Environmental influence on the choice of medicinal animals: a case study from northeastern Brazil

Iamara Da Silva Policarpo Brito,Anna Karolina Martins Borges,Sérgio De Faria Lopes,Rômulo Romeu Nóbrega Alves,Thelma Lúcia Pereira Dias

doi:10.1186/s13002-019-0337-9

Iamara Da Silva Policarpo Brito, Anna Karolina Martins Borges + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-019-0337-9

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Abstract

BackgroundAnimals from various taxonomic groups are commonly used in folk medicine, and their selection seems to be directly linked to their availability and accessibility. In the present study, we analyzed the use of animals as a source of folk medicines in a community in northeastern Brazil with access to aquatic and terrestrial animals. We hypothesize that the medicinal fauna is well represented by species of both habitat types.MethodsFor the collection of information, semi-structured questionnaires were applied to local residents.ResultsWe recorded the use of 22 animals used as medicinal resources in the community, distributed among eight taxonomic categories, which are used to treat 38 types of diseases. Of the therapeutic animals, 14 species are terrestrial and 8 species can be considered aquatic occurring in marine or estuarine habitats.ConclusionsOur data confirm the tendency of human communities to use affordable medicinal animals in local ecosystems. We also found that medicinal use represents a strategy of optimizing the use of resources and is related to the economic, historical, social, cultural, and ecological contexts in which the community is inserted.

Highlights

Animals from various taxonomic groups are commonly used in folk medicine, and their selection seems to be directly linked to their availability and accessibility
Medicinal plants and animals have been used in virtually all cultures as a source of medicine [1,2,3,4,5]
Due to the extensive use of plant materials [6,7,8,9,10], traditional medicine is associated with herbalism

Summary

Introduction

Animals from various taxonomic groups are commonly used in folk medicine, and their selection seems to be directly linked to their availability and accessibility. We analyzed the use of animals as a source of folk medicines in a community in northeastern Brazil with access to aquatic and terrestrial animals. The use of animals for medicinal purposes is widespread and important in several aspects (e.g., cultural, economic, social, and ecological), the subject has been insufficiently researched when compared with medicinal plants [23]. In the last 20 years, studies investigating the importance of animal use in folk medicine have become more frequent worldwide [12, 24,25,26,27,28] supporting the belief that animal use is widespread and present in the most diverse folk medical systems in the world [12]

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