Ecological research on bamboo shoot-harvesting: Responses of bamboo to human disturbances

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26740045
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Environmental and ecological symbiosis
• Research Institution: Kyoto University (2016); Hokkaido University (2014-2015)
• Principal Investigator: Katayama Noboru 京都大学, 生態学研究センター, 研究員 (30646857)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 山菜 / チシマザサ / 補償成長 / 収穫 / 伐採 / 復元速度 / 北方林 / 北海道

Outline of Final Research Achievements

An aim of this study is to give ecological information about effective use of a wild edible plant receiving human disturbances. I carried out two field experiments, focusing on dwarf bamboo (Sasa kurilensis), and found that the productivity of edible bamboo shoots was enhanced after human-harvesting of bamboo shoots. This indicates that over-compensatory growth occurred in the bamboo. On the other hand, the shoot productivity tended to decrease when reaped mature culms. Moreover, another field survey indicated that it might take over 30 years to recover original productivity of the bamboo shoots after the bamboo’s population had received large-scale reaping. From these results, I suggest that we should consider ‘sorts’ and ‘strength’ of anthropogenic disturbance for effective use of the edible bamboo.

Free Research Field

生態系サービス