Keanekaragaman Vegetasi Tumbuhan Bawah dan Ketersediaan Spesies Pakan Satwa di Savana Bekol dan Balanan, Taman Nasional Baluran

Abstract

Akasia berduri (Vachellia nilotica) adalah salah satu tumbuhan yang berada di Taman Nasional Baluran yang bersifat invasif dan memengaruhi komposisi savana di kawasan tersebut. Penelitian bertujuan mengetahui keanekaragaman spesies tumbuhan bawah, sifat invasif dan mengkaji spesies pakan satwa yang mampu berkompetisi pada lingkungan penelitian. Pengambilan data analisis vegetasi didapatkan dengan metode kuadrat. Plot utama dengan ukuran 50 m × 50 m dibuat pada tiga kawasan, yaitu kawasan savana terinvasi rendah, tinggi, dan bebas invasi. Setiap plot utama dibuat 15 petak contoh yang berukuran 1 m × 1 m. Parameter tumbuhan bawah yang diamati adalah jumlah individu dan spesies. Pada savana terinvasi rendah ditemukan sembilan spesies dari tujuh famili dan pada savana terinvasi tinggi ditemukan sembilan spesies dari enam famili. Nilai indeks keragaman jenis (H’) pada savana Balanan invasi rendah bernilai 1,62 dan pada invasi tinggi sebesar 1,74, sedangkan pada savana Bekol yang terbebas invasi sebesar 1,24. Vegetasi yang menyusun ketiga kawasan cenderung berbeda dengan nilai indeks kesamaan Sorenson (IS) sebesar 4.05 hingga 14.65. Jumlah spesies pakan pada kawasan invasi tinggi lebih rendah dibandingkan dengan kawasan lainnya.

Thorny acacia (Vachella nilotica) is one of the invasive plants species in Baluran National Park (BNP) which affects the vegetation composition in its savanna. This study aims to determine the diversity of understory species and its invasiveness, as well as to examine the availability of forage plant species that are able to compete with the other understory species in the research plot. This study was conducted in three areas that is high invaded, low invaded, and uninvaded areas from V. nilotica. The vegetation composition was described by vegetation analysis. Main plot with a size of 50 m × 50 m has been made in three areas with five replicate plots were selected for each location resulting in total of 15 plots were studied. The uninvaded area has the highest number of understory species compare against the high invaded and low invaded areas. The value of the species diversity index (H') in high invaded, low invaded, and uninvaded areas are 1,74; 1,62; and 1,24 respectively. The understory composition within the three areas were tends to be different based on Sorenson Similarity Index (IS) with a range of values 4.05 to 14.65. The high invasion area has the lowest number of forage plants species compared to other areas.