Rangelands: biodiversity conservation and management and inventory and monitoring
2005
Alemayehu Mengistu
Biodiversity is a term given to the variety of life on earth and the natural patterns it forms. It is often classified/understood at three levels, which are genetic diversity, species diversity and ecosystem diversity. Genetic diversity represents the heritable variation within and between populations of organisms. Species diversity is measured by the total number of species in a given study area. Ecosystem diversity refers to the variety of different habitats. Evidence shows that, there is a highly complex relationship between species and ecosystem diversities. It is these relationships that determine the extent of biodiversity in rangelands. Eastern Africa rangelands cover a large area of land (88% of Kenya, 83% of Tanzania, 40% of Uganda, 56% of Ethiopia and almost all of Somalia, Eritera and Djibouti). They are characterized by a high biodiversity, which is economically important both locally and nationally. A part from this role, rangelands serve for a number of functions such as ecological, ethical and the protection of gene pool. They are especially important, however, as the principal support for pastoralists, foragers and farmers dependent on rain-fed crops whereby a large number of them still live a basically subsistence existence. The Eastern African indigenous knowledge in management of rangeland biodiversity involves several techniques. Pastoralists have, over many generations, developed communal tenure and land use practices; and they also have their own herd management, range management and well management practices, which help them to successfully use the rangelands on a sustainable basis.
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