Abstract
BackgroundTraditional herbal preparations for addressing veterinary problems have been applied in Ankober District, Ethiopia, for generations. However, the millennia-old ethnoveterinary knowledge of the community, and the plants are subjected to loss without being scientifically documented due to anthropogenic and environmental threats. Hence, this study aims at providing a comprehensive documentation on ethnoveterinary plant knowledge of the people in order to preserve the fast-eroding knowledge and resources of the area.MethodsSemi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, participant observation and walk-in-the-woods methods were used to gather ethnoveterinary data. Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) and Fidelity level (FL) values were calculated using quantitative approaches so as to check the level of informants' agreement on plant use and healing potential of ethnoveterinary medicinal plant species, respectively. Indigenous knowledge on use of medicinal plants for ethnoveterinary purposes among different informant groups was compared using One-way ANOVA and t-tests.ResultsA total of 51 plant species representing 50 genera and 35 botanical families used in the treatment of 33 different ailments were identified. Medicinal plant species belonging to families Asteraceae, Asclepiadaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Ranunculaceae were reported to be of frequent use in the local ethnoveterinary medical system. Roots (65%, 33 species) were most often utilized for remedy preparation. Highest ICF values were recorded for gastro-intestinal (0.71) ailments depicting best agreement on knowledge of medicinal plants used to treat aliments in this category. Embelia schimperi Vatke showed highest fidelity level value (90%) to treat gastro-intestinal diseases showing conformity of knowledge on this species' healing potential. Significant difference (P<0.05) was observed in average number of therapeutic plants reported by senior members of the community than younger groups. Embelia schimperi Vatke and Rubus steudnerii Schweinf. were the most-preferred species to treat diarrhoea.ConclusionThe study indicated that indigenous knowledge on ethnoveterinary medicinal plant use is still rich and active in the District. Species with recorded highest consensus for curative role are a useful pool for further phytochemical and pharmacological validation for better utilization. Declining wild medicinal flora of the area calls for implementation of a coordinated complementary in situ and ex situ conservation strategy.
Highlights
Traditional herbal preparations for addressing veterinary problems have been applied in Ankober District, Ethiopia, for generations
Ethnoveterinary medicinal plant diversity in Ankober District A total of 51 ethnoveterinary medicinal plant species representing 50 genera and 35 botanical families were identified in the District (Table 1)
The highest number of species was recorded for family Asteraceae (4 species, 8%) followed by Asclepiadaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Ranunculaceae (3, 6% each)
Summary
Traditional herbal preparations for addressing veterinary problems have been applied in Ankober District, Ethiopia, for generations. Ethiopia has the highest number of livestock in Africa which is estimated to 53.3 million heads of cattle, 25.5 million sheep, 22.7 million goats, 5.7 million donkeys, 2 million horses, 1.1 million camels and 49.2 million chicken; the country is listed among the top 10 countries in the continent known for their livestock wealth [5] Despite this large number of livestock and its important economic potential, the sector has not developed beyond a subsistence type of venture, whereas it remained with low outputs for different reasons of which animal diseases are among the top factors [6]
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