Status of the Flooded Forest in Fishing Lot #2, Battambang Province

Status of the Flooded Forest in Fishing Lot #2, Battambang Province by Troeung Rot Fishery Officer and Counterpart of MRC/DoF/Danida Fisheries Program in Cambodia of Battambang Province ABSTRACT The flooded (seasonally inundated) forest provides many important benefits for people and animals. People use forest resources for firewood and household materials, and the forest habitats are important for fish and other wildlife populations. However, although the law prohibits such activities, fisheries and farming communities are clearing the forest for development purposes. According to figures produced by the Battambang Provincial Fisheries Office in 1992, nearly 30% of the flooded forest has been cleared since 1972. Of the 12 fishing lots in Battambang province, Fishing Lot #2 has been most affected. With an area of 50,600 ha Lot #2 offers great potential as wildlife habitat, but 10,688 ha of the forest in this lot has already been cleared. This paper describes the flooded forest in Fishing Lot #2, the main threats to the forest, its location and importance, the resource users, and the relationship between the flooded forest and the fishes and other animals that inhabit it. 1. INTRODUCTION The flooded (seasonally inundated) forest not only provides favorable habitats for many animals but also provides local people with firewood, household materials etc. However the flooded forest is declining in extent as large areas are being destroyed by fishers and farmers. One of the areas in Cambodia where a large area of flooded forest remains is in Battambang province. In 1992 the Battambang Provincial Fisheries Office (PFO) discovered that 32,463 ha (almost 30%) of the flooded forest had been cleared since 1965 (see Table 6.1). Of the 12 fishing lots in Battambang province, Fishing Lot #2 has seen the greatest forest clearance. The area of forest in this lot, which has great potential as a wildlife habitat, declined by 10,688 ha (c. 23%) between 1965 and 1992 (Battambang Provincial Fisheries Office, 1992). Fishing Lot #2 has attracted the attention of many institutions, NGOs and agencies, such as the Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Environment and the Provincial Fisheries Office, as an area in which to carry out research. The paper describes the seasonally inundated forest in Fishing Lot #2, Battambang, the threats to the lot, its status and importance, and the relationship between the forest and its fauna. The data are taken from interviews with lot owners, fishers and researchers and previous data collected by the Project for the Management of Freshwater Capture Fisheries of Cambodia. 2. THE MAIN THREATS TO THE FLOODED FOREST Large areas of the flooded forest have been felled to provide wood for brick kilns and firewood and for conversion to farmland; the forest animals have been hunted. This has resulted a decline in the area of available fishing ground and a reduction in the fish catch. The flooded-forest tree species that are preferred by villagers for firewood are Phnom Phneng (Hymenocardia wallichii), Tauor (Terminalia cambodiana), Rieng (Barringtonia acutangula), Phtol (Diospyros cambodiana) and Chrakeng (Coccocera anisopodum). - 88 - About 32,463 ha of flooded forest in 12 lots have been lost, including 10,688 ha from Lot #2. The area of forest burnt in Lot #2 is greater than that in any other lot (see Table 6.1). The forest was cleared in order to catch crocodiles, turtles, snakes, and bees. The majority of the forest in Lot #2 was destroyed before 1992. The area that has been cleared is close to Kampong Prahoc village, at the end of Pras Deumchheu and Da streams (see Figure 1: Map of Study Area). The forest at this location has grown again and reached a height of 5–6 m. In 1997, 70 ha of forest at Stung Chas stream, near Lot #4, were burnt. Table 6.1: Deforestation statistics, Battambang province (areas in hectares) Forest Forest 1979–92 Total Forest Area of Surface coverage cleared forest coverage forest Lot # area before 1965 before 1970 Forest Forest felled burnt cleared in 1992 cleared (%) 1 11,600 9,000 390 390 8,610 4.3 2 50,600 46,900 18 10,670 10,688 36,212 22.8 3 9,100 6,900 20 405 425 6,475 6.2 4 13,650 12,650 4,680 4,680 7,970 37.0 5 3,700 3,500 130 1,320 1,450 2,050 41.4 6 11,300 10,100 70 5,400 5,470 4,630 54.2 7 11,200 1,400 300 100 400 1,000 28.6 8 13,900 5,500 1,590 300 1,950 3,840 1,660 69.8 9 4,800 4,400 60 1,710 1,770 2,630 40.2 10 2,700 2,100 1,120 1,120 980 53.3 11 7,750 5,450 1,040 1,040 4,410 19.1 12 4,500 3,800 1,190 1,190 2,610 31.3 Total 144,800 111,700 1,890 698 29,875 32,463 79,237 29.1 Outside lot 179,400 126,000 37,800 88,200 30.0 Grand total 324,200 237,700 70,263 167,437 29.6 Source: Provincial Fisheries Office, 1992. 3. FOREST SPECIES AND FOREST COVERAGE Some 82 species of forest plants were recorded from the fishing lots around the Great Lake, including 52 species in Lot #2, Battambang, during the survey. GPS was used during the survey to identify the locations of the samples. Lot #2 is divided into two parts: lowland and upland. The species found are listed in Table 6.2. 4. ADVANTAGES OF THE FLOODED FOREST The Great Lake (Tonle Sap) is very biodiverse as it provides a range of breeding and feeding grounds for many aquatic animals. Spawning grounds are important for many aquatic species, especially fish. Some fish spawn on sand- rich substrates, some attach their eggs to stones or tree roots and some float their eggs. Cyprinidae, for example, have to deposit their eggs on aquatic vegetation (Vutha, 1991). The forest provides cover to protect fish from predators. The forest is a natural factory that produces food for aquatic animals in the form of phytoplankton, zooplankton, zoobenthos and insect larvae, etc. The flooded forests help maintain soil and water quality and prevent erosion. Forest trees are a source of traditional medicine, construction material, and energy (Vutha, 1991). The flooded forest near Prek Toal sustains the most significant colonies of water birds in Indochina – and perhaps in the whole of Southeast Asia – and is probably the pre-eminent site in Cambodia for the conservation of freshwater biota (IUCN, 1996). - 89 - Table 6.2: Forest species and their coverage of upland and lowland areas in Lot #2 Nº Khmer name Scientific name Lowland % Upland % 1 Rieng Teuk Barringtonia acutangula 16.00 21.25 2 Phtol Diospyros cambodiana 17.75 17.25 3 Tauor Terminalia cambodiana 11.88 21.75 4 Chrakeng Coccocera anisopodum 9.38 12.25 5 Nho Teuk Morinda persicaefolia 6.50 1.50 6 Tien Prey Vitex holoadenon 6.75 7 Prabuoy Croton caudatus 2.75 2.25 8 Bay Traneub Acacia spiralis 3.13 1.50 9 Troas Combretum trifoliatum 0.06 3.25 10 Phnom Phneng Hymenocardia wallichii 1.51 1.25 11 Kandap Chang Ei Salacia verrucosa 2.75 12 Prabach 1.38 1.25 13 Khlei Cudrania cambodiana 2.50 14 Phnek Priep Breynia rhamnoides 2.25 15 Phkoam 2.00 16 Voa Taeuk Ipomoea chryseoides 0.94 0.88 17 Phdao Teuk Calamus palustris 0.50 1.00 18 Sloat Ficus heterophylla 0.44 1.00 19 Lgnieng Cratoxylon prunifera 1.25 20 A Teang Homalium brevidens 1.25 21 Kandok 1.14 22 Changkom Krapeu 1.06 23 Tronom Ea Ot Zizyphus sp. 1.00 Percentage share of 23 species 91% 90% Total number of species recorded 45 37 5. FISH AND OTHER WILDLIFE Fishing Lot #2 is particularly rich in fish and other fauna, including birds, reptiles, mammals, and insects etc. 5.1 Fish catch composition data by species in Lot #2, 1994–2000 Tables 6.3 and 6.4 show that the three most important fish species, Trey Kampleanh, Trey Ros/Phtuok and Trey Chhdor/Diep, formed 76/87% of the catch. The catch of Trey Kampleanh was highly variable. The catch of Trey Ros/Phtuok showed a positive trend from 1994 to 2000, but average length of fish caught decreased. The catch of Trey Chhdor/Diep showed a negative trend, but average length increased. 5.2 Birds, reptiles and mammals Birds: Sixty-seven bird species, such as Tradok Thom (Greater Adjutant Stork – Leptoptilos dubius), Changkel Khchonh (Asian Openbill Stork – Anastomus oscitans), Tong Braphes (Spot-billed Pelican – Pelecanus philippensis) and Kok Krong Thom (Great Egret – Egretta alba), have been recorded in Lot #2 (Met Sokpheak et al., 1999). They live and feed in riverside forests and on the Great Lake, but breed in deep and dense parts of the flooded forest, such as the most remote parts of Prek Da, Prek Preh Deum Chir, Prek Steung Chas. They are found in all the inundated areas. Reptiles: Twenty-seven reptile species, such as snakes, turtles and crocodiles, have been recorded in the flooded forest in Lot #2 (Met Sokpheak et al., 1999). Mammals: Sixteen mammal species have been recorded in Lot #2, including monkeys, wild boar and foxes (Met Sokpheak et al., 1999). Some of these species live in the lower areas of the lot while others are encountered only in the most remote areas. - 90 - Insects: Bees and hornets are found in all parts of the flooded forest.

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