustain and fulfill human life (Laing, 2002). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 5 2.2 Forest Biodiversity in Ghana The total land area of Ghana is estimated to be 23.9 million hectares of which 15.7 million hectares lie within the Savannah zone while the remaining 8.2 million hectares lie within the Tropical Rain Forest Zones. Only 2 million hectares of the original 8.22 million hectares remain (Laing, 2002). A total of 2,974 indigenous plant species, 504 fishes, 728 birds, 225 mammals, 221 species of amphibians and reptiles have been recorded in Ghana. Three species of frogs, lizard, and 23 species of butterflies have been reported to be endemic. (NBSAP, 2002). Both indigenous and introduced species have been considered in the assessments of the Ghana’s biodiversity. Presently, export of forest-based products is ranked fourth in terms of sources of foreign exchange earnings for Ghana (FAO, 2007). Forest plant biodiversity in Ghana is distributed across vegetation types, namely, Wet Evergreen; Moist Evergreen; Moist Semi-Deciduous; Dry Semi-Deciduous; Southern marginal, South-east outlier; and Upland Evergreen. The Wet evergreen forest have the highest annual rainfall and leached soil, followed by the Moist evergreen forest which has annual rainfall of 1500 - 1700 mm (Hall and Swaine, 1986). The Moist Semi-deciduous has the richest soil, annual rainfall of 1200 - 1800 mm and rich in timber supply of commercial species such as Entandrophragma utile Sprague., Khaya ivorensis A. Chev. and Triplochiton scleroxylon K. Schum. with height greater than 50 m. The Dry Semi-deciduous is found on the northern side of the Wet Semi-deciduous forest with annual rainfall of 1500 mm. Southern marginal, South-east outlier, and Upland Evergreen occur in patches with trees exceeding 60 m in height (Hall and Swaine, 1986). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 6 2.3 Deforestation Deforestation is the clearing or conversion of forest for other land use or the long-term reduction of tree canopy cover below the 10 % threshold (FAO, 2001). Deforestation can result from deliberate removal of forest cover for agriculture or urban development, or it can be an unintentional consequence of uncontrolled grazing (which can prevent the natural regeneration of young trees. Deforestation may cause many negative effects such as global warming, biodiversity loss which form basis of traditional and cultural knowledge and soil degradation are often identified (Mahapatra and Kant, 2003). In terms of global warming, about 20 % of increased emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) are responsible for global warming and climate change (Owusu et al., 2011). There is a relationship between deforestation and global warming because forests are major carbon sinks (Gorte and Sheikh, 2010). Therefore, deforestation leads to the collapse of carbon sinks and increase of more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere which is a serious threat to global climate. Seventy percent of the world’s plants are found in forest and this species can be endangered or become rare by deforestation (Knox and Marston, 1998). This loss does not only affect biodiversity but also has negative effect on medicinal research and local people who rely on plants in the forests for food, medicine and fuelwood(Chomitz, 1999). Clearing of forestlands leads to soil erosion and makes the land infertile. Runoff from deforested hillsides increased the amount of silt and impeded the flow of water into agricultural areas. Eventually, due to the increased depletion of soil nutrients this has led to low agricultural yields. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 7 There are strategies to reduce deforestation and forest degradation in Ghana. These include Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) programme, Practice of sustainable forest management, use of policies and laws, Indigenous knowledge systems and use of protected areas(ITTO, 2004). REDD is an effort to create a financial value for the carbon stored in forests, offering incentives for developing countries to reduce emissions from forested lands and invest in low-carbon paths to sustainable development. "REDD+" goes beyond deforestation and forest degradation, and includes the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest REDD is a mechanism that has been under negotiation by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) since 2005, with the objective of mitigating climate change through reducing net emissions of greenhouse gases through enhanced forest management in developing countries. This mechanism uses incentives to encourage developing countries to reduce deforestation and forest degradation (Chomitz et al., 2007). Sustainable forest management is the use of forests and forest lands in a way that maintains their biodiversity, productivity, regeneration capacity, vitality and their potential to fulfill, now and in the future, relevant ecological, economic and social functions, at local, national, and global levels, and that does not cause damage to other ecosystems (FAO, 2012). Policies and laws can be effective in controlling deforestation and forest degradation. This approach should not be severe in order to encouraged local people and institutional participation in forest management and conservation as well as to protect the local people’s rights and ensure equal sharing of benefits. These approaches include negotiation, warnings, cancelling work orders, charges and arrests (Chomitz et al., 2007). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 8 Indigenous knowledge systems refer to a knowledge and benefits built by a group of local people and handed over to generations (Breemer, 1995). Examples of this indigenous knowledge systems are cultural beliefs, taboos, totems, indigenous agricultural practices and these were used to conserve and manage natural resources. This indigenous knowledge will help reduce the depletion and encourage sustainable management of plant resources which is important for the present and future generations. Protected areas safeguards biological and cultural diversity, it helps to improve the livelihood of many local communities, provide homelands for indigenous people and brings countless benefit to the society in general. International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) defined a protected area as a geographical area, recognized and managed to conserve nature and its resources (Dudley, 2008). Protected areas can be used as a strategy to manage and conserve plants (Myers, 1994; Myers and Mittermeier, 2000; Nepstad et al., 2006).Creating protected areas where human activity is limited is the best way to prevent deforestation and exploitation of plant resources (Heywood, 1995). 2.4 Land use change The pressure on land-use pose the greatest impact on biodiversity in tropical forests (Sala et al., 2000).Forests in Ghana have suffered a serious decline because of over-exploitation to meet the growing needs of the population (EPA, 2004).Land use is the frequent activity practiced on land by humans for purposes such as farming practices of food with the use of fire, shifting cultivation, mono cropping, land rotation and fallow etc (De Bie, 2000). This activities put pressure on forest biodiversity. Also, the increasing human population needs to which the forest is exposed in most tropical countries occur also in Ghana and serious problems have arisen (Hawthorne and Jongkind, 2006). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 9 2.5 Major causes of deforestation and forest degradation in Ghana 2.5.1 Agriculture Agriculture is a major cause of deforestation and forest degradation in Ghana(FAO, 2007). Over 60 % of Ghana's population use the forest land for large scale farming (Addo-Danso, 2010). There have been increased farming activities and shifting cultivation in different forest communities due to increase in population size. The purpose of agriculture expansion is to meet up with cash crop demands for both domestic consumption, local supply and exportation. There has been pressure on forestlands since agriculture has become incorporated into the global economy. These farming activities are usually established within the forest leading to drastic increase of deforestation and threat to the sustainability of biodiversity (Adu et al., 2012). 2.5.2 Logging and timber extraction About 94 % of the forest in Ghana are disturbed due to unsustainable logging (De Laat, 2010). Unsustainable logging is one of the main reasons for forest management in Ghana (Addo- Danso, 2010). The scale of illegal exports of timber became clear to the Ghanaian authorities in 1987, when several shiploads of illegally harvested wood were halted and fraud involving export documents were revealed (Glastra, 1999; Koen et al., 2010). Commercial logging and timber extraction is majorly carried out to supply international companies (Addo-Danso, 2010). In most cases, this forest lands are bought or rented in order to harvest timber for medicinal or construction purpose. According to Laporte et al., (2007) commercial logging has become the most extensive land use in West Africa and about 30 % of forest are currently disturbed. It is expected that commercial logging will expand further due to their demands for them by local and international industries. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 10 2.5.3 Bush burning The effect of bush burning on Ghana's forest has been estimated to be about US$24 million annually (Archibald et al, 2010). Charcoal production and farming are major cause of bushfires, threatening the sustainability of forests (Addo-Danso, 2010).Accidental causes of wildfires involved cooking in the farms, palm wine tapping, charcoal burning, honey extraction and cigarette smoking (Kusimi and Appati, 2012). 2.5.4 Fuelwood collection and charcoal production Fuelwood provides the main energy source for both rural and urban households throughout the entire Ghana. Fuelwood collection and charcoal production are in most cases the major products of the forests in Ghana. The use and demand for these products keep increasing. Fuelwood and charcoal account for more than 75 % of all energy consumed in the country. It is estimated that about 91 % of total round wood produced is used for firewood and charcoal production (Addo-Danso, 2010). Wood extraction for domestic fuel wood or charcoal production remains a major issue in Africa, because most Africans still use wood and charcoal for cooking, since there are no other affordable energy sources available. Only 7.5 % of the rural population currently has access to electricity. Africa has shown a steady increase in wood removals in recent years, reporting a rise from 49,900 hectares annually (1990) to 66,100 hectares 2005 (Koen, 2010). 2.5.5 Mining A variety of minerals are known to exist in Ghana. Among these are manganese, iron, tin, copper, lead and gold (UNEP, 1999). As these minerals remain in demand on an international scale, mining companies and groups of individuals will continue to search for new sites and in University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 11 due process deplete the forest in order to carry out extraction of these minerals. The extraction of minerals are the leading contributors to Ghana’s foreign exchange earnings. In 2009, gold rose to 12 % with a production of 2.9 million ounces revenue of $2.8 billion to the economy. Despite the important role these minerals play in the Ghanaian economy, mining has had devastating effects on forests leading to several hectares of forest loss (Glastra, 1999). 2.8 Ethnobotany "Ethnobotany is the study of the relationship between plants and people (Faruque and Uddin, 2014). The study of plants provides relevant and new information in development of medicines and new uses of plant parts for household purposes. Ethnobotany plays a crucial role in the study of traditional medicine (Pei, 2005). Plants are essential for human beings as they provide food, fuel, fodder, timber, fruit and medicines (Amjad and Arshad, 2014).Indigenous knowledge of traditional uses of plants as well as medicinal uses of plants for healing human ailments is, however, in danger of gradually becoming extinct, because this knowledge is passed on orally from generation to generation without the aid of a writing system and because many traditional healers do not keep written records (Kaido et al., 1997). Ethnobotanical study not only prevents misapprehension and misrepresentation of observed facts, but is positively necessary in many instances to the correct diagnosis and explanation of ethnological facts, of the symbolism of objects used, and the significance of allusions in the text embodied in ceremonial ritual (Poole, 1995).Majority of wild plants can only be conserved in their natural ecosystems (Martin, 1994). Therefore, the use of foods, medicines, and plant materials from the forests can be managed sustainably if forests are properly managed (Wightman, 1992). However, deforestation by humans are rapidly destroying the forest ecosystem causing extinction of species as well (Cunningham, 1993). Ethnobotanical studies University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 12 conducted in different local communities have recorded that many forest communities are aware of the usefulness of species occurring in the forest around them (Kotak, 1991). This indigenous knowledge has been gained by trial and error over long periods of time, and in most cases has been passed across generations through oral transmission (Philips, 1993a). Indigenous knowledge is an extremely valuable cultural resource, because so many useful plants and other organisms are known to local people (Poole, 1995). Unfortunately, this local, traditional knowledge is often rapidly lost once indigenous people become integrated into modern, materialistic society. It is important that local indigenous peoples be given the opportunity to conserve their own culture (Martin, 1995). So therefore, ethnobotanical study has been adopted over the years and used to document the traditional uses of plants among different cultures with the use of questionnaires and interviews (Cunningham, 2001). Data collection can be carried out by field interview, household to household interview, focal group discussion or individual interview. Questionnaires is used in the collection of data from informants in written form whereas Interviews are based on what the informant says orally. The use of questionnaires can be either structured and semi-structured whereas the interview could be a focal group discussion or individual based (Martin, 1995). 2.8.1 Field interview Field based interviews are open ended. They are conducted person to person. They are deliberately designed to produce specific kinds of information, information that portrays the richness of individual experience on uses of plants. (Martin, 1995). 2.8.2 Household to household interview Household to household interview is one of the most reliable type of surveys for collection of data in ethnobotanical study (Lewis, 1994). The interview is conducted with each family University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 13 member of a household or a particular member and is designed in order to collect confidential information on the traditional uses of plants (Philip, 1993a). As knowledge of the uses of plants vary among households and among members of such household (Kotak, 1991). 2.8.3 Focal group interview Focal group discussion is an open interview among certain members of the community, certain age group with common knowledge about the traditional uses of plants (Cunningham, 2001). This interview is usually allows informants to give information based on self-expression. This type of survey is usually used to document the knowledge of certain cultural groups of particular age or how certain ethnic group understand the use plants in their environment (Tesfaye, 2005). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 14 CHAPTER THREE 3.0 MATERIALS AND METHODS 3.1 Study Area The study area at proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve is located at Akrampa, a village in the West Effutu Awutu Senya District of the Central Region of Ghana. It lies between latitude 5 o 35’ N, and 5 o 30’ and longitude 0 o 30’ and covers a total land area of 336 hectares. The area is made up of two adjacent West and Eastern Apra Hills surrounded by towns and villages including Apra, Loye, Buduburam, Kwaw Larbi and Ahentia (Fig 1.1). 3.1.1 Vegetation The study area is made up of approximately three-fourth of coastal semi-deciduous forest and intensively farmed savanna grassland (Fig. 2). These vegetation types run along the twin-hills and covered larger parts of the low lands. Plant species commonly found in the area included Ceiba pentandra (L.) Gaertn, Diospyros sanzaminika (Hiern) F. White and Blighia sapida K.D. Koenig. are frequent in the area whereas Triplochiton scleroxylon K.Schum and Antiaris africana (Pers.) Lesch. are less frequent but occur occasional (Forestry Section Report, 1989). Species such as Ceiba pentandra(L.) Gaertn, Mansonia altissima A.Chev., Triplochiton scleroxylon K.Schum, Nesogordonia papaverifera (A.Chev.) Capuron ex N.Hallé and Celtis mildbraedii Engl. dominate the upper storey whereas Ficus sagitilfolia Mildbr. & Burret Trichilia prieureana A. Juss., Albizia and Hymenostegia afezelii (Oliv.) Harms formed majority of plants in the middle storey. The lower storey contains the regeneration of some of the species in the upper stories and is mixed up with thorny thickets of Baphia nitida Lodd. and Uvaria globusa Hook.f.(Forestry Section Report, 1989). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 15 Fig. 1.1: Topography and contour map of the study area. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 16 Fig. 1.2:Satellite image of the study area University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 17 3.1.2 Land uses Shifting cultivation is practised in this area and most indigenes are predominantly subsistent farmers who cultivate crops such as orange, maize, pepper, garden egg, cassava, yam, pineapple. Minority of the indigenes in this area are petty traders and carpenters. These indigenes depend on plant resources such as leaves, fruits, roots, bark, woods from the proposed forest reserve for their sources of food, building, fuelwood, charcoal, medicine and construction etc. Charcoal burning activities and firewood collection for domestic purposes in the area threatens the conservation of plant resources in the proposed forest reserve (Forestry Section Report, 1989). 3.1.3 History The proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve is a sacred grove owned and managed by the Awutu Traditional Council in Central Region of Ghana (Fig. 1.3). It is a taboo to farm, fall trees, visit or collect plant parts from the grove on Mondays. This law was used to manage and conserve plant resources in the grove. However, logging activities by unknown indigenes was noticed to be rampant throughout the area. In order to cut down logging activity, the Awutu Breku State Council made intruders buy a cow and one carton of schnapps. Despite this measure, the extent of threat to plant resources within the grove increased tremendously. In order to manage the grove sustainably, the Awutu State Council consulted the Forestry Department in 1959. The process of making the area a forest reserve was suspended in 1961 with no particular reason. According to some beliefs, the suspension was due to the fact that Apra Hills is a fetish grove and its existence as a forest reserve can be hindered by taboos (Forestry Section Report, 1989). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 18 3.1.4 Geology, soil and topography In the study area, there are small pieces of flat rocks found on the ground having a parent rock known as granite. The proposed forest reserve has a yellow-brown uppermost layer of what? which is made up of a coarse sandy loam soil. The second and third layers are made of up of a hard red-brown soil and an iron stone layer respectively. The valley and grounds in the area have a 2:1 ratio of heavy black clayey soils, which isomer than 4 feet deep. The heavy black clayey soil or montmorillionite is found in the north-eastern area of the reserve and are mostly waterlogged throughout the year. The Western and Eastern Apra Hills are 800 feet and 600 feet above sea level, respectively(Forestry Section Report, 1989). 3.1.5 Ethnography The inhabitants of Akrampa, Kemor, Loye, Apra and Opeman are majorly farmers and are located outside Northern area of the proposed forest reserve. The Apra and Kemor villages were inhabited by the indigenous Awutu people whereas Opeman and Ahienta were inhabited by the Ewes(Forestry Section Report, 1989). Most of the people in Akrampa worship the Adoko, Wianda and Amaga. Adoko is a god believed to provide barren women with children and Wianda is a god that protects the farmers and hunters of the area. At the entrance of the Akrampa village is a god called the Amaga that is believed to protect the village and its inhabitants.. According to the people it was brought from the East and is a god that protect the entire village and its inhabitants(Ben, 2013). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 19 Fig. 1.3: A paranomic view of proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 20 3.2 Methods 3.2.1Field reconnaissance survey Sampling in the area began with a field reconnaissance survey to gather relevant information on the local history, taboos, land tenure and ownership systems, boundaries and the uses of the natural resources in the area. The land use types were identified by visual observations and LANDSAT imageries. 3.2.2 Plant inventory Plant inventory was carried out along a transect (Fig. 1.4). For purposes of convenience, transect was a footpath used by the local people in the area and started from the lowland through to the top of one of the Hills. Four broad vegetation / habitat types were identified along transect. Sample plots of size 25 m x 25 m were demarcated in the different habitat types. The choice of the 25 m x 25 m sized sample plots follows the work of Hall and Swaine (1976). Sampling was stratified based on the size of habitat types. In total 9 sample plots were established (2 plots in Open canopy forest; 5 plots in Closed canopy forest, 1 plot in seasonal flooded forest; and 1 plot a thicket forest). Plots were established using a compass, measuring tape and pegs. Geographical position of each plot was determined using a handheld Global Position System [(GPS) Garmin 62S]. Data were recorded in a field sheet (Appendix 1) Within each plot, all species of plants including trees, shrubs, climber and herbs were identified. In most of the cases, plant identification was achieved in the field with the assistance of an experienced parataxonomist (Mr. Patrick Ekpe) from the Ghana Herbarium at the Department of Botany, University of Ghana. Voucher specimens were made of species difficult to identify in the field and those species were later identified by comparison with already identified specimens at the Ghana Herbarium to confirm the field plant identification. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 21 The nomenclature of the species was checked using the International Plant Names Index (IPNI) (www.ipni.org). In order to determine the abundance and distribution of trees within the study area, all trees found in the plot with diameter-at-Breast-Height (DBH) ≥ 10cm at 1.3 m above ground level were individually identified and their DBH measured using diameter tape. For trees with large buttress their DBH was taken above their buttresses following previous studies (Damnyag et al., 2011; Asase et al. 2010). The data were recorded in a field data collection sheet (Appendix 2). 3.2.3 Ethnobotanical survey This part of the study was carried out using semi-structured questionnaire interviewed (Martins, 1995) in three communities, namely, Akrampa, Apra and Loye living around the proposed reserve. A sample of the data questionnaire sheet is presented in Appendix 3. A total of 74 households were interviewed. Before data collections the objectives of the ethnobotanical study was explained to the chiefs and informants in order to obtain their prior-informed consent (Cunningham, 2001).A Forest Guard assisted in interpretation of questions and interviews were carried out on Mondays (taboo days)and weekends in order not to interfere with the indigenes daily activities. A household-to-household interview approach was used to collect information (Fig. 1.4) because approach has been used to successfully collect ethnobotanical data in many communities (Asase et al., 2005). Data collected were in four major areas; (1) bio-data on informants; (2)Use of Forest Resources (3) Wild Medicines from forest and (4) Conservation of plants. Voucher specimens were collected following standard ethnobotanical practice (Martin, 1995). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 22 Fig. 1.4: An illustration to show line transect from bottom to top of proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 23 3.3. Data Analysis 3.3.1 Species accumulation curve and diversity index The species accumulation curve shows increase in the species observed with sampling effort and is an excellent graphical way to summarize the completeness of sampling effort (Magurran, 2010). Data for plotting species accumulation curve was generated based on plot inventory using EstimateSWin 9.10 (Colwell, 2005) software programme. Species accumulation curve was plotted using Microsoft excel. Shannon-Wiener index (H’). 𝐻′ = 𝑝𝑖I𝑛𝑝𝑖 𝑠 𝑖=1 where s is the total number of species and p is the relative abundance of the i species Fig. 1.5: Photograph taken during an interview with an informant University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 24 3.3.2 Inventory completeness Inventory completeness (C) is a useful index to indicate whether an area was well sampled or not. An inventory completeness (C) value closer to 1 indicate that a study area is well- sampled while a value farther from 1 indicate that a study area is under-sampled (Colwell & Coddington, 1994). Here, inventory completeness of the current study for the study area was estimated using the formula, C = Sobs Sexp , where, C represent Completeness ratio, Sobs is number of species observed, and Sexp represent number of species expected. The number of species expected was evaluated as follows: Sexp = Sobs + 𝑎2 2𝑏 , Where, a = singletons or number of species occurring once in the sampling, and b = doubletons or number of species occurring more than once in the sampling (Colwell & Coddington, 1994). 3.3.3 Family Importance Value index (FIV) Family Importance Value index (FIV)is useful for determining the overall importance of each taxonomic family in an area (Danquah, 2001).FIV was calculated as the sum of the family relative frequency, family relative density and family relative dominance (Brower, 1997). 3.3.4 Species Importance Value index (IVI) Species Importance Value index (IVI) was calculated as a sum of the relative density, relative frequency and relative dominance for each species (Addo-Fordjour, 2010; Magurran, 1988). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 25 Calculation of basal area of the different parameters of the index was achieved using the following formulae (Magurran, 1988). Basal area = πd2 4 , where, d is the DBH of the tree. Density = Total number of individuals of the species in all plots Total number of plots sampled Relative density = Total number of individual of species Total number of individual of all the species x 100 Frequency = Number of plots in which species occurred Total Number of plots sampled Relative Frequency = Frequency of species Total frequency of all species Dominance = Basal area of species Area sampled Relative Dominance = Dominance of species Total dominance of all species University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 26 3.3.5 Use Value (UV) The relative importance of each plant species known locally to be used for food, fuelwood, building, medicine or for making household items is reported as use value (UV) and it was calculated using the formula (Phillips et al., 1994). UV = 𝑼 𝒏 Where UV is the use value of the species, U is the number of use-reports cited by each informant for a given plant species and n is the total number of informants interviewed for a given plant. ∑ represent total sum. The UV is helpful in determining the plants with the highest use (the most frequently indicated). UVs are high when there are many use-reports for a plant and low when there are few reports related to its use. 3.3.6 Informant Consensus Factor (Fic) The informant consensus factor (Fic) was used to determine if there was agreement in the use of plants in the various use-categories between the plant users in the study area. The Fic was calculated using the following formula (Heinrich et al., 1998). Fic= 𝑁𝑢𝑟 − 𝑁𝑡 𝑁𝑢𝑟 − 1 , Where, Nur refers to the number of use-reports for a particular use-category and Nt refers to the number of taxa or species used for a particular use-category by all informants. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 27 3.3.7 Relationships between plant diversity and ethnobotanical use The relationship between plant diversity and ethnobotanical use were examined for plots and vegetation types using correlation analysis. Correlation between species richness and abundance per plot and vegetation type, and number of overall species cited used and medicinal plant used were examined. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 28 CHAPTER FOUR 4.0 RESULTS 4.1 General plant diversity A total of 296 individual plants belonging to 127 taxa were identified. Of the 127 taxa, 114were identified to species level, 10 were identified to genus level, 4 were identified to the family level and 9 taxa were undetermined (Table 1). Nine of 114 species identified have been assigned IUCN conservation rating. These included tree species and liana, namely; Afzelia africana Sm., Alafia sp., Albizia ferruginea (Guill. & Perr.) Benth., Nesogordonia papaverifera (A.Chev.) Capuron ex N.Hallérated rated as vulnerable and Albizia adianthifolia W.F. Wight, Baphia nitida Lodd., Millettia zechiana Harms and Triplochiton scleroxylon K.Schum. rated as Least Concern. The only species with conservation concern was Hunteria ghanensis J.B.Hall & Leeuwenberg, which was rated as an endangered species. The species accumulation curve (Fig. 2) did not flattened as a result of low sampling in the study area. This is an indication that more species are likely to be present in the area. The species observed ranged from 31.2 to 110.7, singletons ranged from 32.88 to 48.00, doubletons ranged from 0 to 14.00; and number of species expected ranged from 31.2 to 193 (Table 2). Inventory completeness ratio was 0.6 (SE ± 0.05). A high completeness ratio indicate that the area has been well-sampled or is a species-rich area, a lesser C value indicate that the area has been under-sampled done or is a species-poor area. The growth forms of the plants encountered in terms of number of individuals and species are presented in Fig. 3. Trees had the highest number of 53 individuals and 49species followed by shrubs with 30 individuals and 28 species. Only two individuals and two epiphytic species were identified (Fig. 3). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 29 A total number of 45families were identified in the inventory of which Fabaceae had the highest number of 16 individuals and 11 species. The following 20 families namely; Adiantaceae, Anacardiaceae, Asteraceae, Bombacaceae, Capparaceae, Caricaceae, Combretaceae, Commelinaceae, Convolvulaceae, Cucurbitaceae, Ethroxylaceae, Flagellariaceae, Loganiaceae, Malpighiaceae, Myrtaceae, Passifloraceae, Phytolaccaceae, Polygalaceae, Solanaceae and Tiliaceae had the lowest number of one individuals and one species each (Table 3). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 30 Table 1: Checklist of plants identified in the proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve in southern Ghana. Species Family Growth form Conservation Status Abrus precatorius L. Fabaceae Climber Unknown Acacia kamerunensis Gand. Fabaceae Tree Unknown Acacia pennata (L.) Willd. Fabaceae Tree Unknown Achyranthes bidentata Blume Amaranthaceae Shrub Unknown Acridocarpus longifolius (D.Don) Hook.f. Malpighiaceae Tree Unknown Adenia lobata Engl. Passifloraceae Liana Unknown Aerangis biloba Schltr. Orchidaceae Epiphyte Unknown Afzelia africana Sm. Fabaceae Tree Vulnerable Alafia sp. Apocynaceae Liana Vulnerable Albizia adianthifolia W.F. Wight Fabaceae Tree Least concern Albizia ferruginea (Guill. & Perr.) Benth. Fabaceae Tree Vulnerable Albizia zygia J.F.Macbr. Fabaceae Tree Unknown Alchornea cordifolia (Schumach.) Müll. Arg. Euphorbiaceae Tree Unknown Aningeria altissima (A.Chev.) Aubrév. & Pellegr. Sapotaceae Tree Unknown Antiaris toxicaria (Pers.) Lesch. Moraceae Tree Unknown Artabotrys insignis Engl. & Diels Annonaceae Liana Unknown Asystacia sp. Acanthaceae Herb Unknown Baissea multiflora A.DC. Apocynaceae Shrub Unknown Baissea zygodioides (K. Schum.) Stapf Apocynaceae Liana Unknown Baphia nitida Lodd. Fabaceae Shrub Least concern Blighia sapida K.D. Koenig Sapindaceae Tree Unknown Bulbophyllum phaeopogon Schltr. Orchidaceae Epiphyte Unknown University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 31 Table 1: (Cont'd) Species Family Growth form Conservation Status Callichilia subsessilis Stapf. Apocynaceae Shrub Unknown Calycobolus sp. Convolvulaceae Liana Unknown Calyptrochilum emarginatum Schltr. Orchidaceae Shrub Unknown Canthium sarcocarpum Merr. Rubiaceae Herb Unknown Canthium cornelia Cham. & Schltdl. Rubiaceae Shrub Unknown Capparis sp. Rutaceae Tree Unknown Carica papaya L. Caricaceae Tree Unknown Carpolobia lutea G. Don Polygalaceae Shrub Unknown Cassia tuhavalyana Fabaceae Tree Unknown Ceiba pentandra(L.) Gaertn. Bombacaceae Tree Unknown Celtis mildbraedii Engl. Ulmaceae Tree Unknown Celtis wightii Planch. Ulmaceae Tree Unknown Chaetacme aristata Planch. Ulmaceae Tree Unknown Chassalia kolly (Schumach.) Hepper Rubiaceae Shrub Unknown Chromolaena odorata (L.) R.M.King & H.Rob Asteraceae Herb Unknown Cissus arguta Hoof.K Vitaceae Climber Unknown Cissus diffusiflora (Baker) Planch. Vitaceae Climber Unknown Cissus quadrangularis L. Vitaceae Herb Unknown Cissus sp. Vitaceae Liana Unknown Clerodendrum capitatum Hook. Verbanaceae Shrub Unknown Cola millenii K.Schum. Sterculiaceae Tree Unknown University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabaceae 32 Table 1: (Cont'd) Species Family Growth form Conservation status Combretum racemosum P. Beauv. Combretaceae Liana Unknown Cyathula prostrata (L.) Blume Amaranthaceae Herb Unknown Cystostemma umbellatum E. Fourn Ascelpidaceae Climber Unknown Deinbollia pinnata Schumach. & Thonn. Sapindaceae Tree Unknown Dialium guineense Willd. Fabaceae Tree Unknown Dichapetalum sp. Menispermaceae Liana Unknown Digitaria insularis (L.) Mez ex Ekman Gramineae Herb Unknown Diospyros abyssinica (Hiern) F.White Ebenaceae Tree Unknown Diospyros kamerunensis Gürke Ebenaceae Tree Unknown Dracaena arborea Hort.Angl. ex Link Dracaenaceae Tree Unknown Dracaena surculosa Lindl. Dracaenaceae Tree Unknown Drypetes parvifolia Pax & K.Hoffm. Euphorbiaceae Shrub Unknown Elaephorbia drupifera (Thonn.) Stapf Euphorbiaceae Tree Unknown Elytaria marginata Vahl Acanthaceae Herb Unknown Erythrococca anomala Prain. Euphorbiaceae Shrub Unknown Erythroxylum emarginatum Thonn. Erythroxylaceae Tree Unknown Eugenia coronata. Schumach. & Thonn. Myrtaceae Shrub Unknown Ficus exasperata Vahl Moraceae Tree Unknown Ficus sagitilfolia Mildbr. & Burret Moraceae Tree Unknown Flagellaria guineensis Schumach Flagellariaceae Liana Unknown University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh http://www.ipni.org/ipni/idPlantNameSearch.do?id=534104-1&back_page=%2Fipni%2FeditSimplePlantNameSearch.do%3Ffind_wholeName%3DDracaena%2Barborea%26output_format%3Dnormal 33 Table 1: (Cont'd) Species Family Growth form Conservation status Floscopa sp. Commelinaceae Herb Unknown Gardenia nitida Hook. Rubiaceae Tree Unknown Graptophyllum pictum Griff. Acanthaceae Shrub Unknown Grewia megalocarpa P.Beauv. Tiliaceae Shrub Unknown Griffonia simiplicifolia (Vahl ex DC.) Baill. Fabaceae Shrub Unknown Hildegardia barteri (Mast.) Kosterm. Sterculiaceae Tree Unknown Hilleria latifolia H.Walter Phytolaccaceae Herb Unknown Hunteria ghanensis J.B.Hall & Leeuwenberg Apocynaceae Tree Endangered Hymenostygia afezelii (Oliv.) Harms Fabaceae Tree Unknown Hypselodelphys violacea (Ridl.) Milne-Redh. Marantaceae Tree Unknown Landolphia macratha (K. Schum) Pichon Apocynaceae Climber Unknown Lantana camara L. Verbenaceae Herb Unknown Lecaniodiscus cupaniodes Planch. Ex Benth. Sapindaceae Shrub Unknown Mallotus opposifolius (Geisel.) Müll. Arg. Euphorbiaceae Shrub Unknown Manilkara obovata (Sabine & G.Don) J.H.Hemsl. Sapotaceae Tree Unknown Mansonia altissima A.Chev. Sterculiaceae Tree Unknown Marantochloa leucantha (K.Schum.) Milne-Redh. Marantaceae Herb Unknown Millettia chrysophylla Dunn Fabaceae Tree Unknown Millettia thonningi (Schumach. & Thonn.) Baker Fabaceae Tree Unknown Millettia zechiana Harms Fabaceae Tree Least concern University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 34 Table 1: (Cont'd) Species Family Growth form Conservation status Momordica charantia L. Cucurbitaceae Herb Unknown Monodora tenuifolia Benth. Annonaceae Tree Unknown Nauclea pobeguinii (Pobég.) E.M.A.Petit Rubiaceae Tree Unknown Nesogordonia papaverifera(A.Chev.) Capuron Sterculiaceae Tree Vulnerable Olyra latifolia L. Gramineae Herb Unknown Oplismenus hirtellus (L.) P.Beauv. Gramineae Herb Unknown Panicum maximum Jacq. Gramineae Herb Unknown Parquetina nigrescens (Afzel.) Bullock Ascelpidaceae Liana Unknown Pellaea doniana (J.Sm.) Hook. Adiantaceae Shrub Unknown Pouteria alnifolia (Baker) Roberty Sapotaceae Tree Unknown Ritchiea reflexa (Thonn.) Gild & Benedict Capparaceae Shrub Unknown Rothmannia longiflora Salisb. Rubiaceae Shrub Unknown Rothmannia urcelliformis Bullock. ex Robyns Rubiaceae Tree Unknown Salacia sp. Celastraceae Shrub Unknown Salacighia letestuana (Pellegr.) Blakelock Celastraceae Liana Unknown Sanseviera liberica Ger. & Labr. Dracaenaceae Herb Unknown Solanum enriathum D. Don Solanaceae Shrub Unknown Sorindeia jugladifolia (A.Rich.) Planch. ex Oliv. Anacardiaceae Shrub Unknown Sterculia tragacantha Lindl. Sterculiaceae Tree Unknown Strophantus gratus (Hook.) Franch. Apocynaceae Shrub Unknown University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cucurbitaceae 35 Table 1: (Cont'd) Species Family Growth form Conservation status Strychnos icaja Baill. Loganiaceae Liana Unknown Synsepalum sp. Sapotaceae Tree Unknown Talinum triangulare (Jacq.) Willd. Portulacaceae Herb Unknown Teclea verdoorniana Exell & Mendonça Rutaceae Tree Unknown Tiliacora dielsiana Hutch. & Dalziel Menispermaceae Shrub Unknown Tragia sp. Euphorbiaceae Herb Unknown Trichilia prieureana A. Juss. Meliaceae Tree Unknown Triplochiton scleroxylon K.Schum. Sterculiaceae Tree Least Concern Turraea heterophylla Sm. Meliaceae Shrub Unknown Uvaria globusa Hook.f. Annonaceae Shrub Unknown Vigna radiata (L.) R.Wilczek Fabaceae Shrub Unknown Undetermined Acanthaceae Herb Unknown Undetermined Apocynaceae Tree Unknown Undetermined Apocynaceae Climber Unknown Undetermined Celastraceae Tree Unknown Undetermined Unidentified Tree Unknown Undetermined Unidentified Tree Unknown Undetermined Unidentified Shrub Unknown Undetermined Unidentified Herb Unknown University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphorbiaceae 36 Table 1: (Cont'd) Species Family Growth form Conservation status Undetermined Unidentified Shrub Unknown Undetermined Unidentified Liana Unknown Undetermined Unidentified Climber Unknown Undetermined Unidentified Herb Unknown Undetermined Unidentified Climber Unknown Fig. 2 : Species accumulation curve. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 37 Table 2: Inventory Completeness ratio (C). Plot Species observed Singletons Mean (a) Doubletons Mean (b) Unobserved species Species expected Completeness ratio 1 31.2 32.88 0.000 0.00 31.2 1.0 2 51.4 41.12 12.35 68.5 120 0.4 3 65.6 41.66 19.08 45.5 111 0.6 4 76.3 41.54 20.89 41.3 118 0.6 5 85.0 42.03 20.44 43.2 128 0.7 6 92.5 42.30 19.37 46.2 139 0.7 7 99.1 44.01 17.89 54.1 153 0.6 8 105.1 45.49 15.97 64.8 170 0.6 9 110.7 48.00 14.00 82.3 193 0.6 Fig. 3: Growth form of plants in the sampled area. Growth form N u m b er o f sp ec ie s/ in d iv id u al s University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 38 Table 3: Family composition of plants in the study area Families Individuals Percentage (%) Species Percentage (%) Acanthaceae 4 3.39 4 3.88 Adiantaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Amaranthaceae 2 1.69 2 1.94 Anacardiaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Annonaceae 3 2.54 3 2.91 Apocynaceae 9 7.63 8 7.77 Ascelpidaceae 2 1.69 2 1.94 Asteraceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Bombacaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Capparaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Caricaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Celastraceae 3 2.54 3 2.91 Combretaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Commelinaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Convolvulaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Cucurbitaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Dracaenaceae 3 2.54 2 1.94 Ebenaceae 2 1.69 1 0.97 Erythroxylaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Euphorbiaceae 6 5.08 6 5.83 Fabaceae 16 13.6 11 10.7 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 39 Table 3: (Cont'd) Species Number of Individuals Percentage (%) Number of Species Percentage (%) Flagellariaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Gramineae 4 3.39 4 3.88 Loganiaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Malpighiaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Marantaceae 2 1.69 2 1.94 Meliaceae 2 1.69 2 1.94 Menispermaceae 2 1.69 2 1.94 Moraceae 3 2.54 2 1.94 Myrtaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Orchidaceae 3 2.54 3 2.91 Passifloraceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Phytolaccaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Polygalaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Portulacaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Rubiaceae 7 5.93 5 4.85 Rutaceae 2 1.69 2 1.94 Sapindaceae 3 2.54 3 2.91 Sapotaceae 4 3.39 4 3.88 Solanaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Sterculiaceae 6 5.08 6 5.83 Tiliaceae 1 0.85 1 0.97 Ulmaceae 3 2.54 2 1.94 Verbanaceae 2 1.69 2 1.94 Vitaceae 4 3.39 1 0.97 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 40 4.2. Vegetation types and species composition Four vegetation types were identified in proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve. These were Open canopy forest, Closed canopy forest, Seasonal flooded forest and Thicket forest (Fig. 4). The species of plant identified in each of the plots inventorized in each vegetation type are presented in Appendice 4 - 12. 4.2.1 Open Canopy Forest The tree crowns in this vegetation type do not overlap to form a continuous canopy layer but are more widely spaced, leaving open sunlight areas within the vegetation. A total number of 57 species were identified within this vegetation type and trees were the most dominant species in this area. The density of plants was 200 m 2 per 1 hectare. Species identified in this vegetation included tree species such as Celtis wightii Planch., Cola millenii K.Schum., Dracaena arborea Hort.Angl. ex Link, Erythroxylum emarginatum Thonn, Lecaniodiscus cupaniodes Planch. Ex Benth., Mallotus opposifolius (Geisel.) Müll. Arg., Pellaea doniana (J.Sm.) Hook., Ritchiea reflexa (Thonn.) Gild & Benedict. Herb species included Chromolaena odorata (L.) R.M.King & H.Rob, Elytaria marginata Vahl, Lantana camara L. Marantochloa leucantha (K.Schum.) Milne-Redh., Momordica charantia L., Olyra latifolia L., Panicum maximum Jacq. and Climbers were Abrus precatorius L., Cystostemma umbellatum E. Fourn, Griffonia simiplicifolia (Vahl ex DC.) Baill., Landolphia macratha (K. Schum) Pichon. 4.2.2 Closed Canopy Forest This vegetation type has crowns or canopies of individual trees overlapping to form a virtually continuous layer which prevent sunlight from reaching the surface of the ground. A total number of 60 species were identified within this vegetation type and trees were the most dominant. The density of plants sampled in this vegetation type was 80 m 2 per 1 hectare. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 41 Species identified in this vegetation included tree species such as Sorindeia jugladifolia (A.Rich.) Planch. ex Oliv., Triplochiton scleroxylon K.Schum., Erythroxylum emarginatum Thonn. while shrub species included Graptophyllum pictum Griff. Grewia megalocarpa P.Beauv. and Griffonia simiplicifolia (Vahl ex DC.) Baill., Herbs were Chromolaena odorata (L.) R.M.King & H.Rob and Cyathula prostrata (L.) Blume. 4.2.3 Seasonal Flooded Forest This vegetation type is seasonally flooded during the raining season. A total number of 43 species were identified within this vegetation type. The density of plants within this vegetation was 40 m 2 per 1 hectare. Example of species observed in this vegetation type included trees Ceiba pentandra(L.) Gaertn, Celtis mildbraedii Engl. and Chaetacme aristata Planch. Shrub species included Canthium cornelia Cham. & Schltdl. and Clerodendrum capitatum Hook. while herbs included Chromolaena odorata (L.) R.M.King & H.Rob and Olyra latifolia L. 4.2.4 Thicket forest This vegetation is a very dense stand of trees or tall shrubs, often dominated by only one or a few species. Thirty species were identified within this vegetation and density of plants was 40 m 2. per 1 hectares. Trees were the most dominant species in this area as well and this vegetation correspond to the dense shrub/herbaceous cover vegetation identified in the satellite imaginary map. Species identified included trees Nesogordonia papaverifera(A.Chev.) Capuron ex N.Hallé, Trichilia prieureana A. Juss. and Cola millenii K.Schum. Shrub species included Clerodendrum capitatum Hook. and Ritchiea reflexa (Thonn.) Gild & Benedict while herb species included Chromolaena odorata (L.) R.M.King & H.Rob. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 42 (a) (b) (c) (d) Fig. 4: Vegetation types within proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve showing (a) Open Canopy Forest, (b) Closed Canopy Forest, (c) Seasonal Flooded Forest and (d) Thicket Vegetation. (a) (b) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 43 4.3 Diversity, abundance and distribution of trees A total number of 165 individual trees with DBH ≥ 10 cm belonging to 23 species in 12 families were identified. The Shannon-Weiner diversity index ranged from 1.4 to 2.3 Mean Shannon-Weiner diversity index was 2.0 (SE ± 0.09). The families Sterculiaceae and Fabaceae had the highest number of 5 species each. In contrast, the least number of one species each was recorded for Annonaceae, Apocynaceae, Bombacaceae, Caricaceae, Ebenaceae, Moraceae, Rubiaceae and Ulmaceae. In terms of relative frequency and density, Sterculiaceae had the highest values of 49.0 followed by Fabaceae and Annonaceae, Caricaceae, Rubiaceae and Ulmaceae had the least values of 4.86. Relative dominance was highest for Sterculiaceae and least in Ulmaceae. Overall, the family with the highest FIVI value was Sterculiaceae followed by Fabaceae whereas Ulmaceae had the least FIVI value (Table 4). With respect to species, Dracaena aborea had the highest relative frequency whereas Albizia adianthifolia, Carica papaya, Chaectame aristata, Dracaena perrottettii, Millettia thonningii, Monodora tenuifolia, Rothmania longiflora and Triplochiton sclerexylon were least frequently encountered. In terms of density, Ceiba pentandra, Cola millenii and Dracaena aborea had the highest values. Hildegardia barteri was observed to have the largest IVI value whereas Albizia adianthifolia, Carica papaya, Chaectame aristata, Dracaena perrottettii, Millettia thonningii, Monodora tenuifolia, Rothmania longiflora and Triplochiton sclerexylon was observed to have the lowest IVI of 3.6 each (Table 5). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 44 The DBH distribution pattern of trees showed an inverted J shape because individual trees with smaller DBH were greater than those with large DBH in the study. The DBH distribution of trees is presented in Fig. 5. Fig.5 : DBH of tree species at different intervals. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 45 Table 4: Family Importance Value Index of trees. Family Family Richness Frequency (%) Relative Frequency Density (m 2 ) Relative Density Diameter (cm) Basal area (m 2 ) Dominance Relative Dominance Family Importance Value Index Annonaceae 1 11.1 2.44 0.001 2.42 23.00 415.2 0.074 0.001 4.86 Apocynaceae 1 22.2 4.88 0.003 4.85 57.00 2552 0.454 0.011 9.73 Bombacaceae 1 77.8 17.1 0.011 17.0 392.0 1207 21.45 0.310 34.3 Caricaceae 1 11.1 2.44 0.001 2.42 36.00 1018 0.181 0.003 4.86 Dracaenaceae 2 77.8 17.1 0.011 17.0 116.0 1057 1.879 0.030 34.0 Ebenaceae 1 22.2 4.88 0.003 4.85 157.0 1936 3.442 0.050 9.78 Euphorbiaceae 2 33.3 7.32 0.004 7.27 136.0 1461 2.598 0.040 14.6 Fabaceae 5 55.6 12.2 0.555 841 501.0 1971 35.05 0.500 29.6 Moraceae 1 22.2 4.88 0.003 4.85 150.0 1767 3.142 0.050 9.77 Rubiaceae 1 11.1 2.44 0.001 2.42 19.00 283.5 0.050 0.001 4.86 Sterculiaceae 5 55.6 12.2 0.555 841 2249 3973 706.3 10.10 49.0 Ulmaceae 1 11.1 2.44 0.001 2.42 13.00 132.7 0.024 0.001 4.86 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 46 Table 5: Species abundance and Importance Value Index of Trees. Species Frequency (%) Relative Frequency Diameter (cm) Density (m 2 ) Relative Density Basal area (m 2 ) Dominance Relative Dominance Species Importance Value Index Afzelia africana 55.6 8.93 367 0.556 8.93 1055 18.75 4.36 22.2 Albizia adianthifolia 11.1 1.79 15.0 0.111 1.79 176.6 0.031 0.01 3.60 Antiaris toxicaria 22.2 3.57 129 0.222 3.57 1302 2.315 0.53 7.70 Carica papaya 11.1 1.79 36.0 0.111 1.79 1017 0.180 0.04 3.60 Ceiba pentandra 66.7 10.7 392 0.667 10.7 1203 21.38 4.97 26.4 Chaectame aristata 11.1 1.79 13.0 0.111 1.79 132.7 0.023 0.01 3.60 Cola millenii 66.7 10.7 1024 0.667 10.7 8229 146.3 34.0 55.4 Crotun aubrevillei 11.1 1.79 19.2 0.111 1.79 289.4 0.051 0.01 3.60 Dialium guineense 22.2 3.57 102 0.222 3.57 8151 1.449 0.33 7.50 Diospyros abyssinica 33.3 5.36 157 0.333 5.36 1934 3.439 0.80 11.5 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 47 Table 5: (Cont'd) Species Frequency (%) Relative Frequency Diameter (cm) Density (m 2 ) Relative Density Basal area (m 2 ) Dominance Relative Dominance Species Importance Value Index Dracaena aborea 66.7 10.7 71.8 0.667 10.71 4046 0.719 0.167 21.6 Dracaena perrottettii 11.1 1.79 44.4 0.111 1.79 1547 0.275 0.064 3.60 Drypetes parvifolia 22.2 3.57 26.8 0.222 3.57 563.8 0.100 0.023 7.20 Elaeophobia drupifera 22.2 3.57 90.6 0.222 3.57 6443 1.145 0.266 7.40 Hildegardia barteri 55.6 8.93 1195 0.556 8.93 1120 199.2 46.33 64.2 Hunteria ghanensis 22.2 3.57 56.5 0.222 3.57 2505 0.445 0.104 7.20 Hymenostygia afezelii 22.2 3.57 492 0.222 3.57 1900 33.79 7.858 15.0 Mansonia altissima 22.2 3.57 13.7 0.222 3.57 147.3 0.026 0.006 7.10 Millettia thonningii 11.1 1.79 32.0 0.111 1.79 803.8 0.142 0.033 3.60 Monodora tenuifolia 11.1 1.79 22.5 0.111 1.79 397.4 0.070 0.016 3.60 Rothmania longiflora 11.1 1.79 19.0 0.111 1.79 283.4 0.050 0.012 3.60 Sterculia tragacantha 22.2 3.57 20.0 0.222 3.57 314.0 0.055 0.013 7.20 Triplochiton sclerexylon 11.1 1.79 19.0 0.111 1.79 283.4 0.050 0.012 3.60 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 48 4.5 Ethnobotanical Studies 4.5.1 Social-economic background of informants The 74 informants interviewed were between the ages of 20 to 80 years, 49were males and 25were females. The age categories, sex ratio, primary occupation of the informants are presented in Fig. 6. A total number of 60 informants were married, 9 were single, 3 widows and 2 were divorced. (a) Fig. 6: Socio-economic background shows (a) age categories; (b) sex distribution and (c) primary occupation of informants in the study area. (b) (c) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 49 4.6 Use Categories, Use-Value (UV) and Informant Consensus factor (Fic) A total of 35 plant species were reported being used by informants. Nine species, namely, Baphia nitida, Ceiba pentandra, Chassalia kolly, Chromolaena odorata, Lantana camara, Nauclea latifolia, Ritchiea reflexa, Teclea verdoorniana and Triplochiton scleroxylon were recorded both in the plant diversity and ethnobotanical studies. On the other hand, the following 12 species namely, Afraegle paniculata (Schumach. & Thonn.), Jatropha gossipifolia L., Mangifera indica L., Milicia excelsa (Welw.) C.C.Berg, Paulina pinnataL., Senna siamea (Lam.) H.S.Irwin & Barneby, Sida acuta Burm.f., Solanum torvum Sw., Spondias mombin Jacq., Strophantus hispidus D.C., Swietenia macrophylla King and Zanthoxylum xantholoides L. were not observed in the plant diversity study but were mentioned by the informants during the interview. The uses of the plants was grouped into five use-categories, namely; agricultural tools, furniture, construction materials, food, fuelwood and medicine. The use category with the highest number of taxa recorded was medicine whereas categories with the least number of taxa mentioned was food and agriculture tool (Fig. 7). In terms of use-values (UV) for the 35 species, Swietenia macrophylla UV (2.0) has the highest value whereas Momordica charantia UV (0.1) had the least value (Table 6). The use of plant for medicine was observed to have the highest use report and ICF value, followed by construction , fuelwood (Fig.8) furniture whereas food and agricultural tool had the lowest use reports and ICF values. A high Fic value indicate a high use reports for a particular use category while a low Fic value indicate low use reports for a use category (Table 7). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 50 Fig. 8: Plant parts collect for use in the proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve. Fig. 7: Plant use category in the study area. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 51 Table 6: List of plants used in communities around proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve Species Family Local names Growth form Use Category Use value Part used Uses Afraegle paniculata Rutaceae Atimpo Tree M 1.0 Le To treat pile and back pain Azadirachta indica Meliaceae Kolebu Tree M 0.2 Ba, Le, Ro To treat malaria and fever Baphia nitida Fabaceae Joun Climber M, Fd, A 0.4 Le, St To treat waist pain, for fuelwood, farm handles Capparis erythrocarpus Cappparaceae Peti-peti Herb M 0.5 Le, Ro Pile and back pain Ceiba pentandra Bombacaceae Sepa Tree C 1.0 St For making of doors and windows Chassalia kolly Rubiaceae Ekodibe Shrub M 0.5 Le, Ro For fever Chromolaena odorata Asteraceae Acheampong Herb M 0.2 Le To treat fatigue, measles and stomach ache Gymnema sylvestres Apocynaceae Asamon Shrub M 1.0 Le, Ro To treat measles Holarrhena floribunda Apocynaceae Osese Tree M, Fu 0.3 Le, Ro For waist pain, infertility in women, mortar and pestle Jatropha gossipifolia Euphorbiaceae Adatin Tree M 1.0 Le To treat fatigue Lantana camara Verbenaceae Nbili-nbili Herb M 1.0 Le To treat swollen eyes Keys: M - Medicine, Fd - Fuelwood, Fu - Furnitures, A - Agricultural tool, C - Construction, Le- Leaves, Ba - Stem bark, Ro-roots and St-Stem. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 52 Table 6: (Cont'd) Species Family Local names Growth form Use Category Use value Part used Uses Lecaniodiscus cupaniodes Sapindaceae Ojujumaba Climber M 1.0 Le To treat broken bones Mallotus oppositifolius Euphorbiaceae Satidua (male) Tree M 0.2 Ba, Ro, Le To treat menstrual pain and stomach ache Mangifera indica Anacardiaceae - Tree M, F 0.5 Ba, Le To treat measles, fever and Food Mezoneuron benthamianun Fabaceae Krokonso Herb M 1.0 Le For chest pain Milicia excelsa Moraceae Odum Tree Fu, C 1.0 St For roofing, doors, windows, chairs and table Momordica charantia Cucurbitaceae Yenye Herb M, Fu 0.1 Le, Ro, Ba To treat fever, stomach ache, roofing of houses and for furnitures Nauclea latifolia Rubiaceae Odanta Tree Fd, C 0.4 St For fuelwood and for roofing Paulina pinnata Sapindaceae Twintin Herb M 0.3 Le, Ro To treat waist pain and fatigue Ricinus cumminis Euphorbiaceae Adidankruma Tree M 0.5 Le To treat hiccups, measles Ritchiea reflexa Cappparaceae Oputi nado Shrub M 0.3 Le, Ro For headache Keys: M - Medicine, F - Food, Fd - Fuelwood, Fu - Furnitures, C - Construction, Le- Leaves, Ba - Stem bark, Ro-roots and St-Stem. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cucurbitaceae 53 Keys: M - Medicine. Parts used: Le- Leaves, Ba - Stem Bark, Ro-roots and Fr-Fruits. Table 6: (Cont'd) Species Family Local names Growth form Use Category Use value Part used Uses Securinega virosa Euphorbiaceae Kokobro Shrub M 0.3 Le To treat pile, back pain and fatigue Senna siamea Caesalpinioideae Cassia Tree M 0.2 Le, Ba To pile, back pain, swollen eyes and malaria Sida acuta Malvaceae Mofesan Herb M 0.2 Le, Ro For waist pain Solanum erianthum Solanaceae Boyun Shrub M 1.0 Le, Ro For malaria Solanum torvum Solanaceae Amajuradi Shrub M 0.5 Ro, Fr, Le To treat measles and back pain Spondias mombin Anacardiaceae Afaba Tree M 0.2 Le To treat fatigue Strophantus hispidus Apocynaceae Edupeyin Liana M 0.5 Le To treat headache Swietenia macrophylla Meliaceae Mahogany Tree M 2.0 Fr, Ba, Le To treat fatigue Teclea verdoorniana Rutaceae Osu punapu Tree M 0.5 Le, Ba For cold and fever Tiliacora dielsiana Menispermaceae Oprofe Shrub M 0.2 Ro To treat stomach ache University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 54 Keys: M - Medicine, F - Food, A - Agricultural tool and C - Construction. Parts used: Le- Leaves, Ba - Stem bark, Ro-roots and St-Stem. Table 6: (Cont'd) Species Family Local names Growth form Use Category Use value Part used Uses Triplochiton scleroxylon Sterculiaceae Wawa Tree A, F, C 0.3 St For roofing, doors, windows, chairs and table Uvaria sp. Annonaceae Apotompo Shrub M 0.5 Le For waist pain Vernonia cinerea Asteraceae - Herb M 1.0 Le To treat swollen eyes Zanthoxylum xantholoides Rutaceae Cantum Tree M 0.3 Le, Ba, Ro To treat headache University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 55 4.6.1 Medicinal uses of plants A total number of 31 species were recorded to treat seven ailment categories namely; Gastro- intestinal ailment (5 species), Respiratory system disease (2 species), Skeleton-muscular system disorders (3 species), Hemorrhoids (9 species), Genio-urinary ailments (2 species), Infectious and parasitic diseases (5 species), Dermatological infections/diseases (6 species), General health (2 species) and Musculoskeletal and connective tissue (1 species). Afraegle paniculata, Baphia nitida, Capparis erythrocarpus, Chromolaena odorata, Jatropha gossipifolia and Swietenia macrophylla and Paulina pinnata were used to treat hermorrhoids (pile, back and waist pain), Azadirachta indica, Chassalia kolly and Mangifera indica were used to treat infectious and parasitic disease (fever and malaria). Mallotus opposifolius, Tiliacora dielsiana and Momordica charantia were used to treat Gastro- intestinal ailment (Stomach ache and ulcer), Ritchiea reflexa, Zanthoxylum xantholoides and Strophantus hispidus were used to treat skeleton-muscular system disorders (headache). Ricinus cumminis, Chromolaena odorata and Solanum torvum were used to treat Table 7: Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) for commonly used plants. Use category Number of use reports (Nur) % all species Number of taxa (Nt) Informant Consensus factor (Fic) Agricultural tool 2 3.51 1 0.5 Food 2 3.51 1 0.5 Furniture 3 5.26 2 1.3 Fuelwood 7 12.3 2 5.7 Construction 9 15.8 3 7.7 Medicine 41 61.4 31 39.2 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 56 dermatological infections/diseases (measles). Mallotus oppositifolius was the only species used to treat genio-urinary ailments (menustral pain and infertility). Mezoneuron benthamianun and Teclea verdoorniana are used to treat respiratory system disease (cold). Azadirachta indica and carica papaya was used to treat general health (Table 9). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 57 Table 8: Medicinal plants used in communities around proposed Apra Hills Forest Reserve Species Local names Habit Use value Part used Use Afraegle paniculata Atimpo Tree 1.0 Leaves To treat pile and back pain Azadirachta indica Kolebu Tree 0.2 Stem bark, leaves and roots To treat malaria and fever Baphia nitida Joun Climber 0.4 Leaves and Stem To treat waist pain and fatigue Capparis erythrocarpus Peti-peti Herb 0.5 Leaves and roots Pile and back pain Chassalia kolly Ekodibe Shrub 0.5 Leaves and roots For fever Chromolaena odorata Acheampong Herb 0.2 Leaves To treat fatigue, measles and stomach ache Gymnema sylvestres Asamon Shrub 1.0 Leaves and roots To treat measles Holarrhena floribunda Osese Tree 0.3 Leaves and roots For waist pain, infertility in women Jatropha gossipifolia Adatin Tree 1.0 Leaves To treat fatigue Lantana camara Nbili-nbili Herb 1.0 Leaves To treat swollen eyes Lecaniodiscus cupaniodes Ojujumaba Climber 1.0 Leaves To treat broken bones Mallotus oppositifolius Satidua (male) Tree 0.2 Stem bark, roots and leaves To treat menstrual pain and stomach ache University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 58 Table 8: (Cont'd) Species Local names Habit Use value Part used Use Mangifera indica Mango Tree 0.5 Stem bark and leaves To treat measles and fever Mezoneuron benthamianun Krokonso Herb 1.0 Leaves For chest pain Momordica charantia Yenye Herb 0.1 Leaves, roots and stem bark To treat fever, stomach ache, measles, Paulina pinnata Twintin Herb 0.3 Leaves and root To treat waist pain and fatigue Ricinus cumminis Adidankruma Tree 0.5 Leaves To treat hiccups, measles Ritchiea reflexa Oputi nado Shrub 0.3 Leaves and roots For headache Securinega virosa Kokobro Shrub 0.3 Leaves To treat pile, back pain and fatigue Senna siamea Cassia Tree 0.2 Leaves and stem bark To pile, back pain, swollen eyes and malaria Sida acuta Mofesan Herb 0.2 Leaves and roots For waist pain Solanum erianthum Boyun Shrub 1.0 Leaves and roots For malaria Solanum torvum Amajuradi Shrub 0.5 Roots, fruits and leaves To treat measles and back pain Spondias mombin Afaba Tree 0.2 Leaves To treat fatigue University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 59 Table 8: (Cont'd) Species Local names Habit Use Category Use value Part used Use Strophantus hispidus Edupeyin Liana Medicine 0.5 Leaves To treat headache Swietenia macrophylla Mahogany Tree Medicine 2.0 Fruit, stem bark, leaves For strength Teclea verdoorniana Osu punapu Tree Medicine 0.5 Leaves and stem bark For cold and fever Tiliacora dielsiana Oprofe Shrub Medicine 0.2 Roots To treat stomach ache Uvaria sp. Apotompo Shrub Medicine 0.5 Leaves For waist pain Vernonia cinerea - Herb Medicine 1.0 Leaves To treat swollen eyes Zanthoxylum xantholoides Cantum Tree Medicine 0.3 Leaves, Stem bark and roots To treat headache University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 60 Table 9: Informant Consensus factor for medicinal plants Ailment Categories Number of reports Number of taxa (Nt) Informant Consensus factor (Fic) Gastro-intestinal ailment (GIA) 21 5 19.8 Respiratory system disease (RSD) 3 2 1.33 Skeleton-muscular system disorders (SMSD) 10 3 8.7 Hemorrhoids (HEM) 13 9 11.3 Genio-urinary ailments(GUA) 4 2 2.5 Infectious and parasitic disease 9 5 7.44 Dermatological infections/diseases(DID) 5 6 2.8 General health(GH) 9 2 7.78 Musculoskeletal and connective tissue 4 1 2.75 4.6.2 Plant parts and use-categories Generally, leaves were the most common plant part used , followed by roots then stem bark, stem and fruit ( Fig. 9). Plant parts and the relationships with use-categories are presented in Table 10. In terms of plant parts used for medicine, leaves had the highest use report followed by roots and then stems, barks (Fig.10) and fruits were the least reported for construction and fuelwood purposes stem were used. In terms of agricultural tool, 2 use report was recorded for Stem. The least use report was recorded for food. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 61 Fig. 10 : Harvesting of the stem bark of Swietenia macrophylla in the study area. Fig. 9: Plant parts used by informant in the study area. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 62 4.7 Relationships between plant diversity and ethnobotanical use Data on useful plant species per plot and vegetation types in relation to species abundance and richness are presented in Tables 11 and 12. The results of the correlation analysis showed significant relationship (p > 0.05) between plant diversity and number of overall useful plants as well as medicinal plants (Fig. 11). However, there were no significant relationships between vegetation type and plant use (Table 13). Table 10: Relationship between use categories and plant parts used Use category Leaves Root Stem Bark Stem Fruit Food 0 0 0 0 1 Medicine 30 14 8 0 1 Construction 0 0 0 3 0 Fuelwood 0 0 0 3 0 Furniture 0 0 0 0 0 Agricultural tool 0 0 0 2 0 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 63 Table 11: Relationship between plant diversity and ethnobotanical uses per plot Plant diversity Ethnobotanical use Plot Species richness Species abundance Number of useful plant Number of medicinal plants 1 43 46 8 6 2 46 50 7 6 3 43 45 8 6 4 30 30 7 5 5 34 37 6 6 6 24 25 2 2 7 25 26 6 6 8 26 27 5 4 9 10 11 1 1 Table 12: Relationship between plant diversity and ethnobotanical uses per vegetation type Plant diversity Ethnobotanical use Vegetation types Species richness Species abundance Number of useful plant Number of medicinal plants Open canopy forest 46 57 9 8 Closed canopy forest 69 164 9 7 Seasonal flooded forest 43 45 8 6 Thicket 30 30 7 6 University of Ghana