Changes in forest resource utilization and forest landscapes in the southern Abukuma Mountains, Japan during the twentieth century

Land use and landscape changes, which have much effect on local biodiversity, are driven primarily by socioeconomic forces. Understanding these forces is important for preservation of current biodiversity. In this study, we clarified the socioeconomic forces that have brought about changes in the forest landscape around the Ogawa Forest Reserve in the southern Abukuma Mountains, Japan, by interviewing local residents and reviewing local historical documents. Furthermore, we reconstructed past forest landscapes and quantified the changes that have occurred from the beginning of the twentieth century until the present by use of old land-use maps and past aerial photographs. The use of forest resources has dramatically changed during the past hundred years, and it can be divided into three periods corresponding to the level of economic development. The main landscape has changed significantly from one mainly composed of expansive grasslands and broad-leaved forests into a mosaic of fragmented secondary forests and coniferous plantations. These landscape changes reflect shifts in both the use of forest resources by local residents and the management of the national forests. Clarifying temporal–spatial landscape changes by understanding the historical relationship between humans and the landscape provides useful information for optimizing conservation and management planning.