Reinwardtia (Sep 2000)
LES ECOSYSTEMES DOMESTIQUES PAR L'HOMME DANS L'ANCIEN ROYAUME INSANA - TIMOR
Abstract
Based on ethnobotanical data, agricultural practice and floristicanalysis (simple and transect analysis), the author tries to evaluate humanimpact on vegetation cover. He attempts also to show that originally thisenvironment consisted of two different types i.e. dry and humid, each ofwhich corresponded to a certain floristic composition. There is a tendencyfor this difference in composition to decrease there where humaninterference is strongest, i.e. on land under cultivation. It is difficult toverify that there is any part of Insana that is not influenced directly orindirectly by human intervention. It is evident that the practice of slashand burn has had the strongest influence on the transformation of thevegetation cover. However, we have to consider also that the introductionof Bah cattle to this territory has had a great impact on the modification ofthe environment. Meanwhile there is a tendency to increase the number ofspecies or varieties of economic plants, in particular food plants.
