UC Santa Cruz UC Santa Cruz Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title Biodiversity And Livelihoods In Southwestern Ethiopia: Forest Loss And Prospects For Conservation In Shade Coffee Agroecosystems Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2pc6t277 Author Eshete, Getachew Tadesse Publication Date 2013 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA CRUZ BIODIVERSITY AND LIVELIHOODS IN SOUTHWESTERN ETHIOPIA: FOREST LOSS AND PROSPECTS FOR CONSERVATION IN SHADE COFFEE AGROECOSYSTEMS A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES by Getachew Tadesse Eshete September 2013 The Dissertation of Getachew Tadesse Eshete is approved: _________________________________ Professor Erika S. Zavaleta, Chair _________________________________ Professor Carol Shennan _________________________________ Professor Margaret I. FitzSimmons __________________________________________ Tyrus Miller Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies Copyright © by Getachew Tadesse Eshete 2013 Table of Contents LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................ vi LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................... vii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................ x Acknowledgements .................................................................................................. xiii CHAPTER ONE Policy and demographic factors alter deforestation patterns and socio-ecological processes in southwest Ethiopian coffee agroecosystems ................................... 1 Abstract ......................................................................................................................... 1 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................. 3 1.1 Drivers and consequences of landscape changes ................................................ 4 1.2 Political-economic and ecological processes in southwest Ethiopia .................. 6 1.3 Traditional ecological knowledge and perceptions on landscape changes ......... 9 2. Methods .................................................................................................................. 10 2.1 The study area ................................................................................................... 10 2.2 Data collection and image processing............................................................... 11 2.3 Fragmentation analysis ..................................................................................... 13 2.4 Socio-ecological surveys .................................................................................. 13 2.5 Data Analyses ................................................................................................... 14 3. Results .................................................................................................................... 15 3.1 Forest cover declined by more than 50% and became more fragmented ......... 15 3.2 Effects of topography, roads and population on deforestation patterns............ 17 3.3 Local perceptions on deforestation drivers and socio-ecological feedbacks .... 18 iii 4. Discussion............................................................................................................... 20 4.1 Regional variations in deforestation rates and patterns .................................... 21 4.2 Landscape change drivers and socio-ecological feedbacks in southwest Ethiopia ................................................................................................................... 24 4.3 Effects of topography and roads on deforestation patterns ............................... 27 4.4 Consequences of deforestation and land-use changes in southwest Ethiopia ... 29 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 33 CHAPTER TWO Coffee landscapes as refugia for native woody biodiversity as forest loss continues in southwest Ethiopia .......................................................................... 45 Abstract ................................................................................................................... 45 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................... 46 2. Methods .................................................................................................................. 50 2.1 Study area.......................................................................................................... 50 2.2 Data Collection ................................................................................................. 52 2.3 Data analyses .................................................................................................... 53 3. Results .................................................................................................................... 55 3.1 Overall species diversity ................................................................................... 55 3.2 Forest fragments................................................................................................ 56 3.3 Diversity and structure in the coffee landscapes............................................... 57 4. Discussion............................................................................................................... 59 4.1 Floristic similarity and nestedness in forest fragments ..................................... 61 4.2 Species diversity in coffee landscapes .............................................................. 62 4.3 Prospects and challenges for conservation in coffee landscapes ...................... 64 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 65 CHAPTER THREE Ecosystem services and livelihoods in changing Ethiopian coffee landscapes .... 75 iv Abstract…………………………………………………………………………...….75 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................... 76 1.1 Forest ecosystem services ................................................................................. 76 1.2 Land-use changes and the prospects for ecosystem services on working landscapes ............................................................................................................... 77 1.3 Local valuation of ecosystem services .............................................................. 79 2. Methods .................................................................................................................. 82 2.1 Study area.......................................................................................................... 82 2.2. Sampling villages and focus groups ................................................................ 83 2.3. Field and Market Surveys ................................................................................ 85 2.4 Data analysis ..................................................................................................... 86 3. Results .................................................................................................................... 87 3.1 Ecosystem services in forests and coffee agroforests ....................................... 87 3.2 Local valuation of ecosystem services .............................................................. 89 3.3 Land-use changes and prospects for ecosystem services on working landscapes ................................................................................................................................. 93 4. Discussion............................................................................................................... 96 4.1 Ecosystem services in forests and coffee agroforests ....................................... 96 4.2 Local and regional valuation of ecosystem services ......................................... 99 4.3 Land-use changes and prospects for ecosystem services on working landscapes ............................................................................................................................... 105 Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 109 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................... 142 v LIST OF FIGURES CHAPTER ONE Figure 1. Map of the study area includes Yeki (left) and Decha (right) districts from 2010 LANDSAT images ........................................................................................ 36 Figure 2. Forest cover change detection maps of Yeki district (left column) and Decha /Gimbo region (right column) from 1973 to 2010. ................................................ 37 Figure 3. Population density of Yeki (a) and Decha (b) of forested and non-forested areas from 1990 to 2010. ........................................................................................ 38 Figure 4. Changes in major land-use units based on interviews about local perceptions (plantation refers mainly to Eucalyptus). ..............................................................