EFFECTIVENESS OF PROTECTED AREAS FOR THE CONSERVATION OF FAVOURABLE AND PRIORITY HABITATS FOR VALUABLE TREE SPECIES IN BENIN

The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of protected areas in Benin for the conservation of favourable and priority habitats for the following tree species of socio-economic importance: Afzelia africana, Anogeissus leiocarpa, Burkea africana, Daniellia oliveri, Detarium microcarpum, Prosopis africana and Khaya senegalensis. We combined maximum entropy (Maxent) techniques with GIS to predict potentially favourable areas for cultivating and conserving these species. Zonation software was used to model priority habitats. Data points where the species were present were collected and linked to bioclimatic variables derived from monthly temperature and rainfall figures from the Africlim database and to edaphic (soil) variables. In term of environmental determinism, the most favourable areas were predicted by bioclimatic variables such as mean diurnal temperature range (Bio2), mean annual rainfall (Bio12), potential evapotranspiration (PET) and a biophysical ground variable. The most favourable protected areas for the seven tree species extended northwards from the Ketou listed forest (7 degrees 43'N) in the Guinean zone, from the Agoua listed forest (8 degrees 30'N) in the Sudano-Guinean zone and from the Pendjari National Park area (10 degrees 35'N) in the Sudanian zone. Gap analysis of habitat conservation showed that the protected area network was effective in the Sudanian zone (9 degrees 75'-12 degrees 27'N), minimally effective in the Guinean zone (6 degrees 50'-7 degrees 40'N) and not effective at all in the Sudano-Guinean zone.