Ecological Features of Cultivated Stands ofAquilaria malaccensisLam. (Thymelaeaceae), a Vulnerable Tropical Tree Species in Assamese Homegardens

摘要

Research was conducted in twenty-seven selected villages located in Jorhat and Golaghat districts of upper Assam, northeast India, for population estimation, quantitative ecological analysis, and evaluation ofAquilaria malaccensis(Thymelaeaceae). Vegetation sampling was done by quadrat method andA. malaccensisis the most dominant tree species in all twenty-seven different study sites of upper Assam contributing 10–54% of the total tree density with a mean of34%±2. Density of the species varied from 6,236 individuals ha−1to 429 individuals ha−1with a mean of 1,609 individualsha-1±217, whereas frequency of occurrence is very high ranging from 93% to 100% with a mean of98%±0.53in different study sites. Distribution ofA. malaccensisis found contagious in all twenty-six study sites on the basis of abundance to frequency ratio except in KBG, Golaghat, where its distribution is random with 0.04 abundance to frequency ratio. The widespread cultivation ofA. malaccensisin upper Assam, northeast India, offers a potential ex situ reservoir for the future conservation and management of this threatened tree.