From Africa to Honolulu and back: Demography of African mahogany, the money tree

Understanding socio-ecological dynamics is central to developing sustainable management strategies for resources that indigenous people relies upon for their livelihood. Pursuing this goal can also sustain the career of ecologists who are involved and foster collaboration across continents. African Mahogany is an important but threatened medicinal and fodder tree species for local people in West Africa. Mahogany is defended by weaver ant against shoot borers. The opportunity to understand how such a multitrophic system respond to anthropogenic disturbance and the consequences of ecological interactions on plant population dynamics facilitated the immigration of an African Scholar to the US.