A consensus ethnobotany of the Q’eqchi’ Maya of Southern Belize

An ethnobotany study in collaboration with Q’eqchi’ Maya healers of Southern Belize led to a collection of 169 medicinal plant species, belonging to 67 different families. The data show the use of a majority of species from primary or secondary semi-evergreen rainforests of Southern Belize, rather than weedy species. The medicinal uses of the plants were grouped into 17 usage categories. The frequency of use for each plant and the informant consensus factor for each usage category reveals a consensus among the healers on the use of plant species as well as on the diseases treated. These results suggest a well-defined medicinal tradition.     

Quantitative ethnobotany of two east Timorese cultures

This is the first time aspects of the ethnobotany of East Timor have been reported. The medicinal plant traditions of two distinct East Timorese cultures, the Laklei and Idate, were studied and compared using quantitative ethnobotanical methods. A total of 86 medicinal plant species were identified. The medicinal plant traditions of the Laklei and Idate cultures were compared using Trotter and Logan’s (1986) quantitative “informant agreement ratio.” On average, informant consensus was greater in Laklei, suggesting a medicinal plant tradition that is more defined than in Idate, where informants are more likely to use the same medicinal plants when treating the same usage categories. Furthermore, only 11 of the 86 medicinal plant species documented were used by both cultures, of which only six had similar mentions. These findings have important implications for the understanding of ethnobotany as they demonstrate how relatively closely situated cultural groups can have significantly different traditional knowledge systems.     

Ethnobotany of Immunomodulatory Treatments Used by the Q’eqchi’ Maya of Belize

Using a quantitative ethnobotanical methodology, we identified 107 plant species belonging to 49 families used by Q’eqchi’ Maya healers in the treatment of symptoms from 14 usage categories related to inflammation. The families with the largest number of medicinal species were Piperaceae, Araceae, Asteraceae, Fabaceae, and Adiantaceae with five or more medicinal species. Healer consensus for plant species was high, with 56 species (52%) being used by all the healers, and consensus for usage categories was also high, as informant consensus factor (FIC) values for each category were greater than 0.4.

     

Plant virtues are in the eyes of the beholders: A comparison of known palm uses among indigenous and folk communities of Southwestern Amazonia

Despite its central importance to tropical forest conservation, the understanding of patterns in traditional resource use still is incipient. To address this deficiency, we compared known palm uses among two indigenous (Yawanawd and Kaxinawá) and two folk (rubber tapper and ribeirinho) communities in Southwestern Amazonia (Acre, Brazil). We conducted one-hundred-and -forty semi-structured “checklist” interviews about palm uses with male and female adults in the four communities. The knowledge of each community about the uses of the 17 palm species common to all communities was compared by testing for significant differences in the mean number of uses cited per informant and by calculating the Jaccard similarity index of known uses of palm species among the four communities. The following three hypotheses were confirmed: 1) the use of palms differs according to the cultural preferences of each community; 2) indigenous communities know significantly more about palm uses than folk communities; and 3) part of the indigenous knowledge was acquired through contact with Amazonian folk communities.     

Transformation of traditional knowledge of medicinal plants: the case of Tyroleans (Austria) who migrated to Australia,Brazil and Peru

Background

In ethnobotanical research, the investigation into traditional knowledge of medicinal plants in the context of migration has been of increasing interest in recent decades since it is influenced and changed by new environmental and social conditions. It most likely undergoes transformation processes to match the different living circumstances in the new location. This study compares the traditional knowledge of medicinal plants held by Tyroleans – and their descendants – who emigrated to Australia, Brazil and Peru at different time scales. The study’s findings allow a discussion of the complexities and dynamics that influence this knowledge within the context of long-distance migration.

Methods

Information was obtained from 65 informants by free-listing, semi-structured interviews and non-participatory observation in Tyrol (Austria) and the migrants’ countries: Australia, Brazil and Peru. The collected data was analysed using different quantitative approaches, including statistical tests, and compared between the countries of investigation.

Results

All respondents in all four investigation areas claimed that they had knowledge and made use of medicinal plants to treat basic ailments in their day-to-day lives. Informants made 1,139 citations of medicinal plants in total in free lists, which correspond to 164 botanical taxa (genus or species level) in Tyrol, 87 in Australia, 84 in Brazil and 134 in Peru. Of all the botanical taxa listed, only five (1.1%) were listed in all four countries under investigation. Agreement among informants within free lists was highest in Tyrol (17%), followed by Peru (12.2%), Australia (11.9%) and Brazil (11.2%). The proportion of agreement differs significantly between informants in Australia and Tyrol (p?=?0.001), Brazil and Tyrol (p?=?0.001) and Peru and Tyrol (p?=?0.001) and is similar between informants in the migrant countries, as indicated by statistical tests. We recorded 1,286 use citations according to 744 different uses (Tyrol: 552, Australia: 200, Brazil: 180, Peru: 357) belonging to 22 different categories of use. Use values are significantly different between Tyrol and Australia (p?<?0.001) but not between Tyrol and Brazil (p?=?0.127) and Tyrol and Peru (p?=?0.853). The average informant agreement ratio (IAR) in Tyrol is significantly higher than in Australia (p?=?0.089) and Brazil (p?=?0.238), but not Peru (p?=?0.019).

Conclusions

Changing ecological and social conditions have transformed and shaped traditional knowledge of medicinal plants through adaptation processes to match the new circumstances in the country of arrival. Continuation, substitution and replacement are strategies that have taken place at different rates depending on local circumstances in the research areas. Traditional knowledge of medicinal plants acquired in the home country is continuously diminishing, with its composition influenced by urbanisation and ongoing globalisation processes and challenged by shifts from traditional healing practices to modern healthcare facilities.

     

Knowledge and Use Value of Plant Species in a Rarámuri Community: A Gender Perspective for Conservation

We used a quantitative ethnobotanical approach to analyze factors influencing the use value of plant species among men and women of the Rarámuri people in Cuiteco, Chihuahua, Mexico. We constructed a use value index (UV) combining the use frequency (U) and the quality perception (Q) of useful plant species by local people. We identified all plant species used by the Rarámuri and classified them into 14 general use categories. We interviewed 34 households in the village to compare men and women’s knowledge on the five main general use categories (and on their respective subcategories and specific uses), to document how they practice gathering activities and to calculate scores of plants UV. A total of 226 useful plant species were identified, but only 12% of them had high UV scores for the 42 specific uses defined. When the overall knowledge of plant species was examined, no significant differences were detected between men and women, but significant differences were identified in general use categories such as medicinal plants, plants for construction and domestic goods, but not in plants used as food and firewood. We identified a division of labor in gathering activities associated with gender, with women mainly gathering medicinal and edible plants and being involved in preparing medicines and food, whereas men were primarily gathering and using plants for manufacturing domestic goods, firewood, and building materials. Plant species UV associated to gender were significantly different between men and women at the level of specific uses in the general category of domestic goods and building. Frequency of use is highly associated with plant species quality perception.     

Plant knowledge of the Shuhi in the Hengduan Mountains, Southwest China

The Shuhi are a Tibeto-Burman ethnic group of around 1,500 people living exclusively in the Shuiluo Valley, southwest China. We documented their plant knowledge concerning wild collected species, and analyzed food, medicine, and ritual uses. Overall, uses, collection sites, and use frequencies of 136 plant species were documented. The plants were divided in fodder (46 spp.), food (43 spp.), medicine (27 spp.), ritual plants (20 spp.), fuelwood (17 spp.), plants used for construction (8 spp.), ornamentals (2 spp.), and "others" (34 spp.). Food plants mainly consist of fruits and leafy vegetables, and the uses are comparable with those of other ethnic groups in the area. Knowledge about medicinal plants is relatively limited, since traditional Shuhi healers use ritual and other healing methods instead of medicinal plants. Ritual plants play an important role relative to human well-being. Villagers and ritualists use them to keep the environment clean of malevolent spirits and to maintain a good relationship with the deities. All habitats, from the dry shrub vegetation at the valley bottom up to the alpine shrub, are used for plant collection, but 87% of all species are collected in the near vicinity of the villages around the fields and in the dry shrub vegetation. Finally, we postulate two main factors influencing wild plant use among the Shuhi: cultural values and accessibility.     

Medicinal Plant Knowledge Among Lay People in Five Eastern Tibet Villages

Tibetans in five villages in the Mount Khawa Karpo area of the Menri (Meili Xueshan in Chinese) range, Northwest Yunnan, People’s Republic of China, were interviewed about their knowledge of a number of medicinal plants and their uses. There was large variation in people’s knowledge with significant differences among the villages and between men and women. Most of the reported knowledge focused on a small number of commercial plants and their uses. In comparison with Tibetan doctors, villagers generally knew fewer applications and focused on general health remedies. Many people collected medicinal plants for their own use as well as for sale, but also obtained medicinal plant remedies from markets and Tibetan doctors, and often used traditional Tibetan healthcare in conjunction with biomedical treatment.     

An ethnobotanical study of the indigenous knowledge by the Rajbangshi community of Raiganj Block,Uttar Dinajpur district,West Bengal,India

BackgroundThe present study deals with documentation of medicinal importance of plants and traditional knowledge set harboring among the ethnic communities to utilize various plant parts for various health care practices. Twelve villages were surveyed primarily targeting the Rajbangshi communities of Raiganj Block, Uttar Dinajpur district, West Bengal, India.MethodsThe ethnomedicinal information was gathered through interviews using semi- structured questionnaires among the traditional healers (Kabiraj) of the Rajbangshi community. Identification and documentation of all the plants species have been completed following standard taxonomic procedure. The collected data were qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed through different ethnobotanical indices like, use report, informant consensus factor and relative importance.ResultsA total of 76 plant species belonging to 40 families and 72 genera were reported to have been utilized for the treatment of a total of 42 types of ailments. Herbs (43%) were the major source of medicine while roots (31%) were most frequently used plant parts. Preparation of juice (55%) from plant parts accounted as most preferred method. Achyranthes aspera L. has the highest calculated relative importance (100) value. The average informant consensus factor value for all ailments categories was 0.75, indicating a high level of consensus among the interviewed informants.ConclusionThe present study clearly demonstrates that huge diversity of medicinal plants reported in the study area may immensely help in the development of novel drugs of natural origin if the traditional knowledge set of the Rajbangshi community is adequately nurtured.     

Indigenous utilization of termite mounds and their sustainability in a rice growing village of the central plain of Laos

Background

This study was conducted to identify medicinal plants and spices used for medicine by the community of Beni-Sueif, Upper Egypt.

Methods

Ethnobotanical data from local people was collected using direct interviews and a semi-structured questionnaire.

Results

Forty-eight plant species belonging to twenty-seven families and forty-seven genera were encountered during the study. Their botanical and vernacular names, plant parts used and medicinal uses are given. Results of the study were analyzed using two quantitative tools. The factor informant consensus indicated the agreement in the use of plants and the fidelity level indicated the ratio between the number of informants who independently suggested the use of a species for the same major purpose and the total number of informants who mentioned the plant for any use. The results of the factor informant consensus showed that the cardiovascular category has the greatest agreement, followed by the immunological, gastrointestinal and respiratory categories. The most important species according to their fidelity are: Hibiscus sabdariffa L. for the cardiovascular category; Trigonella foenum-graecum L. for the immunological category; Mentha piperita L. for the gastrointestinal category and Pimpinella anisum L. for the respiratory category.

Conclusions

Medicinal plants are still used for treatment in Beni-Sueif community despite the availability of prescribed medications. Documentation of this ethnomedicinal knowledge is important. Evaluation of pharmacological activity for the promising medicinal plants is suggested.     

Q’eqchi’ Maya healers’ traditional knowledge in prioritizing conservation of medicinal plants: culturally relative conservation in sustaining traditional holistic health promotion

This ethnobotanical study in the spirit of transdisciplinarity, and in collaboration with Q’eqchi’ Maya traditional healers, compares traditional Q’eqchi’ Maya ecosystem constructs or environmental zones with scientific ecosystems. To determine which categorization method better accommodates Q’eqchi’ Maya medicinal plant diversity, we analized 26 transects representing 160 medicinal plant occurrences. Our transect array encompasses a representative sampling of Q’eqchi’ Maya medicinal plant repertoire with use values broadly distributed over 17 usage categories. With a cumulative frequency of 2,235 medicinal plants through ecological zones, we conducted one-way ANOVA on the mean number of medicinal plant species identified in transects of the two conceptual schemes being contested. Our analysis reveals the Q’eqchi Maya environmental zones are the most salient. That is, knowledge of the Q’eqchi’ Maya environmental zones improves one’s ability to predict whether there will be a high or low abundance of Q’eqchi’ Maya medicinal plant species in a particular region, whereas knowledge of scientific ecosystems does not accomplish this feat as well. This is a notable finding as it suggests that if indeed Q’eqchi’ Maya medicinal plant diversity is better accounted for by the zones as envisioned by the Q’eqchi’ Maya, then it should be this mode of conceptualization that should be adopted by scientists and conservationists when trying to locate and protect regional Q’eqchi’ Maya medicinal plant diversity. These efforts serve as a model internationally in the conservation of medicinal plant biodiversity supportive of culturally relative holistic health promotion.     

Medicinal plants in the southern region of the State of Nuevo León,México

Background

Although the flora of the State of Nuevo León is well known, there are few records of ethnobotancial information. An ethnobotanical study was undertaken in order to know the medicinal plants used by people living at the scrublands and oak-pine forest areas in the southern Nuevo León. Collection of plants specimens and interviews were carried out among the people of the municipalities of Aramberri, Galeana, and Zaragoza. Since former studies in the region are scarce, the aim of this work was to record the medicinal species and their uses in the scrublands and oak-pine forest areas, of southern Nuevo León, Mexico, and also to know if there are differences in the number of species and number of uses knowledge by people.

Methods

Field work was carried out over a 2 years period; useful plants were collected and a total of 105 people from 46 different villages were interviewed. A database was compiled using data collected by means of semi structured interviews. The data were analyzed by means of non-parametric statistics, using goodness-of-fit test (Chi-squared) (number of species known by people of each municipality, number of uses known by people of each municipality), Chi-squared modified to incorporate the Yates Correction (number of species known by people living at scrublands and oak-pine forest); the Kruskall-Wallis test (number of species known by women and men of the three municipalities), and the Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient (age and number of species known, and age and number of uses).

Results

A total of 163 medicinal plant species were recorded in the study area, comprising 108 wild and 55 cultivated plants. A total of 117 species were recorded in the oak-pine forest, and 111 in the scrublands area, a total of 68 were recorded in both areas; 68 medicinal species are used in all three municipalities, 40 wild and 28 cultivated. We documented 235 different medicinal uses. The most common plant parts used for medicinal purposes were found to be leaves (123 species), stems (55), fruits (28), roots (17), and bark (14). No differences were noted in the number of medicinal plant species identified among people, but differences were significant in their knowledge with respect to the number of uses among people of the three municipalities studied; people from both, scrublands and oak-pine forest know similar number of species and number of uses. Men and women of the three different municipalities knew statistically the same number of species and number of uses. There was no correlation between resident’s age and number of species known and resident’s age and number of uses either in Galeana or in Aramberri, but, there was high correlation among these variables in Zaragoza.

Conclusion

In southern Nuevo León people use at least 5% of the total State flora as medicinal plants, and most of these species are included in few plant families. Most of medicinal species are wild and indigenous to the region. The two most important major plant communities, scrublands and oak-pine forest provide almost the same number of medicinal species. A third of the medicinal flora recorded are used in all three municipalities, most of them are wild. Leaves, stems and fruits are the plant parts most commonly used for healing, and boiling is the most common method used for this purpose. Men and women from the three municipalities are familiar with nearly the same number of species; however, their knowledge of the number of uses varies significantly. In Galeana and Aramberri there was no correlation between a person’s age and number of species recognized, however, in Zaragoza, there existed a high correlation between these two factors.

     

Cultural Importance Indices: A Comparative Analysis Based on the Useful Wild Plants of Southern Cantabria (Northern Spain)<Superscript>1</Superscript>

Cultural Importance Indices: A Comparative Analysis Based on the Useful Wild Plants of Southern Cantabria (Northern Spain). This paper compares four indices based on informant consensus. Each index aims to assess the cultural significance of plant species and is suitable for statistical testing of different hypotheses. For the comparison, we used data concerning plants traditionally used in the Campoo area of southern Cantabria in northern Spain. Our results show a positive and significant correlation between the number of uses (NU) and the frequency of citation (FC) of the species. It seems to be a general rule that the more versatile a plant, the more widespread its usefulness. In addition, NU is highly influenced by the number of use-categories in the study. Consequently, an objective index must rely on FC more than NU. We propose the use of the cultural importance index (CI), which is defined as the summation of the informants’ proportions that mention each of the uses of the species. The CI index is highly correlated with FC and, although it also considers diversity of use, each use-category is conveniently weighted by the number of informants mentioning it. Despite the use of cultural significance indices being questioned, we believe that indices based on in-depth, semi-structured interviews are still very useful for compilation studies of passive knowledge, such as most ethnobotanical works conducted in the last three decades in Europe.     

Research Methods Leading to a Perception of Knowledge Loss—One Century of Plant Use Documentation Among the Chácobo in Bolivia

The loss of traditional knowledge, concomitant with changes in livelihoods, languages, and demographics of indigenous and local groups, is a global concern. However, documenting such loss poses serious methodological challenges. Comparing the results of contemporary studies with past research is often problematic due to methodological differences. Here, comparing studies that attempted to document the traditional ethnobotanical knowledge of the Chácobo of Bolivia, we tried to examine whether knowledge loss was really occurring across more than 100 years or was only researcher’s perception. The Chácobo are a Panoan-speaking tribe of about 1000 members, first visited by researchers in 1911, and subsequently in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Each study had different foci, but all recorded ethnobotanical data. The first more detailed anthropological report exists from the late 1960s, and ecological-ethnobotanical studies were conducted in the 1980s and 1990s. Based on available literature, in particular the botanical studies of Boom (1987) and Bergeron (1998), it seemed that Chácobo plant use now centers on income generation. Both Boom (1987) and Bergeron (1998) perceived that traditional plant use related to household artifacts and medicine, as well as traditional crop varieties had almost disappeared. Here, we hypothesized that plant knowledge documented and the perception of so-called knowledge loss observed in these depended completely on the background of the interviewers and the methods employed, and that in a sufficiently comprehensive ethnobotanical study, we would be able to document all species and uses mentioned in previous studies. We tested this hypothesis by conducting a complete ethnobotanical inventory of almost the entire adult Chácobo population, with interviews and plant collection conducted directly by Chácobo counterparts. The results verify our initial hypothesis and showed that the loss of knowledge perceived in previous studies simply was an artifact of the research methods employed. Traditional crop varieties are still widely grown, most Chácobo know, and can name, traditional artifacts, and many still know the names and uses of medicinal species. However, some knowledge, including the manufacture of artifacts and proficient identification of many medicinal plants, is limited to the older generation.     

Factors in maintaining indigenous knowledge among ethnic communities of Manus Island

Factors in Maintaining Indigenous Knowledge among Ethnic Communities of Manus Island. Economic Botany 59(4):356-365, 2005. Despite the fact that Manus Province is the most geographically isolated province of Papua New Guinea, research shows that the acculturation process, common among minority indigenous groups around the globe, has had detrimental effects on maintaining knowledge and customs. Analysis of ethnobotanical knowledge among the indigenous population of Manus was undertaken in an attempt to compare, contrast, and draw conclusions regarding factors in maintaining indigenous knowledge of the local flora. Four levels of knowledge (plants recognized, identified, identified as useful, and identified as medicinally useful) were used to examine the relationships between knowledge of the local flora and physical, geographical, and social variables of informants. Results showed significant differences in ethnobotanical knowledge based on informant gender, age, cultural subclass, and habitation locality. Low levels of medicinal plant knowledge were found among the Manus due to acculturation, supporting the theory that medicinal plant knowledge is particularly vulnerable to loss.     

Phylogenetic exploration of commonly used medicinal plants in South Africa

The rapid growth rate of human population, along with the public health crisis encountered in many regions, particularly in developing world, creates an urgent need for the discovery of alternative drugs. Because medicinal plants are not distributed randomly across lineages, it has been suggested that phylogeny along with traditional knowledge of plant uses can guide the identification of new medicinally useful plants. In this study, we combined different statistical approaches to test for phylogenetic signal in 33 categories of plant uses in South Africa. Depending on the null models considered, we found evidence for signal in up to 45% of plant use categories, indicating the need for multiple tests combination to maximize the chance of discovering new medicinal plants when applying a phylogenetic comparative approach. Furthermore, although there was no signal in the diversity of medicinal uses—that is, total number of medicinal uses recorded for each plant—our results indicate that taxa that are evolutionarily closely related have significantly more uses than those that are evolutionarily isolated. Our study therefore provides additional support to the body of the literature that advocates for the inclusion of phylogeny in bioscreening medicinal flora for the discovery of alternative medicines.     

Notes about the uses of plants by one of the last healers in the Basilicata Region (South Italy)

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: The paper refers to the knowledge and uses of plants and to the linked ritual practices as referred by Matteo (It.'Zi Matteo', En. 'Uncle Matthew'), one of the last elder healers in the Basilicata Region (South Italy). Particular attention is also paid to the uses of 'Vruca' (Tamarix gallica L.) as a medicinal and magical plant used to heal common warts on various parts of the body. METHODS: After obtaining prior informed consent, we collected data through an open interview about the uses of the plants and on the associated ritual practices. For each species, data were collected that included the vernacular names, preparation, plant parts utilized and their method of use. RESULTS: The uses of 52 taxa are described. Among these, 43 are or were employed medicinally, eight as culinary foodstuffs, and 4 for domestic, handicraft or ethnoveterinary uses. Among the major findings: the ritual and magical use of Tamarix gallica L. to heal warts is described in detail; so far, no records of similar use were found in any Italian ethnobotanical studies conducted in southern Italy. CONCLUSION: Phytotherapy in the Basilicata region is practiced by elderly people who resort to medicinal plants for mild illnesses; we interviewed one of those traditional healers who is very experienced in the field, and possesses rich ethno-pharmacological knowledge.     

Ethnobotanical value and conservation of sacred groves of the Kpaa Mende in Sierra Leone

Sacred groves in the Moyamba District of Sierra Leone were assessed for their value to local herbalists and traditional folk medicine practitioners of the Kpaa Mende people. Herbalists (tufablaa) collecting in 23 sacred groves were interviewed regarding their general knowledge of medicinal plants, and their perceptions regarding changes in the occurrence of medicinal plants. Over 75 medicinal plant remedies are currently in use among the Kpaa Mende, with some plants reported here for the first time in terms of their medicinal uses in Sierra Leone. A significant feature of Kpaa Mende ethnobotany is the employment of 2 or more kinds of plants in combination as a remedy for particular afflictions. The discovery of rare and uncommon plants in the groves and their medicinal uses are discussed in terms of the role of the sacred groves in medicinal plant conservation.     

Yao herbal medicinal market during the Dragon Boat Festival in Jianghua County,China

Background

The traditional medicinal markets held during the Dragon Boat Festival are common and important in China’s countryside. In Jianghua, a Yao autonomous county in Hunan Province in China, the medicinal market also plays an important role for the application, conservation, and communication of traditional Yao medicinal knowledge.

Methods

During the Dragon Boat Festival in 2016 and 2017, ethnobotanical surveys and inventories were conducted in the medicinal market of Jianghua County, and voucher plant specimens were collected, identified, and deposited in a herbarium. Quantitative analysis included measurement of frequency of occurrence for species in the marketplace and the relative importance index for the number of uses for a given species.

Results

A total of 306 plant species (249 genera, 113 families) and their related information about the medicinal market were collected. Some major findings include the following: (1) Using the whole plant as medicine is more common than other medicinal plant parts; (2) treating rheumatism and clearing inner heat are the most frequent medicinal uses; and (3) taking a medicinal bath is the most frequent modality to administer the traditional medicine. The frequency of occurrence and the relative importance index of some medicinal plants were analyzed, as well as the demographics and the number of stalls and the status of traditional Yao medicinal knowledge in Jianghua. Based on the investigation, suggestions were proposed for better protecting the medicinal market and preserving traditional medicinal knowledge in Jianghua County.

Conclusion

The medicinal market during the Dragon Boat Festival in Jianghua County possesses an important cultural value and helps to conserve the traditional Yao medicinal knowledge. The medicinal plants sold at the market showed great diversity and unique local characteristics. The medicinal market is facing some challenges in such a rapidly developing era. Cultivation of young healers and maintaining the local biodiversity might be the key solutions for the development of local medicinal market and local Yao medicinal knowledge.