THAILAND: BIODIVERSITY CENTER FOR THE TROPICS OF INDO-BURMA

PETER S. ASHTON

ABSTRACT: Thailand is uniquely placed to represent the fauna and flora which characterized the biogeographic province of Indo-Burma, for several reasons. This region stretches from Chittagong, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Burma to Vietnam, Southern Yunnan, Guangxi and Hainan. First, Thailand is at the meeting place for elements concentrated in the west, and those conEined to the east. Second, it stretches from the southward arching ranges that terminate the eastern Himalayas, a classic center of endemism, to the northern margin of the great Sunda Shelf equatorial mixed dipterocarp forests. Third, Thailand possesses the only comprehensive, adequately conserved national park system in lndo-Burma, which may by the next century represent the last surviving gene bank, in effect, of a region the size of western Europe and with more than twice the number of plant spedes. And lasdy, Thailand's buoyant economy is coming to dominate trade in the natural resources of the region, so that Thailand's foreign polides in respect of natural resources will, literally, determine the fate of the forests and seas of Indo-Burma. However, in order to better manage such forests in a sustained manner, more long term research is required on the ecological tolerances and the dynamics of tree spedes and whole communities. Such research is best carried out on long term research plots of sufficient size to study tree populations and carry out manipulative or experimental field research.

Download PDF

Amold Arboretum, Harvard University, 22 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.

Received 20 July 1990