Mozambique case study On AN ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE HEALTH OF THE CHIBUTO- MISSAVENE WETLAND IN THE DRY SEASON, MOZAMBIQUE - EMPHASIS ON RESOURCES ASSESSMENT, UTILIZATION AND SUSTAINABILITY ANALYSIS For the project: WETLANDS-BASED LIVELIHOODS IN THE LIMPOPO BASIN: BALANCING SOCIAL WELFARE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SECURITY Salomão Bandeira, Alice Massingue Manjate & Osvaldo Filipe Universidade Eduardo Mondlane Dept of Biological Sciences, PO Box 257, Maputo, Mozambique. Tel: 258 21491223 Email: [email protected] August 2006 1 An ecological assessment of the health of the Chibuto-Missavene wetland in the dry Season, Mozambique - emphasis on resources assessment, utilization and sustainability analysis By Dr. Salomão Bandeira Assistant professor in botany, Dept. of Biological Sciences, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, P.O. Box 257, Maputo, MOZAMBIQUE. Email: [email protected] Lic. Alice Massingue Manjate Lecturer, Dept. of Biological Sciences, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, P.O. Box 257, Maputo, MOZAMBIQUE. Email: [email protected] Lic. Osvaldo Filipe, Dept. of Biological Sciences, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, P.O. Box 257, Maputo, MOZAMBIQUE. Colaborator: Ernesto Boana, Dept of Biological Sciences, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, PO Box 257, Maputo, Mozambique. 2 SUMMARY This document is a case study of ecological assessment of the health of the Chibuto- Missavene wetland (Mozambique) in the dry season and, envisaged plant resources description including aliens, faunal survey and threatened groups; exploitation of natural resources, its sustainability use and to provide a framework for monitoring and analysis of data to assess changes in wetland health due to livelihood-supporting activities overtime. Field data were collected in June 2006. 85 plant species (16% being shrubs or trees, and around 84% herbs or succulent) were identified at Chibuto-Missavene wetland. They occurred in three types of habitats viz. lake, dry land and hill, the first one with fewer species (14% of total). The lake area was dominated by the herbaceous groups such as Typha capensis, Phragmites mauritianus, Scirpus maritimus. Typha capensis; the dry land, area where most pasture took place, with species such as Diandrochloa namaquensis, Panicum sp, Cynodon dactylon. The hill side mainly with Pulchea dioscorides, Lippia javanica, Xanthium strumarium. 27% of the plants were used either as medicinal or non-medicinal plants. Edible plants included the wild fruits of Diospyros squarrosa, the tuber of Nymphaea caeruela and the leaves of Sonchrus oleraceous. The slender reed Phagmites maritianus is probably the massive resource in the site mainly used for building toilets, kitchen and granaries. Most of the people at Chibuto rely on agriculture and cattle undertaken within Missavene wetland and surrounding areas. As average 2.4 tones per hectare of grass were estimated in this area with hundred of cattle daily. High grazing value pasture include the grasses Cynodon dactylon, Panicum maximum, Setaria incrassata and Urochloa mossabicensis. 12 species of alien were documented during dry season and the most common were Sesbania sesban, Xhantium strumarium and Parthenium hysterophorus; all covering up to 5 hectares. Faunal assessment has, in the dry season, targeted most common birds observed in the wetland. Highlight to cattle egret, ibis, heron, storks and ducks. Rats and snakes were also observed as well as one snail and millipede. Assessment of the sustainability and health of Chibuto-Missavene indicated recovering of reeds; reduction of cultivated areas due also to extensive cattle and grazing activities; reduction of rats and snakes due to wild fires and general reduction of firewood due to decrease of natural shrubs and trees. Bird population appears to have kept although in dry season occurring in small numbers due to given reduction of wet places. The framework for monitoring and analysis of data to assess changes in wetland health due to liveliwood-supporting activities tacled the following: biodiversity of indigeneous and alien plant species utilized as people liveliwood; area coverage of these plants; assessment of fauna exploited in the wetland; ecosystem goods and services provided. Various goods and few services are described for this wetland. The role of wild fires and how are they controlled, further details of historical background of recourse use, level of satisfaction of the local users of the wetland are briefly documented. 3 Table of contents Contents Page Number I. Background and Introduction 5 II. Terms of Reference 5 III Methodology 6 IV. Results and Discussion 9 1-Habitat description of Indigenous plant resources 9 2- Plant resources diversity, ecological parameters and biomass 12 studies 3- Alien/”invasive” plants at Chibuto-Missavene wetlands 16 4-Threatened /concern species groups 18 5- Value of the wetland as pastureland 18 6- Valuation of resources 19 7- Sustainability and health of the wetland 22 8- Framework for monitoring wetland health 23 V. Concluding Remarks 24 VI. References/Bibliography 25 4 I. BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION This study was undertaken at Chibuto-Missavene wetland, located between Chibuto village and Changane/Munwana river. The document is a case study of a project being implemented within Limpopo basin in both Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe. Wetlands play globally a key role as rich habitats and nurseries for fauna. Plant and animal species may find themselves dependent to these fragile environments, hence some species being threatened. In addition, wetlands are very valuable from a food, livelihoods perspective given their generally rich soil and year-sound moisture. In southern Africa, given the recurrent droughts, wetlands may be seen as sanctuary and underlying food security for people. The wise use of wetlands is defined as their sustainable utilization for the benefit of humankind in a way compatible with the maintenance of the natural properties of the ecosystem (Ramsar Convention Secretariat, 2004). Despite a key role played by wetlands, examples of unwise use of the wetlands for food production have impact on the health of wetlands and the ecosystem services that wetlands provide (see Kotze, 2005). Wetlands in Mozambique can be divided into coastal and inland wetlands; the first one being generally saline or with brackish waters, whereas the inland encompasses water bodies from lakes or rivers such as Limpopo-Changane complex near Chibuto village. Exception is that this complex has rather high content of salt which led to the classification of the vegetation in Changane river as halophytic vegetation (salt tolerant plants) (Wild and Barbosa 1967). As many villages in Mozambique, Chibuto sustains considerable population relying on land-based activities such as agriculture and extraction of natural products from underlying vegetation and water course. The Missavene wetland located between Changane river and Chibuto village is quite a complex system where fresh water is sustained by underlying hills and preventing of salt intrusion from the Changane (=Munwana) river. Chibuto village is one of the largest in Mozambique sustaning up to 177294 habitants (with 52% being women). The census of 1997 have also indicated existence of an average of 14.8 people /ha in Chibuto area. Most of the people in Chibuto rely on agriculture and cattling undertaken within Missavene wetland and surroundings areas. In this context, Chibuto wetlands play a major role as sensitive habitats that have to sustain livelihood practices. The assessment given in this report forms part of the ecological component of this study, and takes place in Chibuto-Missavene wetlands situated between Changane river and Chibuto hills, approximately 300 km north Maputo, capital of Mozambique. II. TERMS OF REFERENCE A. to conduct a dry season ecological assessment of the Chibuto-Missawene wetland with emphasis given to (i) plant resources description including aliens "invasive, threatened groups; (ii) insight to exploitation of natural resources (both plants and animal resources);; (iv) studies on sustainability and health of the wetland based on description of environmental security. 5 B. to design a framework for monitoring and analysis of data to assess changes in wetland health due to liveliwood-supporting activities overtime. III. METHODOLOGY Wetland health concept includes consideration of ecological processes in relation to the primary components of a wetland namely: hydrology, germofological and vegetation. This report enphasis on ecological components. 1. Description of Resources Identification of plant species diversity (including herbaceous and aquatic plants) This was carried out using mainly: 1. Literature such as Flora Zambesiaca, Flora of Tropical East Africa, Flora of South Africa, Flora of Swaziland. The procedure included built up of a standard herbarium collection of the flowering plants of the wetland that needed to be identified in the Herbarium. Only plants with flowers or fruits were collected, dried and mounted in herbarium paper. Field identification carried out with the involvement of Herbarium technicians. Additional literature was also used both for trees and shrubs such as Van Wyk 2000, Coats-Palgrave 2002 or herbacious plants ( e.g. Gibbs et al 1999 for grasses). Vernacular names were identified with the help of parataxonomists, local persons who know the name of local plants and their uses. De Koning (1993) was the main reference book used. Identification of the plant communities, species abundance, biomass,