223

ORIGINAL PAPER

Assessment of Subsistence Plant Resource ofthe Mangrove Forest in the Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmar
Katsuhiro ONO1* and Kunio SUZUKI2
1

Graduate School of Environment and Information Sciences, Yokohama National University
79-7 Tokiwadai, Hodogaya-ku, Yokohama 240-8501, Japan
2
Yokohama National University79-1 Tokiwadai, Hodogaya-ku, Yokohama 240-8501, Japan*e-mail: k-ono@ynu.ac.jp

Abstract
An ethnobotanical study on the plant resources of mangrove forests was conducted in the village of Ashe
Mayan in the Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmar. Among 82 species of mangrove flora, 54 species including
19 mangrove plants, 20 mangrove associates and 15 non-mangrove plants were inventoried as useful plants
for local subsistence. The cumulative number of plant resources stood at 119 species, consisting of 28 species
applied for medical purposes or as poison, 22 species used in crafts, 19 edible species, fourteen species
providing construction materials, ten species used for tying, seven species used for fuel, one species used inroofs and walls and 18 species with other purposes. Examining the meteorological and geographicalenvironment, plant features and requisites for life, we assessed that utilization of plant resources of mangrove
forests is harmonized with the endemic life culture.
Key words: ethnobotanical study, inventory, mangroves, useful plants, subsistence use

1. Introduction
In the late 19th century, the British colonial government transferred the inhabitants of Bamar from the central dry plains to the Ayeyarwady (AYWD) Delta, which
had been an almost uninhabited wilderness with forestsand swamps until then (Saito, 1962; Tamura, 1997).
Mangroves were a major forest resource in the coastal
lowlands for the settlers, and the people have benefited
from the mangrove forests since that time. As large volumes of woody resources have been supplied to the cities(Ohn, 1992) however, the distribution of the mangrove
forests has dwindled since the 1970s. The subsequent
depression and degradation of mangrove ecosystems
have put the traditional life of the local people in jeopardy.
Conservation of mangrove forests has become a criticalissue in the AYWD Delta, as well as in other coastal areasin the tropics.
Because groups of indigenous people regard natural
resources as essential to their culture and well-being, theyshould be given particular attention in any kind of conservation programs (McNeely et al., 1990). However the
reliance of rural people on ecosystems is rarely examined
and thus typically overlooked in national politics andeconomics, resulting in inappropriate strategies that do
not take into account the role of the environment (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005).
Global Environmental Research
17/2013: 223-232
printed in Japan

To contribute an alternative viewpoint to mangrove
conservation, the subsistence value of mangrove plants
has been investigated in each country over time (e.g.,
Taylor, 1982 [Thailand & Malaysia]; Chan & Salleh,
1987 [Malaysia]; Siddiqi, 1994 [Bangladesh]; DahdouhGuebas et al., 2000 [Kenya]), and this information has
been compiled (e.g., Tomlinson, 1986; Field, 1995;
Bandaranayake, 1998; Spalding et al., 2010). However,in Myanmar, assessment of the subsistence value ofmangroves based on field work has been limited, andbesides, the natural environment and species composition
are unique compared to typical mangrove forests inSoutheast Asia (e.g., Yamada, 1984; Maung Maung Than,
2006), thus the local use of plants may be different.
Therefore, the purpose of this study was to elucidate
the subsistence value of mangrove forests in the AYWD
Delta in the local context, based on field inventory workon useful plants.

2. Site Description
The AYWD Delta is situated in the southern part of
Myanmar, between the latitudes of 15° and 18° north, andlongitudes of 94° and 96° east. The delta faces the Bay of
Bengal, to the south and southwest (Fig. 1a). This megadelta is approximately 20,600–35,000 km2 in area, and its
extensive mangroves cover 652 km2 as of 2007, down©2013 AIRIES224

K. ONO and K. SUZUKI

Fig. 1 The Study site. (a) The square shows the mouth of the Ayeyarwady River which is magnified in 1b. (b) The
arrow indicates Ashe Mayan village. It is located in a mangrove swamp area, approximately 60 km south of thenearest town, Bogalay.

from 2,532 km2 in 1924. The area is influenced by atropical monsoon climate with high temperatures andabundant rainfall, and is characterized by three seasons:the rainy, cold, and summer seasons. The average annual
rainfall is over 3,200 mm, and almost all precipitation
comes during the rainy season from May to October (Toe
Toe Aung et al., 2010).
The natural environment of the AYWD mangrove
area is characterized by low salinity water of its streams(Myint Aung, 2004) and by rather higher ground, marked
at class-three to class-five of the Watson inundation index(Watson, 1928), occupying most of the tidal zone. Because of this particular environment, the mangrove
Heritiera fomes broadly dominates, accompanied by
species from freshwater swamps, to the extent that thistidal ecosystem is a completely different mangrove forest
in terms of species composition.
Our study site was the village of Ashe Mayan, in theeastern part of the AYWD Delta. Houses and otherbuildings were scattered along a footpath of about threekilometers, on a sandy beach ridge between a small creek
and a tidal marsh (Fig. 1b). The reasons this village wasselected were: the village was far away from commercial
zones, villagers needed to depend much more on forest
resources in order to live; and it was thought that the richmangrove vegetation around the village was sufficientfor maintaining the villagers’ traditional lifestyle (Fig. 2).
The inhabitants were all Bamar. Their ancestors wereconsidered to have been transferred from nearby villages
in and after the 19th century. Nearly half of the households held their own land; and home gardens, rice cropping and nipa plantations have provided their main income sources. The landless families, on the other hand,relied on fishing and other small-scale works (Table 1).

Fig. 2 Gathering of plant resources from adjacentmangroves is routine for the local people,
Ashe Mayan village.

3. Methodology
A flora list of 82 vascular plants in the surrounding
mangrove forest was acquired through flora and vegetation surveys, which were carried out for more than thirtydays in total from 2002 to 2005. An inventory of plantresources in the mangrove forests was compiled based on
an interview survey and participatory observation, whichwere followed up for more than 60 days in all from 2005
to 2010. Useful plants were selected from the flora list,
and then their subsistence uses were investigated. Local

Assessment of Subsistence Plant Resource of the Mangrove Forest in the Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmar

225

Table 1 Basic data and information pertaining to the studied village; Ashe Mayan.

Table 2 Functional categories of plant resource utilization.

names and, ways of gathering, processing and applying
plants were recorded, and the parts of the plants used andintended use of each of them were specified. At the sametime, the quality and preference of each resource wereconfirmed. The core interviewees were fourteen villageelders who had lived in this village for more than thirty
years, and their families. The elders were all wellexperienced in using forest products, for they had beenworking for a long time in the surrounding forests.
Phillips and Gentry (1993) was used as a reference forcategorizing the intended uses into functional categories
of fuels, construction, crafts, tying, roofs & walls, edible,
medical & poison and others (Table 2). Almost all trees
and shrubs could be used as fuel, but in this paper, only
the plants with good quality, which were usually or frequently used, were regarded as fuel resources. Other
necessary information, such as mangrove status and planttypes, was added to complete the inventory list with fielddata. Using Tomlinson (1986) as a reference, the mangrove status of each useful plant was classified into threegroups: “mangrove plants,” which are characteristicallyfound in tidal swamps; “mangrove associates,” which are
typically found in back mangroves or along riversides
etc.; and “non-mangrove plants,” which are considered acomponent of terrestrial plant communities. Based on
Maung Maung Than (2006), plants were categorized into
five types: trees, shrubs, palms, herbs and climber/creepers. Finally, we discussed the resource value ofplants in the local context by pointing out distinguishingexamples of utilization in this mangrove region.

4. Results and Discussion
Out of 82 plants of forest flora, 54 species in
24 families were useful for local subsistence (Table 3).
They consisted of 19 mangrove plants, 20 mangrove
associates and 15 non-mangrove plants, thus this can beinterpreted as the local people deftly enjoying not only
mangrove plants but the plant resource diversity resulting
from the species richness of the AYWD mangrove forests.
Because many of the useful plants had multiple functions,the cumulative number of plant resource stood at
119 species. The plant resources consisted of 28 species
for medical & poison, 22 species for crafts, 19 edible
species, 14 species for construction, ten species for tying,seven species for fuel and one species for roofs & walls.
This shows that the AYWD mangrove forests are auniversal resource supply system, which provides
resources in all functional categories meeting the local
needs, and that the forests are not performing in thecapacity of specialized purposes for the people.
4.1 FuelThin axes of richly branching shrubs such as
Brownlowia tersa and Hibiscus tiliaceus were gathered(Fig. 3a). Cynometra ramiflora is a tree species but it has
many branches and its axes were harvested in the samemanner as those shrubs. Thinner branches with a diameter of less than five centimeters were used from four tree
species, including Heritiera fomes, Pongamia pinnata
and others, which have a main trunk and branches. Only a226

K. ONO and K. SUZUKI

Table 3 Inventory of plant resources in the mangrove forest.

*1

Family*1

Scientific name

Acanthaceae″″″″
Apocynaceae″″″
Arecaceae″
Asteraceae
Bignoniaceae
Blechnaceae
Calophyllaceae
Combretaceae
Euphorbiaceae″
Fabaceae
″
″
″
″
″
″
″
″
Flagellariaceae
Lamiaceae″
Lythraceae″″
Malvaceae″″
Meliaceae″″
Moraceae
Olacaceae
Pandanaceae
Primulaceae″
Pteridaceae
Rhizophoraceae
″
″
″
″
″
Rutaceae
Sapindaceae
Vitaceae

Acanthus ebracteatus Vahl
Acanthus ilicifolius L.
Avicennia alba Blume
Avicennia marina (Forssk.) Vierh.
Avicennia officinalis L.
Cerbera odollam Gaertn.
Finlaysonia obovata Wall.
Sarcolobus carinatus Wall.
Sarcolobus globosus Wall.
Nypa fruticans Wurmb
Phoenix paludosa Roxb.
Pluchea indica (L.) Less.
Dolichandrone spathacea (L.f.) Seem.
Stenochlaena palustris (Burm.f.) Bedd.
Calophyllum inophyllum L.
Terminalia catappa L.
Excoecaria agallocha L.
Shirakiopsis indica (Willd.) Esser
Caesalpinia bonduc (L.) Roxb.
Caesalpinia crista L.
Cynometra ramiflora L.
Dalbergia pinnata (Lour.) Prain
Dalbergia spinosa Roxb.
Derris scandens (Roxb.) Benth.
Derris trifoliata Lour.
Intsia bijuga (Colebr.) Kuntze
Pongamia pinnata (L.) Pierre
Flagellaria indica L.
Clerodendrum inerme (L.) Gaertn.
Premna serratifolia L.
Sonneratia apetala Buch.-Ham.
Sonneratia caseolaris (L.) Engl.
Sonneratia griffithii Kurz
Brownlowia tersa (L.) Kosterm.
Heritiera fomes Buch.-Ham.
Hibiscus tiliaceus L.
Aglaia cucullata (Roxb.) Pellegr.
Xylocarpus granatum J. Koenig
Xylocarpus moluccensis (Lam.) M. Roem.
Ficus benjamina L.
Olax psittacorum (Lam.) Vahl
Pandanus foetidus Roxb.
Aegiceras corniculatum (L.) Blanco
Ardisia elliptica Thunb.
Acrostichum aureum L.
Bruguiera gymnorhiza (L.) Lam.
Bruguiera sexangula (Lour.) Poir.
Ceriops decandra (Griff.) W.Theob.
Kandelia candel (L.) Druce
Rhizophora apiculata Blume
Rhizophora mucronata Lam.
Merope angulata (Willd.) Swingle
Allophylus cobbe (L.) Raeusch.
Cayratia trifolia (L.) Domin

Mgrv.
status*2
+
+
++
++
++
+

++
+
+
+
+
++
+
+
+

+
+
+

++
++
++
+
++
+
+
++
++

+
++
+
++
++
++
++
++
++
++
+
+

Local nameKha-yarKha-yarThame-kyettet
Thame-phyu
Thame-gyi
Za-lutByauk-nwe
Swut-kha-mon-nwe
Kyee-ka-lainDaniThinbaung
Kha-yuYe-thakyut
Damin-nwe
Pon-nyetBanda
Tha-yaw
BonlonKyee-kalain
Alo-layMyin-ga
Yemagi-nwe
Byeik-suu
Mi-chaung-nw
Nwe-netSaka-lun
Thinwin-pyu
Myauk-kyein
Taw-kyaung-pan
Taw-taung-tangyi
Kant-balar
Lamu
Laba
Ye-tha-man
KanazoThaman-shaw
Pant-tha-ka
Pin-le-ohn
Kya-naNyaung-lun
Lelu
Tha-bot
Ye-kaya
Kyetma-ok
Nget-gyi-taung
Byu-u-talone
Byu-shwe-wa
MadamaByu-baing-daunt
Byu-kyi-dauk-apo
Byu-kyi-dauk-ama
Taw-shaukMo-hman/Say-thon-gwa

Yinnaung-nwe
Total no.of species
T
S
P
H
C

Plant
type*3
S
S
T
T
T
T
C
C
C
P
P
H
T
C
T
T
T
T
C
C
T
C
S
C
C
T
T
C
S
S
T
T
T
S
T
S
T
T
T
T
S
S
T
S
H
T
T
T
T
T
T
S
S
C
55
27
12
3
2
11

Fuel

Construction

G
G
G

g

g

G

G

G
G

G
G
G
G
G
g
g
g

G

G

G

g
g
G,F
g
g
g

G
G

7
5
2
0
0
0

14
14
0
0
0
0

G
G
G

Family and Scientific name: based on The Plant List (2010) and Tropicos.org. as references.
Mangrove status: Tomlinson (1986) used as a reference. Double crosses (++) indicate mangrove plants and single crosses (+), mangrove-associated plants.
*3
Plant type: based on Maung Maung Than (2006). T: Tree, S: Shrub, H: Herb, C: Climber/Creeper, P: Palm.
*4
Functional category: the abbreviation in the column shows the part of each plant used. A: whole plant, B: seeds, nuts or fruits, C: leaves, D: sap, E: bark, F:
roots, tubers bulbs or rhizome, G: pith, shoots or stems, H: flowers.
A small letter ‘g’ indicates that pith, shoots or stems are a secondary resource for fuel and used reluctantly only when other fuels are absent.
*2

Assessment of Subsistence Plant Resource of the Mangrove Forest in the Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmar

Craft

Functional category*4
Roof
Tying
& WallEdibleMedical& Poison

C,F,G
C,F,G
G(container, fishing gear, boat)G(container, fishing gear, boat)G(container, fishing gear, boat)
G(sandal)

B

227

OthersB(fishing bait)

B(fishing bait), C(fodder), G(seafood smoking)

B
C

C

C

G(pole)G(handle)

B
B
B,C
B,G
B,H
C

G
C(lap, false ogive), G(plate & pile material)
G(container, minor construction)

B

B,C
C
B,C

G

B,C
B
H(hair accessory, ornamental)
C
C,F,G,H
B
C
C,G
B
B

B(toy), H(religious offering)A(shade tree)

G(seafood smoking)

G
C
G
E,G

C

H(hair accessory, religious offering)H(hair accessory, religious offering)

G

F,H
C
G

B(toy), H(hair accessory, religious offering)G(furniture, sandal)

G(utencil)
G(altar frame/furniture), F(float, bottle-plug)

B,C
B,C

G(plate material, container), F(float, bottle-plug)
G(plate material, container, furniture), F(bottle-plug)

G(cosmetic)
B(fishing bait), C(fodder)
B(fishing bait), C(fodder)
B(toy)

E
C,G
G
B,C
B
B

G(boat, fishing gear, handle, etc.), F(rudder, wash boad)E
G(padlle brace of boat)
G(furniture, plate material)
G(furniture, plate material)
G(container)C(fodder)G

C(mat)
G(utencil, etc.)

B
CC

B(toy), H(hair accessory)
H(hair accessory)
F,G
B(toy), C(fodder)
B(toy), C(fodder)G(pole, agricultural material)G(pole)

22
19
2
1
0
0

G

G
10
0
2
1
0
7

1
0
0
1
0
0

B
B,C
19
7
3
2
1
6

B,C,G
C
F
28
11
8
2
2
5

18
11
3
1
0
3

Accum.
no. ofspecies
119
67
20
8
3
21

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K. ONO and K. SUZUKI

certain portion of the axes or branches from one individual tree or shrub were harvested, but the trunks and otherbranches were left behind, so that the plant body could
regenerate by sprouting; and accordingly, the people
could harvest fuel resources sustainably. The thinnertrunks were harvested form Ceriops decandra. They
were used first as support poles for betel (Piper betle)
cultivation (Fig. 3b), one of the important crops in theregion; and then the old poles were subsequently used asfuel wood. This kind of cascading use of natural resources is efficient and sound for natural environment(JIE, 2008). Even though degradation of the mangrove
forest occurred, it was observed that the people normallyused mangrove wood, as compared with other fuel resources such as terrestrial trees.
Research in Malaysia and Thailand pointed out thattrees of Rhizophora spp., Bruguiera spp. and Avicennia
spp. were valuable for fuel (e.g., Taylor, 1982; Chan &Salleh, 1987), however in the AYWD Delta, the local
people preferred Cy. ramiflora and He. fomes instead,because of their favorable characteristics of long-lastingburning with less bursting. The mangrove vegetation that
includes those two species as distinguishing elements ismainly distributed from Myanmar to Bangladesh (Chapman, 1976), so it can be noted that the people in the
AYWD Delta have high quality fuel from endemic plantresources.
4.2 Construction
All fourteen species used in construction were tree
species and their trunks were used. The bark was strippedfrom logs of He. fomes, Bruguiera gymnorhiza, Bruguiera
sexangula and Rhizophora apiculata with a diameter ofmore than 10 centimeters, and the logs were utilized as
posts (Fig. 3c), and the thinner ones of these four species
and Ce. decandra as beams for houses, with planks ofother trees applied as floors. The strength and densityof the wood play a fundamental role in determining
the timber quality of a given species (Cotton, 1996).
Comparing the wood density as dry weight among those
14 trees, He. fomes gives the highest figure of 1.01 g cm-3,
then Ce. decandra at 0.88-1.07 g cm-3 and Rh. apiculata
at 0.81-0.90 g cm-3 or Bruguiera spp. at 0.67-0.97 g cm-3
follow (Saenger, 2002). Compared to Dipterocarpus
alatus, the density of which is 0.70-0.95 g cm-3 (Nettai
Shokubutsu Kenkyukai, 1984), making it one of the bestterrestrial tree for construction, it is understood thatmangrove timber is of good quality. Because the AYWD
Delta is frequently subjected to cyclones, those trees
from the mangrove forests must be quite important asplant resources for building strong dwellings. In fact,mangrove trees were applied as building materials in
considerable portion of the each house.
4.3 Crafts
The stems of 19 tree species out of 22 resource plants
were utilized for various kinds of craft processing fordaily living or subsistence work such as tools for fishingor farming; parts for row boats, houses and huts; furni-

ture; utensils; sandals etc. Physical wood properties andthe amount of timber required for particular tasks influenced the usages of tree species (Phillips & Gentry, 1993).
To cite one case, He. fomes, which is highly dominant in
the AYWD mangrove forests had the most multiple andtypical local usages. It was observed that the lever-likeprocessor for mohinga (Burmese noodles) was made ofthis strong and flexible wood (Fig. 3d).
Noting the parts of a row boat, which was main meansof transportation in the area, the wood of Aglaia
cucullata was used in the mounting portion of the paddles, because of its flexibility and appropriate frangibility.
When the paddle was pressed against an obstacle in the
narrow creek, the mounting portion broke down first, sothat the damage to the boat body itself could be minimized. This suggests that the local people have adapted
their utilization of plant resources to their natural andsocial environment in the mangrove area.
Until recently, the long cone-shaped pneumatophores(respiratory roots) of Sonneratia spp. (Fig. 3e) were utilized as bottle-plugs and fishing floats, and the board-likebuttress roots of He. fomes were utilized as scrubbing
boards. The soft, light pneumatophores of Sonneratia spp.
and broad and hard buttresses of He. fomes must be well
suited to the demands of those tools and equipment, andat the same time, it is easier to harvest those terrestrial
roots than subterranean roots. Thus, it is possible toconclude that the local people had a livelihood culture of
wisely applying the specialized forms of plants adapted
to the tidal habitat.
4.4 Tying
The flexible stems of seven climbers or creepers(vines) were used directly, and the bark of two shrubs andthe midribs of leaflets of Nypa fruticans (nipa palm) were
processed and applied as tying materials. The generaltying materials for farming implements and fishing gear
were vines of Flagellaria indica and Stenochlaena
palustris (Fig. 3f), because of their strength and durability. Although industrial products had become popular in
the village, those mangrove materials were still applied
as string.
Fiber plants are considered second to food plants interms of their usefulness to humans and their influence on
the advancement of civilization (Plotkin, 1988). However,previous research in the AYWD Delta (e.g., Ohn, 1992;
JICA, 2005) didn’t deal with tying usages. The fact thatmaterials of those two vines were often used in fundamental work in the rural village demonstrates the intimacy between plants from the mangrove forests and the
local livelihood.
4.5 Roofs and walls
The walling was made from several kinds of materials
including bamboo, nipa thatch and wood. On the other
hand, the roofing of all dwellings in the village was nipa
thatch (Fig. 3g), except for one or two houses with corrugated iron. The thatch element was made of leaflet
bunches of Ny. fruticans, which were fixed by thin strips

Assessment of Subsistence Plant Resource of the Mangrove Forest in the Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmarof bamboo.
It is reported that many kinds of plant material, suchas leaves of Cocos nucifera, Borassus flabellifer,
Livistona spp. (Hotta, 2002), Pandanus spp. (Furukawa,1994) and stems of Phragmites spp. (Hotta, 2002),
Imperata cylindrical (Kunstadter, 1988), Calotropis spp.
(Abbiw, 1990) are used as roofing of traditional dwellings in the tropics. In the AYWD Delta, however, noterrestrial plants were applied as roofing, even though
they all exemplified species thriving in and around thevillage.
Ny. fruticans is a mangrove plant that is well-adapted
to low-salinity water. The local people were cultivating229

this palm along the tidal banks of creeks here and there.
Leaves of Ny. fruticans could be harvested once or twicea year. Leaving only one leaf, people could expect newleaves to come out from the same stump the next season,and they could harvest them sustainably on a long-termbasis. In addition, the leaflets are soft for easy work andlight for less of a load on the house structure, and they
have the proper body structure for draining rain water
efficiently. Therefore, it can be said that this mangrove
palm is extremely appropriate for local use in roofing interms of both quantitative and qualitative aspects in the
AYWD Delta.

Fig. 3 Utilization of plant resources. (a) Wood of Brownlowia tersa for fuel and bark for tying material. (b) Support poles of Ceriops
decandra for betel cultivation. (c) Trunks of Heritiera fomes are suitable for main pillars of houses. (d) Burmese noodle processors
are made of He. fomes wood. (e) Pneumatophores of Sonneratia caseolaris. (f) Stems of Stenochlaena palustris are used for tying.
(g) Thatch for roofing is made of Nypa fruticans leaflets. (h) A village girl enjoying a fruit of Sonneratia apetala. (i) An edible fruitof Sarcolobus carinatus. (j), (k) & (l) Boiled fruits of Avicennia officinalis are mashed and then used in Burmese tealeaf salads. (m)Leaf extracts of Merope angulata ease body pain. (n) Dried shrimp processed by smoke of Av. officinalis wood. (o) Viviparous seedsof Bruguiera gymnorhiza are used as toys for children.

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K. ONO and K. SUZUKI

4.6 Edible materials
None of the plant types of the twelve species out of
18 edible plants were trees; and various parts, except subterranean, were utilized. Above all, the seeds, nuts or
fruits of twelve species and the leaves of eleven species
were edible, and just as a few examples, the fruits ofSonneratia spp. were cooked as ingredients of hinn
(Burmese curry) and also eaten raw as snacks by children(Fig. 3h). The fruits of Sarcolobus carinatus (Fig. 3i) andSarcolobus globosus provided snacks for children
playing in the mangrove forests, too. The calyx lobe andflesh of Sonneratia spp. fruits, the flowers and fruits of
Dolichandrone spathacea and the seeds of Avicennia
officinalis (Fig. 3j) were boiled, mashed up and mixed
into laphet-thoke (Burmese tealeaf salad), which is anational delicacy served with tea (Figs. 3k, 3l). They said
that laphet-thoke containing mangrove ingredients was
only found in the AYWD Delta, and the local people
seemed to be proud to serve it to outsiders. It wasobserved that foodstuffs from mangrove plants werecommon in the daily life of the village.
Shoots, leaves, subterranean organs, inflorescences
and fruits are edible, if they are young, non-poisonousand not awful tasting (Hotta, 2002). Nevertheless, edible
plants normally contribute little to the overall diet inmany societies (Cotton, 1996). It is inferred that thepeople try to obtain a rich and varied diet by enjoying
edible plants from the mangrove forests. Even if there islittle practical value, a bio-resource use, identified as‘minor subsistence,’ for changing or enriching daily life
has significant meaning (Matsui, 2004). It can be interpreted to mean that snacks and foodstuffs from mangroves constitute minor subsistence contributing to the
local cultural identity in the AYWD Delta.
4.7 Medical uses and poisons
The 28 plants that were used medically or as poisonsamong the whole included all plant types, and various
parts of plants were applied. In addition, processing
methods varied as well; for instance, a leaf decoction of
Do. spathacea was taken for neutralizing a mushroom
toxin, and an extraction of Merope angulata (Fig. 3m)
was put on the affected part of the body for easing pain.
Flower buds of Fl. indica were anthelmintic and burned
ash of Ny. fruticans fruits was antiodontalgic. Ny.
fruticans fruits were also used as a substitute for betel nut(Areca catechu), chewed daily as a stimulant. Extracted
liquid from pericarps (fruit walls) of Shirakiopsis indica,
which occurs in Ny. fruticans forests and tidal river banks(Giesen et al., 2007) was used as an important fish
poison.
Plants provide a source of bioactive compounds,
which can be used as medicines, poisons or stimulants(Farnsworth, 1990), and knowledge of the collection andprocessing techniques is essential to ensuring the efficient preparation of a particular chemical (Cotton, 1996).
In the AYWD Delta, the number of plant resources for
medical and poison uses was a comparative majority
within the functional category; and besides, various types

and parts of plants were used and ways processing andusage were diverse. Therefore it can be said that the plantresources from mangrove forests are vital for the local
population and botanical knowledge and techniques havebeen cultivated traditionally.
4.8 Others
The 18 species in this category had wide-ranging
purposes. For example, shrimp and fish were smokedusing the wood of Av. officinalis for small-scale business(Fig. 3n). The stick-like viviparous seeds of Bruguiera
spp. (Fig. 3o) were used as toys to provide amusement
to children. Inflorescences of Derris spp., Phoenix
paludosa and Fl. indica were of much avail as hairaccessories, and offerings to Buddhist altars or spirit
shrines. Those examples show that plant resources are afamiliar presence and firmly associated with the local
subsistence and livelihood culture.

5. Conclusion
The AYWD mangrove forests can be regarded as auniversal resource supply system, which provides resources in any functional category meeting the local
needs. Different plant species have a range of specificadaptations, with both morphological and chemical
characteristics favored by a particular ecological niche(Cotton, 1996). On the other hand, human beings firstly
recognize the physical structure and chemical features ofplants, then secondly select items depending on the purpose, based on requirements for their lives, and thenutilize them by adequate means (Kobayashi, 1994).
Every plant in mangrove forests has adapted itself tocircumstances influenced by inundation, saline water andclimate such as occasional rainstorms, by specializing its
form and/or developing appropriate biochemical functions.
From the viewpoint of purpose based on requisites forlife in the AYWD Delta, for construction, the people
there selected trees from the mangrove forests whichwere better able to resist the meteorological environmentof tropical storms and cyclones. Examples include
practical use of He. fomes and other tougher mangrove
woods instead of terrestrial trees; for roofing, which isimportant in the continuous heavy rain during the wet
season, the inhabitants found an optimum plant resourcein Ny. fruticans, but not any other potential plant resources; and for crafts, tying, poisons and other uses, theyfound and used proper materials from plants in the mangrove forests for tools and equipment related to transportation and fundamental work, which conform to thegeographical environment of deltaic land.
Speaking from the viewpoint of physical and chemical characteristics of plants in mangrove forests, terrestrial roots of the plants can be easily harvested, and thespecialized form of plants can be cleverly utilized incraftwork. The people can also enjoy quality fuel fromthe unique vegetation along the Bay of Bengal, and prime
roofing, too. In addition, they wisely process and applyAssessment of Subsistence Plant Resource of the Mangrove Forest in the Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmar

each plant with various pharmacologic features from thefloristically rich forests. In addition, from the standpointof vegetation features, they utilize the wide range of plant
diversity of the AYWD mangrove forest for medical uses
and as poisons or food. Furthermore, it is understood thatthe local people have ecological knowledge ofsustainable practices for harvesting fuel-wood and roofmaterial, and it is recognized that some edible plantresources, such as the seeds of Av. officinalis for tealeaf
salad are related to local cultural identity.
In summary, it can be said that the Bamar, who originally lived in the central dry plains, have developed new
traditional knowledge by adapting to the coastal lowland
environment in the Ayeyarwady Delta. Although past
research on mangrove resources in the AYWD Delta had
focused on the value of wood species, this paper inventoried the diversified plant resources in relation to thefunctions of the resources, and the types and parts ofplants used. As a result it was found that the plantresources in the AYWD mangrove forests are harmonized with the endemic life culture, which is foundedbased on the deltaic environment, plant features andrequisites for the life. The endemic bio-culture revealedby this study has implications as a key for selecting or
prioritizing plants or plant communities in mangrove
conservation from the local point of view. As the next
phase of the study, it must be important to clarify the
degree of people’s dependence on each mangrove plantresource and to examine the local knowledge ofgathering, processing storing it.

Acknowledgments
We would like to express our gratitude to U Ohn, Dr.
Maung Maung Than, other FREDA (Forest Resource
Environment Development and Conservation Association) members and local staff who arranged accommodations and transportation for our field trips. We
would also like to thank all the responsible persons
from the Forest Department of Myanmar and fromACTMANG (Action for Mangrove Reforestation, Japan)
for giving us their unstinting cooperation. We also thankall the villagers who helped us stay in the village, andanonymous reviewers for useful comments. Thanks
are also due to Dr. Toe Toe Aung, a visiting fellow at
Yokohama National University, for his advice on
Myanmar terminology.
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Katsuhiro ONO
Katsuhiro ONO is a teaching staff member
and postdoctoral fellow of the Graduate Schoolof Environment and Information Sciences,
Yokohama National University. He is interested
in rural community development and appropriate
management of forest resources. He has been
implementing ethnobotanical research in Southeast Asia, principally in Myanmar since 2001.

Kunio SUZUKI
Kunio SUZUKI is the President of Yokohama
National University. He has a Doctor of Science
degree from Tohoku University. His researchencompasses studies of ecology and environment management. He has been exploring
mangrove and marsh ecosystems in tropical Asia
for more than 30 years. In recent years, he has
been active in advocacy of environmental policy, as a member of theJapanese National Commission for UNESCO, President of the Nature
Restoration and Conservation Society, Japan, President of the Japan
Society for Mangroves and a Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of
the International Association for Restoration of Native Forest.

(Received 4 March 2013, Accepted 16 June 2013)