The 1951 figure showed a predominance of Cynometraforest; 40 years on this was
much reduced and Mixed Forest predominated, as can be seen in Fig. 1.4. This was
exactly what the British intended; they had wanted to reverse the succession described
by Eggeling and they had succeeded. The object of the whole exercise was to increase
the forest’s crop of mahogany trees in the long run by providing them with the condi-
tions (Mixed Forest) in which they would thrive. In this the British were less successful.
What they in fact succeeded in doing was to increase a variety of species of fruiting trees
such as figs (Tweheyo 2000) with very good results for the forest’s fruit-eating animals.
Fortunately for them — the chimpanzees and monkeys, the hornbills, bats, civets and
all the other fruit-eating species in Budongo — the efforts to kill off the fig trees and
other ‘weed’ species met with as little success as the efforts to increase the stock of
mahoganies. This was actually foreseen by Synnott (1972) who wrote ‘most of the fig
species in Budongo start life as epiphytes and can maintain themselves outside the range
of arboricides. On the present 80-year rotation of harvesting these trees will easily be
able to reach maturity...’As we shall see in Chapter 4, the net effect of the use of
arboricides, even on figs, was actually to increase their number. Today Budongo Forest
has higher densities of trees producing fleshy fruits and of fruit-eating primates in its
logged and arboricide-treated forest areas than it does in its unlogged and untreated
Nature Reserves.
The forest today
The forest today is the result of two processes: natural changes and changes resulting
from human interference. Natural processes have created a forest with a large number of
species competing with each other at the individual level. Each seed that falls and
germinates finds itself in immediate competition with all the trees and seedlings and
saplings that have gone before it. Very few seeds actually make it to maturity: Synnott
(1975) studied the fate of 3000 Entrandrophragmaseeds in plots of various densities in
various parts of the forest without treatments or protection, and a further 2000 in a treat-
ment area where they were given extra water, fertilizer and reduced root competition.
More seeds were planted in nursery conditions outside the forest, with three different
light/shade routines, and some further seeds were planted in laboratory conditions. In all
the natural forest plots, a majority of seeds were eliminated by small rodents before or
shortly after germination. Most of the rest of the seedlings were eaten within a year or
two by bushbuck, but there were other causes, such as one under a fallen branch, and two
buried under buffalo dung. At the end of the study none survived. Cynometraseeds do
better because they are rarely eaten by rodents and the seedlings grow more successfully
in the shady conditions on the forest floor (Synnott, pers. comm.).
The causes of mortality are many: seeds and all the later stages of development of
woody plants are attacked in the soil by viruses, bacteria, fungi and larger organisms. If
seeds manage to germinate they become food first for mice and shrews, and later if they
throw out leaves these are browsed by duikers and most other mammals. At all stages
airborne viruses, fungi and bacteria attack leaves so that if you look around you at the
18 The Budongo Forest