Articles

Traditional use and management of NTFPs in Kangchenjunga Landscape: implications for conservation and livelihoods

Non-timber Forest Products (NTFPs), an important provisioning ecosystem services, are recognized for their contribution in rural livelihoods and forest conservation. Effective management through sustainable ha...

Authors: Yadav Uprety, Ram C. Poudel, Janita Gurung, Nakul Chettri and Ram P. Chaudhary

The changing ethnoecological cobweb of white truffle (Tuber magnatum Pico) gatherers in South Piedmont, NW Italy

Traditional Environmental Knowledge (TEK) related to truffles represents an under-investigated area of research in ethnobiology. Nevertheless, truffles, in a few southern European areas, and notably in South P...

Authors: Andrea Pieroni

Folk knowledge of wild food plants among the tribal communities of Thakht-e-Sulaiman Hills, North-West Pakistan

Indigenous communities of the Thakht-e-Sulamian hills reside in the North-West tribal belt of Pakistan, where disadvantaged socio-economic frames, lack of agricultural land and food insecurity represent crucia...

Authors: Khalid Ahmad and Andrea Pieroni

Do artisanal fishers perceive declining migratory shorebird populations?

This paper discusses the results of ethno-ornithological research conducted on the local ecological knowledge (LEK) of artisanal fishers in northeast Brazil between August 2013 and October 2014.

Authors: Luciano Pires Andrade, Horasa Maria Lima Silva-Andrade, Rachel Maria Lyra-Neves, Ulysses Paulino Albuquerque and Wallace Rodrigues Telino-Júnior

Rapid assessment of insect fauna based on local knowledge: comparing ecological and ethnobiological methods

The rapid assessment of biodiversity making use of surveys of local knowledge has been successful for different biological taxa. However, there are no reports on the testing of such tools for sampling insect ...

Authors: Daniele Cristina de Oliveira Lima, Marcelo Alves Ramos, Henrique Costa Hermenegildo da Silva and Angelo Giuseppe Chaves Alves

An ethnobotanical analysis of parasitic plants (Parijibi) in the Nepal Himalaya

Indigenous biocultural knowledge is a vital part of Nepalese environmental management strategies; however, much of it may soon be lost given Nepal’s rapidly changing socio-ecological climate. This is particula...

Authors: Alexander Robert O’Neill and Santosh Kumar Rana

Acknowledgement of manuscript reviewers 2015

The editors of Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine would like to thank all our reviewers who have contributed to the journal in Volume 11 (2015).

Authors: Andrea Pieroni

A survey of wild plant species for food use in Sicily (Italy) – results of a 3-year study in four Regional Parks

This paper illustrates the results of a study carried out in four Regional Parks of Sicily (Italy), concerning traditional knowledge on food use of wild plant species. The main aims of the paper were: (i) to v...

Authors: Mario Licata, Teresa Tuttolomondo, Claudio Leto, Giuseppe Virga, Giuseppe Bonsangue, Ignazio Cammalleri, Maria Cristina Gennaro and Salvatore La Bella

Erratum to: Assessment of wild leafy vegetables traditionally consumed by the ethnic communities of Manipur, northeast India

Authors: Surjata Konsam, Biseshwori Thongam and Arun Kumar Handique

Traditional knowledge and its transmission of wild edibles used by the Naxi in Baidi Village, northwest Yunnan province

The collection and consumption of wild edibles is an important part in livelihood strategies throughout the world. There is an urgent need to document and safeguard the wild food knowledge, especially in remot...

Authors: Yanfei Geng, Yu Zhang, Sailesh Ranjitkar, Huyin Huai and Yuhua Wang

Assessment of wild leafy vegetables traditionally consumed by the ethnic communities of Manipur, northeast India

The NE region of India falls in the global hotspot of biodiversity. Wild edible plants (WEPs) are widely consumed in the daily diet of the local people. WEPs are critical for the sustenance of ethnic communiti...

Authors: Surjata Konsam, Biseshwori Thongam and Arun Kumar Handique

Ethnopharmacobotanical study on the medicinal plants used by herbalists in Sulaymaniyah Province, Kurdistan, Iraq

Medicinal plants still play an important role in the Kurdish community. Sulaymaniyah Province in South Kurdistan (Iraq) has a great diversity of plants, including medicinal plants, yet very few scattered ethno...

Authors: Hiwa M. Ahmed

Food taboos and myths in South Eastern Nigeria: The belief and practice of mothers in the region

Poor nutritional practices especially in pregnancy and early childhood can result in dire consequences in the growth and development of a child.

Authors: Uchenna Ekwochi, Chidiebere D. I. Osuorah, Ikenna K. Ndu, Christian Ifediora, Isaac Nwabueze Asinobi and Christopher Bismark Eke

Erratum to: Ethnoichthyology of the indigenous Truká people, Northeast Brazil

Authors: Carlos Alberto Batista Santos and Rômulo Romeu Nóbrega Alves

Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plant species used by communities around Mabira Central Forest Reserve, Uganda

An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants was carried out in 14 villages adjacent to Mabira Central Forest Reserve (CFR) in Central Uganda between August 2013 and March 2014.

Authors: Patience Tugume, Esezah K. Kakudidi, Mukadasi Buyinza, Justine Namaalwa, Maud Kamatenesi, Patrick Mucunguzi and James Kalema

Forming a joint dialogue among faith healers, traditional healers and formal health workers in mental health in a Kenyan setting: towards common grounds

Qualitative evidence on dialogue formation and collaboration is very scanty in Kenya. This study thus aimed at the formation of dialogue and establishment of collaboration among the informal (faith and traditi...

Authors: Christine W. Musyimi, Victoria N. Mutiso, Erick S. Nandoya and David M. Ndetei

Foodways in transition: food plants, diet and local perceptions of change in a Costa Rican Ngäbe community

Indigenous populations are undergoing rapid ethnobiological, nutritional and socioeconomic transitions while being increasingly integrated into modernizing societies. To better understand the dynamics of these...

Authors: Ugo D’Ambrosio and Rajindra K. Puri

Comparative ethnobotany of the Wakhi agropastoralist and the Kyrgyz nomads of Afghanistan

The mountainous Wakhan and Pamir in northeastern Afghanistan is one of the most isolated yet inhabited places in Asia. It is home to the agropastoralist Wakhi and the last Afghan semi-nomadic Kyrgyz. We presen...

Authors: Jens Soelberg and Anna K. Jäger

Ethnoichthyology of the indigenous Truká people, Northeast Brazil

Historically, fishing is an important activity for riverine communities established along the São Francisco River, including indigenous communities. In the present study, we researched fishing activities in tw...

Authors: Carlos Alberto Batista Santos and Rômulo Romeu Nóbrega Alves

Erratum to: Assessing human-bat interactions around a protected area in northeastern Brazil

Authors: Karlla Morganna Costa Rego, Caio Graco Zeppelini, Luiz Carlos Serramo Lopez and Rômuno Romeu Nobrega Alves

Children’s daily activities and knowledge acquisition: A case study among the Baka from southeastern Cameroon

The acquisition of local knowledge occurs through complex interactions between individual and contextual characteristics: as context changes, so it changes the acquisition of knowledge. Contemporary small-scal...

Authors: Sandrine Gallois, Romain Duda, Barry Hewlett and Victoria Reyes-García

Fischer’s Lexicon of Slavic beliefs and customs: a previously unknown contribution to the ethnobotany of Ukraine and Poland

Historical ethnobotanical studies are important, even if they are only descriptive, because they help to throw light on the missing chains needed for diachronic analysis. However, the documentation of traditio...

Authors: Monika Kujawska, Łukasz Łuczaj and Joanna Typek

Ethnobotanical survey of plants used in Afyonkarahisar-Turkey

The traditional knowledge about plants and their uses in Turkey is disappearing in recent years because the new generations of villagers migrate to big cities for a better life. Afyonkarahisar located at the i...

Authors: Süleyman Arı, Mehmet Temel, Mustafa Kargıoğlu and Muhsin Konuk

Scented grasses in Norway—identity and uses

Some grass species are richer in coumarin and thus more sweetly scented than others. These have been eagerly sought after in parts of Norway, but the tradition has been weakly documented, both in terms of the ...

Authors: Torbjørn Alm

The uses of Kenyan aloes: an analysis of implications for names, distribution and conservation

The genus Aloe is renowned for its medicinal and cosmetic properties and long history of use. Sixty-three Aloe species occur in Kenya, of which around 50 % are endemic. Several species of aloes are threatened wit...

Authors: Charlotte S. Bjorå, Emily Wabuyele, Olwen M. Grace, Inger Nordal and Leonard E. Newton

An ethnobotany of the Lukomir Highlanders of Bosnia & Herzegovina

This aim of this study is to report upon traditional knowledge and use of wild medicinal plants by the Highlanders of Lukomir, Bjelašnica, Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H). The Highlanders are an indigenous commun...

Authors: Jonathan Ferrier, Lana Saciragic, Sabina Trakić, Eric C. H. Chen, Rachelle L. Gendron, Alain Cuerrier, Michael J. Balick, Sulejman Redžić, Emira Alikadić and John T. Arnason

Assessing human-bat interactions around a protected area in northeastern Brazil

Bats are key components to the Neotropical forests. Unfortunately, their bad reputation is a major obstacle in their conservation as it creates fear and hostility towards them. Understanding this reputation ac...

Authors: Karlla Morganna da Costa Rego, Caio Graco Zeppelini, Luiz Carlos Serramo Lopez and Rômulo Romeu Nóbrega Alves

An ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants used in the East Sepik province of Papua New Guinea

Rapid modernization in the East Sepik (ES) Province of Papua New Guinea (PNG) is resulting in a decrease in individuals knowledgeable in medicinal plant use. Here we report a synthesis and comparison of tradit...

Authors: Michael Koch, Dickson Andrew Kehop, Boniface Kinminja, Malcolm Sabak, Graham Wavimbukie, Katherine M. Barrows, Teatulohi K. Matainaho, Louis R. Barrows and Prem P. Rai

Processing insect abundance: trading and fishing of zazamushi in Central Japan (Nagano Prefecture, Honshū Island)

This article presents the links between technique, commerce and consumption in fishing for zazamushi, a mixture of aquatic insect larvae sold as food souvenirs in Japan. Since zazamushi are mainly collected fo...

Authors: Nicolas Césard, Seiji Komatsu and Akihisa Iwata

Farmers knowledge and perception on maize stem borers and their indigenous control methods in south western region of Cameroon

Agriculture is a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Cameroon, The South West region of Cameroon is known for its potential in the production of major agricultural commodities, but farmers...

Authors: Esther Obi Oben, Nelson Neba Ntonifor, Sevilor Kekeunou and Martin Nkwa Abbeytakor

Ræstur fiskur: air-dried fermented fish the Faroese way

Fish has played an important role in the diet of the population of the mid-Atlantic Faroe Islands. Dried and fermented fish in particular have been an essential storable protein source in an economy where weat...

Authors: Ingvar Svanberg

Bird naming systems by Akan people in Ghana follow scientific nomenclature with potentials for conservation monitoring

Studies on indigenous knowledge of fauna particular birds and its potential use in biodiversity conservation and management are rare globally. Characteristics used in creating indigenous bird names in many Gha...

Authors: Justus P. Deikumah, Vida Asieduwaa Konadu and Richard Kwafo

Impact of traditional culture on Camellia reticulata in Yunnan, China

Cha-hua (Camellia reticulata) is one of China’s traditional ornamental flowers developed by the local people of Yunnan Province. Today, more than 500 cultivars and hybrids are recogniz...

Authors: Tong Xin, Jan de Riek, Huijun Guo, Devra Jarvis, Lijuan Ma and Chunlin Long

Attitudes and use of medicinal plants during pregnancy among women at health care centers in three regions of Mali, West-Africa

Although, medicinal plants have been important for women’s health historically, the knowledge about such use during pregnancy in developing countries is limited. This is the first quantitative, ethnobotanical ...

Authors: Cecilie Sogn Nergard, Thi Phung Than Ho, Drissa Diallo, Ngolo Ballo, Berit Smestad Paulsen and Hedvig Nordeng

Plant species introduced by foreigners according to folk tradition in Norway and some other European countries: xenophobic tales or not?

In their quest to understand and interpret nature, people have frequently sought religious or divine origins for plant species and their characteristics. Less often, historical events or persons are involved. ...

Authors: Torbjørn Alm

Symbolism and ritual practices related to hunting in Maya communities from central Quintana Roo, Mexico

Some Mayan peasant-hunters across the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico still carry out a hunting ritual –Loojil Ts’oon, Loj Ts’oon or Carbine Ceremony– in which they renew the divine permission for hunting in order to...

Authors: Dídac Santos-Fita, Eduardo J. Naranjo, Erin I.J. Estrada, Ramón Mariaca and Eduardo Bello

Current use of wild plants with edible underground storage organs in a rural population of Patagonia: between tradition and change

Edible plants with underground storage organs (USOs) are neglected resources. We studied the local ecological knowledge edible plants with (USOs) in rural populations of North-Patagonia in order to establish h...

Authors: Juan José Ochoa and Ana Haydee Ladio

Integrated approach to the understanding of the degradation of an urban river: local perceptions, environmental parameters and geoprocessing

The use of interdisciplinary approaches such as the proposed report provides a broad understanding of the relationship between people and the environment, revealing reliable aspects not previously considered i...

Authors: Carolina A. Collier, Miguel S. de Almeida Neto, Gabriela MA Aretakis, Rangel E. Santos, Tiago H. de Oliveira, José S. Mourão, William Severi and Ana CA El-Deir

Medicinal plants used to treat the most frequent diseases encountered in Ambalabe rural community, Eastern Madagascar

Traditional medicine remains the only health care available in many rural areas in Madagascar like the rural community of Ambalabe, located in a very remote area in the eastern part of the country. With limite...

Authors: Nivo H. Rakotoarivelo, Fortunat Rakotoarivony, Aro Vonjy Ramarosandratana, Vololoniaina H. Jeannoda, Alyse R. Kuhlman, Armand Randrianasolo and Rainer W. Bussmann

An ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants in Trinidad

An ethnobotanical survey was conducted on the Caribbean island of Trinidad to identify medicinal plants commonly used in traditional medicine to treat a variety of medical conditions.

Authors: Y. N. Clement, Y. S. Baksh-Comeau and C. E. Seaforth

The use of Amerindian charm plants in the Guianas

Magical charm plants to ensure good luck in hunting, fishing, agriculture, love and warfare are known among many Amerindians groups in the Guianas. Documented by anthropologists as social and political markers...

Authors: Tinde van Andel, Sofie Ruysschaert, Karin Boven and Lewis Daly

An iconic traditional apiculture of park fringe communities of Borena Sayint National Park, north eastern Ethiopia

Traditional apiculture has been practised in Ethiopia over a long historical period and still remains a benign means to extract direct benefits from natural ecosystems. While its contribution to economic devel...

Authors: Hussien Adal, Zemede Asfaw, Zerihun Woldu, Sebsebe Demissew and Patrick van Damme

Ethnobotanical study of homegarden plants in Sebeta-Awas District of the Oromia Region of Ethiopia to assess use, species diversity and management practices

Homegardens in Ethiopia are currently facing different threats mainly due genetic erosion, loss of traditional knowledge on their use and management and drought. On the other hand, research and documentation w...

Authors: Tefera Mekonen, Mirutse Giday and Ensermu Kelbessa

The social context of wild leafy vegetables uses in Shiri, Daghestan

Shiri is a small mountainous village in the Republic of Daghestan, in the North Caucasus. Daghestan is Russia’s southernmost and most ethnically and linguistically diverse republic, a considerable part of whic...

Authors: Iwona Kaliszewska and Iwona Kołodziejska-Degórska

An ethnomedicinal study of the Seri people; a group of hunter-gatherers and fishers native to the Sonoran Desert

Worldwide, coastal communities’ ethnomedicinal knowledge has been sporadically recorded and poorly understood. Based on the ethnomedicinal knowledge of the Seri people; a hunting-gathering and fishing society ...

Authors: Nemer E. Narchi, Luis Ernesto Aguilar-Rosas, José Jesús Sánchez-Escalante and Dora Ofelia Waumann-Rojas

TEK, local perceptions of risk, and diversity of management practices of Agave inaequidens in Michoacán, Mexico

Mescal production is the main economic activity associated to agaves in Mexico, which involves 53 species mostly harvested from forests. The increasing mescal demand has influenced risk in both agave populatio...

Authors: Ignacio Torres, José Blancas, Alejandro León and Alejandro Casas

Medicinal plants sold in the markets of Antananarivo, Madagascar

This study focuses on the large outdoor markets of the capital of Madagascar, Antananarivo. As the largest metropolitan area in Madagascar with a population of nearly two million, the region has great capacity...

Authors: Maria Nirina Randriamiharisoa, Alyse R. Kuhlman, Vololoniaina Jeannoda, Harison Rabarison, Nivo Rakotoarivelo, Tabita Randrianarivony, Fortunat Raktoarivony, Armand Randrianasolo and Rainer W. Bussmann

Motivations for food prohibitions during pregnancy and their enforcement mechanisms in a rural Ghanaian district

Food taboos are known from virtually all human societies and pregnant women have often been targeted. We qualitatively assessed food taboos during pregnancy, its motivating factors, and enforcement mechanisms ...

Authors: Samson K. Arzoaquoi, Edward E. Essuman, Fred Y. Gbagbo, Eric Y. Tenkorang, Ireneous Soyiri and Amos K. Laar

Plant selection for ethnobotanical uses on the Amalfi Coast (Southern Italy)

Many ethnobotanical studies have investigated selection criteria for medicinal and non-medicinal plants. In this paper we test several statistical methods using different ethnobotanical datasets in order to 1)...

Authors: V. Savo, R. Joy, G. Caneva and W. C. McClatchey

The changing role of a Vaidya (non-codified traditional doctor) in the community health of Kerala, Southern India: comparison of treatment-seeking behaviours between the Vaidya’s patients and community members

This study aimed at exploring the roles of a Vaidya – an uncodified traditional doctor – in a community in Kerala State, India. Special attention was paid to the characteristics of the Vaidya’s patients in com...

Authors: Sachi Matsuoka