Francis Mwaura

Effect of Altitudinal Gradient on Indigenous Woody Species and Uses Francis Mwaura

Lokapel lagga in Turkana area falls in a Dryland part of Kenya where Woody species in the drylands usually serve as an important driving force for the local economy especially through the livestock sector. In recent years, the interest on dryland biodiversity has emerged in Kenya, not only due to the oil discovery but also following fruitful bioprospecting ventures which have discovered highly competitive natural herbal products mainly with the aid of local indigenous knowledge. This is compounded by the fact that the most utilized woody species locally are still the ones dominating the woody cover along the altitudinal gradient from the Turkwel river to Lokapel lagga. However, Vegetation diversity is not as a result of livestock overstocking probably due to the regular decimation of livestock herds by drought. On the other hand, it is likely that traditional conservation strategies including the prevention of direct removal of forage and cutting down of tree and bushes for livestock.