Diversity and Abundance of Edible Wild Fruit and Leaf Plants in Parts of Forest and Savanna Eco-regions, Nigeria

Wild foods are important sources of nutrition for one out of six people worldwide and it remains an open access source of food and income, especially to vulnerable group such as the resource-poor and malnourished children. Different ecological zones in Nigeria are endowed with diverse edible fruits and leaves and hence their diversity and abundance differ. With the previous and current rate of deforestation particularly in the African continent and specifically in Nigeria, the diversity and abundance of these invaluable forests –derived foods across the forest and savanna ecozones in Nigeria are unknown. An inventory of forest-derived edible fruits and leaves was conducted using a systematic line transect in two (2) selected forest reserves in each ecological zone. Five line transects of 515 m in length, with a distance of at least 150 m between two parallel transects was used. Five sample plots of 25 m x25 m in size were laid in alternate position along each transect at 100 m interval. A total of 25 sample plots were laid in each of the selected forest reserves. In each sample plot, all edible fruits and leaves encountered were identified and their frequency recorded. The frequency of the species per ha was used to compute the relative species abundance and Shannon weiner diversity index. The species diversity across the ecological zones was compared using one-way analysis of variance. Shannon-weiner diversity index (3.49) for the rainforest edible wild fruits and leaves is significantly higher (P≤ 0.05) than in all the other ecological zones. This is followed by Guinea savanna (3.10), Derived savanna (3.02), Sudan savanna (2.91), and Sahel savanna (2.83) while the mangrove forest has the lowest diversity index (2.53). Assessing species diversity helps in understanding the resilience of forest ecosystems. This knowledge is crucial for fostering environments that can withstand and recover from adverse events. Policy makers rely on scientific studies to design regulations and conservation strategies. This research provided evidence-based insight necessary for informed decision-making to protect forest reserves