Cropping patterns along an altitudinal gradient and their implications to wildlife conservation in Rombo, Tanzania

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dc.contributor.authorMmbaga, Naza E.
dc.contributor.authorMunishi, Linus K.
dc.contributor.authorTreydte, Anna C.
dc.date.accessioned2022-03-23T09:01:08Z
dc.date.available2022-03-23T09:01:08Z
dc.date.issued2021
dc.descriptionFull text article. Also available at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S235198942100233Xen_US
dc.description.abstractEcosystem and livelihood sustainability of small-scale farmers in Eastern Africa are often challenged by climate change and unsustainable land use practices. Little is known on the small-scale temporal processes of cropping systems in relation to long-term climatic conditions. To understand the climatic influence on the cropping patterns, and its implications to wildlife/elephant conservation, our study used a combination of time-series datasets on crop and climate as well as geo-spatial layers spanning more than three decades. To validate the information analyzed from secondary data, we carried out participatory observation and interviews, whereby about 5% of village households were selected along an altitudinal gradient of Rombo area, Tanzania. We generated land use change maps using Geographical Information System (ArcGIS 10.4) and used Spearman’s correlation analysis to assess the influence of rainfall, temperature, and crop yield on the observed longitudinal changes in the crop types and other land use patterns both within and across altitudinal gradients. We found that perennial crops like coffee and banana concentrated in upper agro-ecological zones, with a clear division line above 1230 masl while seasonal crops like maize and beans were mostly cultivated in lowlands (below 1230 masl). The results further showed that coffee yields significantly declined with higher average annual minimum temperatures over the last 16 years. Within the same time period, there was a disproportionate shift from coffee to seasonal crop cultivation such as maize and beans. Elephant numbers declined by about 38%, while human settlement area increased by 28% over the last 30 years. We conclude that changes in land use and shifts in climate and cropping patterns have important implications for elephant conservation and sustainability of the ecosystem in Rombo area, Tanzania.en_US
dc.identifier.citationMmbaga, N. E., Munishi, L. K., & Treydte, A. C. (2021). Cropping patterns along an altitudinal gradient and their implications to wildlife conservation in Rombo, Tanzania. Global Ecology and Conservation, e01683.en_US
dc.identifier.otherDOI:10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01683
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12661/3518
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherElsevieren_US
dc.subjectTanzaniaen_US
dc.subjectRomboen_US
dc.subjectWildlife conservationen_US
dc.subjectClimateen_US
dc.subjectCropping patternsen_US
dc.subjectKilimanjaro regionen_US
dc.subjectKilimanjaroen_US
dc.subjectEcosystem sustainabilityen_US
dc.subjectEcosystemen_US
dc.subjectCrop productionen_US
dc.subjectSmall-holder farmersen_US
dc.titleCropping patterns along an altitudinal gradient and their implications to wildlife conservation in Rombo, Tanzaniaen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US
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