Optimal foraging, institutions and forest change: a case from Nepal.

摘要: The forest composition we witness today is a productof temporal anthropogenic and nonanthropogenicdisturbances. Scholars from geography, anthropology,and other disciplines have long been aware of theinforming nature spatial relationships: humanactions in previous time often leave imprints intoday's landscape. Traditional empirical studies offorest condition typically ignore this type ofinformation rely on aggregated forest-levelindicators developed aspatial plot-levelanalyses. This paper conducts analysis ofone important product species, Shorearobusta, foraging setting southern Nepal. Forest plot locations were located using DifferentialGlobal Positioning Systems (DGPS) processedusing Geographic Information System. Three rivalhypotheses the geographic distribution Shorea robusta are presented: (1) pattern nohuman disturbance, (2) open access andoptimal foraging, (3) optimalforaging altered by configuration ofenforced institutions. Multivariate regression modelsare estimated optimal patterns areidentified. Statistical tests lend support to thethird hypothesis. Methods such as ones presentedhere if better understand thegeographic implications institutional design onhuman behavior environmental outcomes that result.