The Forest Department has discovered 5,520 mother trees in the forest areas of Chittagong and Cox's Bazar following a directive from the Prime Minister. The survey identified 75 species, of which 17 species have only one mother tree remaining each.
Forest experts attribute the decline to long-term indiscriminate tree cutting, forest land encroachment, and poor natural regeneration. The mother trees, or 'forest seed trees,' are mature trees with superior genetic traits, good structure, and high seed production capacity.
The survey was conducted over 13 days in various forest divisions including Chittagong South, Cox's Bazar North, Cox's Bazar South, Chittagong Wildlife and Nature Conservation Area, and Chittagong Coastal Forest Division. The highest number of mother trees was found in Cox's Bazar North Forest Division with 3,611 trees, while the lowest was in Chittagong Coastal Forest Division with 77 trees.
The survey identified three species of garjan (teak) as the most prevalent, with 4,680 mother trees. The second highest was dhakijam with 306 trees. Among the 75 species identified, 17 have only one mother tree remaining each, including kanchan, palash, pitali, bandarhula, buddha narikel, parul, dhali garjan, kanta, keron, sukon, boro jam, konyali, tejbahal, rajkoroi, and gab. Two mother trees each were found for chandul, sundari, and sada koroi.
The discrepancy between the Forest Department's survey and the FAO's survey is due to the inclusion of garjan in the former. The FAO's survey identified 500 mother trees of 20 species. Professor Mo. Kamal Hossain of Chittagong University's Institute of Forestry and Environmental Sciences, who supervised the FAO's survey, recommended the conservation of these mother trees to maintain the ecological balance of the forest.
