Ethnomedicinal plants of the sacred groves and their uses by Karbi tribe in Karbi Anglong district of Assam, Northeast India

Abstract

The present study was conducted to record the ethnomedicinal plants and their uses by the Karbi tribe in Bichikri and Harlong sacred groves of West Karbi Anglong district of Assam. A prestructured questionnaire survey and quantitative analysis was carried out to record the medicinal plants and to determine the ailments categories. A total of 38 ethnomedicinal plants (36 genera and 27 families) were recorded from the study sites. Leaves were found as the dominant plant parts used for the treatment of various health ailments. The highest Fic value was recorded for cold, dermatological, skeletal muscle pain and inflammation, general health, and infectious disease and genital-urinary disorder categories. The informant agreement ratio (IAR) was found higher for 18 species. The fidelity level (FL) of 11 species secured the highest FL value (100%) and the used value (UV) was in the range of 0.05 to 0.93. The present study has revealed that the Karbi tribe living around the sacred groves depends on the plant species for their health care. However, proper management is required for the conservation of sacred groves through sustainable utilization of medicinal plants occurred in the groves.