USE AND CONSERVATION OF WOODY VEGETATION BY THE BATEMI OF NGORONGORO DISTRICT, TANZANIA

The Batemi, agropastoralists of north-central Tanzania, inhabit a land scape of savanna and scrub woodland. We identified 61 species of woody plants used by rite Batemi for 19 types of items. The reports indicat ed 39 species are used for construction, 19 species for cultural artif acts, 23 for firewood and 6 live trees for fences, boundaries and shad e. The Batemi have extensive knowledge of species habitat and distinct ive management strategies for woody vegetation, particularly for the w ell-forested irrigation channels and spring sources. To date, a total of 90 species of woody plants have been identified as useful to the Ba temi. Compared to the total number of species found within the study a rea, the Batemi use 79% of woody plant species in the area.