Floral Richness and Ecotourism Potential of Mundhum Trekking Trail in Eastern Nepal

Challenges and innovations for improving the sustainability of European agroforestry systems of high nature and cultural value: stakeholder perspectives

This paper was an attempt to assimilate the medicinal plant status of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by analyzing their diversity and conservation status against the knowledge management practices of traditional medicine practitioners. Information was gathered through extensive literature survey, field trips and semi structured questionnaire. A total of 132 plants (nearly 20% of total species) were found to possess medicinal properties in the UAE traditionally, a rich density considering the hyper-arid conditions that prevail in the region. These plant species belongs to 115 genera and 49 families. Asteraceae and Fabaceae families have the maximum number of species. The medicinal plants were categorized into various life forms such as chamaephyte (41%), therophyte (36%), phanerophyte (11%), hemicryptophytes (4%), geophytes (4%) and lianas (4%). Maximum number of medicinal plant species were recorded from mountains and wadi habitat (44.7%). This study revealed the diversity in plant parts used in the treatment of different ailments. The traditional knowledge gathered here can be considered a good starting point for effective in situ conservation, which requires accurate and up-to date information on the status of medicinal plant populations, extent and nature of plant use by local communities. Key words: Medicinal plants, diversity, conservation status, traditional uses.

Pasture species of Biratnagar area were seasonally observed during 2018. A total of 77 species including monocot grasses (27) nonlegumes forbs (43), and legumes (7) were recorded. Seasonally, summer had maximum number of species (73), followed by rainy (64 species) and winter (53 species). Occasional and scarce native grasses were replaced by unpalatable and invasive species. Desmostachya bipinnata (graminoid) and Indigofera linifolia (legume) were the scarcely found species.

The diversity of life sensu lato comprises both biological and cultural diversity, described as "biocultural diversity." Similar to plant and animal species, cultures and languages are threatened by extinction. Since drylands are pivotal systems for nature and people alike, we use oases in the Sahara Desert as model systems for examining spatial patterns and trends of biocultural diversity. We identify both the underlying drivers of biodiversity and the potential proxies that are fundamental for understanding reciprocal linkages between biological and cultural diversity in oases. Using oases in Algeria as an example we test current indices describing and quantifying biocultural diversity and identify their limitations. Finally, we discuss follow-up research questions to better understand the underlying mechanisms that control the coupling and decoupling of biological and cultural diversity in oases.

In Togo, the Oti-Kéran-Mandouri (OKM) complex had important biological-oriented tourism activities in 1980s. However, degradation of ecosystems has negatively affected the biological resources of these protected areas. This study aims at analysing the current biological-based ecotourism potential of the OKM complex facing conservation challenges. To this end, a mixed approach combining fauna and flora inventories with ethnobotanical surveys was adopted.. Results showed that the floristic potential is characterized by 287 species distributed into 63 botanical families and 170 genera. A total of 26 and 19 woody species were identified as species with ‘high cultural value’ and ‘high attractive potential’, respectively. In terms of animal diversity, 11 species of the large wildlife, including emblematic species, have been recorded. Six of these animal and plant species are reported in the IUCN Red List. These findings provide insights on the great potential of OKM complex for ecotourism promotion in Togo.

In the present study, the growing behavior was evaluated for stem cuttings of two ethno-medicinally important shrub species Embelia tsjeriam and Caesalpinia bonduc. In vivo experiment was conducted on the effect of cutting length (two and four nodes), cutting diameter (thick - 0.65 cm, medium - 0.52 cm and thin - 0.43 cm) and pre-treatment of exogenous hormones in powder formulation (Indole 3 Acetic Acid, α- Naphthalene Acetic Acid and Indole 3 Butyric Acid) on percent cutting sprouted, node sprouted and survival. Results revealed a significant effect of all factors on sprouting and survival of both plant species under green house conditions. Maximum percentage of sprouting, node sprouting and survival were recorded when cuttings were treated with NAA and IBA @ 1000 ppm for E. tsjeriam and C. bonduc, respectively irrespective of diameter and length. Sprouting and survival rate of C. bonduc cuttings were considerably higher than E. tsjeriamcuttings. Thin and medium stem cuttings at four nodal lengths found to be the best for higher sprouting and survival of both plant species. Our study concluded that vegetative propagation of these two important plant species is feasible through application of exogenous hormone on stem cuttings. Key words: Embelia tsjeriam, Caesalpinia bonduc, ethno-medicinal herb, stem cutting, sprouting, hormones.

Rio de Janeiro’s rich biological and cultural diversity offers a laboratory for the study of biocultural diversity. Beaches play a central role in city’s identity. This chapter will apply a biocultural diversity lens to the urban beach environments of Rio de Janeiro, considering them as a nature-culture-city hybrid. It will attempt to answer the following questions: how differently do urban residents view, engage with and give meaning to beach environments in Rio de Janeiro? How do the inextricable links between nature and culture within beach environments strengthen the sense of wellbeing and belonging among different social groups within the city? The study results show that urban biocultural diversity is composed of interactions and engagements with the beach, such as leisure, sports or sociability. These activities are important to build views about nature, culture and their relationships, and to give meanings to them in the urban and beach environments. The diversity of relationships between nature and culture may also be a focus of conflict. Social groups that interact in different ways with urban beaches may dispute these environments and their constituent elements. Although the study reflects a specific case, it highlights the richness of beach environments to biocultural diversity studies.

Abstract. Sitanggang NDH, Zuhud EAM, Masy’ud B, Soekmadi. 2022. Ethnobotany of the Toba Batak Ethnic Community in Samosir District, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 23: 6114-6118. The Toba Batak ethnic community is one of the ethnic groups in Indonesia that is believed to have unique characteristics in terms of ethnobotanical aspects. The objectives of this study were to identify the diversity of plant species that were used and collected by the Toba Batak ethnic community, analyze their Cultural Significance Index and determine the economic potential of plant species of high cultural value. The survey was conducted in four villages near Samosir Botanical Gardens and Aek Natonang Lake. We collected data through field observations and interviews with key respondents of chiefs, healers, homemakers and youth as users. We analyzed the data to determine the number of plant species collected and used by the Toba Batak ethnic community, to calculate the cultural importance of the plant species, and to determine the economic potential of the plant species. The result showed that the community collected and used 146 plant species from 53 families. We distinguished it into three categories, food (66 species), medicine (67 species) and traditional rituals (13 species). Twenty plant species had the highest cultural value (ICS > 30). Nine species had the highest cultural value, i.e., ginger (Zingiber officinale) (54), rice (Oryza sativa) (50), garlic (Allium sativum) and turmeric (Curcuma longa) 48), mango (Mangifera indica) and sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) (40), and lime (Citrus aurantifolia), kaffir lime (Citrus hystrix) and rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum) (39). Six of the nine plant species with high cultural value were considered potential and priority economic commodities. These species were ginger, rice, garlic, turmeric, mango and sweet potato.

The Landscape of Irpinia (Campania, Italy) is one of the few Italian landscapes which, to a large extent, has been preserved from the Great Transformation which started after World War II. Both the natural architectures and the environmental specificities of this area testify an almost perfect maintenance of the local landscape resources, these latter resulting from the peculiar combination of geological and geomorphological features, on which the signs of civilizations superimposed are currently clearly recognizable. The Irpinian landscape could potentially show its high cultural value, also of didactic interest, in the framework of a high-quality tourism, based on winter-sports activities, naturalistic trekking, tours of archaeological sites and monuments, tasting local gastronomic products. Many Irpinian areas could represent also a link between the Human and Earth Sciences, as the geological processes always deeply interacted with the historical development of the local populations. Certainly, geotourism could create and/or increase interest around these sites of high cultural and naturalistic value, which were visited and described by learned travellers of the Grand Tour. In this way Geotourism could represent a new perspective of sustainable development for these areas, where a weak economy primarily based on agriculture didn't take advantage from the industrialization. To exploit the touristic resources, described in the first part of this paper, new abilities are required in Earth and Human Sciences to understand any mutual interaction. To the knowledge of Authors is necessary to expand a tourism with a salient, more and more identifiable cultural connotation.

Gastrodia elata, known as Tianma in Chinese, is a valuable medicinal and nutritional resource. The favorable climate of Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province, China, facilitates its growth and nurtures rich biocultural diversity associated with Tianma in the region. Local people not only cultivate Tianma as a traditional crop but have also developed a series of traditional knowledge related to its cultivation, processing, medicinal use, and culinary applications. In this study, field surveys employing ethnobotanical methods were conducted in Yiliang County, Zhaotong City, from August 2020 to May 2024, focusing on Tianma. A total of 114 key informants participated in semi-structured interviews. The survey documented 23 species (and forms) from seven families related to Tianma cultivation. Among them, there were five Gastrodia resource taxa, including one original species, and four forms. These 23 species served as either target cultivated species, symbiotic fungi (promoting early-stage Gastrodia germination), or fungus-cultivating wood. The Fagaceae family, with 10 species, was the most dominant, as its dense, starch-rich wood decomposes slowly, providing Armillaria with a long-term, stable nutrient substrate. The cultural importance (CI) statistics revealed that Castanea mollissima, G. elata, G. elata f. flavida, G. elata f. glauca, G. elata f. viridis, and Xuehong Tianma (unknown form) exhibited relatively high CI values, indicating their crucial cultural significance and substantial value within the local community. In local communities, traditionally processed dried Tianma tubers are mainly used to treat cardiovascular diseases and also serve as a culinary ingredient, with its young shoots and tubers incorporated into dishes such as cold salads and stewed chicken. To protect the essential ecological conditions for Tianma, the local government has implemented forest conservation measures. The sustainable development of the Tianma industry has alleviated poverty, protected biodiversity, and promoted local economic growth. As a distinctive plateau specialty of Zhaotong, Tianma exemplifies how biocultural diversity contributes to ecosystem services and human well-being. This study underscores the importance of biocultural diversity in ecological conservation and the promotion of human welfare.

Medicinal plant diversity and traditional healing practices in eastern Nepal

BackgroundMountains, shaped by geophysical barriers and environmental gradients and with biodiversity, serve as critical hotspots of co-evolved biocultural diversity and traditional ecological knowledge. Within China’s Hengduan Mountain Range, the Wuliang and Ailao Mountains (Yunnan Province, southwestern China) are global biodiversity conservation priorities. Jingdong Yi Autonomous County, encircled by mountain ranges, possesses exceptional biological and biocultural resources. Meanwhile, local traditional markets emerge as ethnobiologically vital nexus, sustaining socioeconomic interaction while serving as reservoirs of genetic resources with associated traditional knowledge. Therefore, this study aims to (1) Systematically document edible & medicinal plants and associated traditional knowledge in Jingdong County, and identify culturally significant species for local communities. (2) Explore the multidimensional functions of traditional markets and clarify their key contributions. (3) Clarify how and why traditional markets can further enhance local wisdom preservation and community resilience.MethodsThe ethnobotanical surveys were conducted both in the large periodic traditional markets across three seasons in Jingdong County to document utilized plants and associated traditional knowledge. Additional ethnobotanical investigations were conducted in 7 towns and villages to gather supplementary information on some key cultural and economic plants. The species of significant importance to local people were identified using the Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC) method, and comparisons among local ethnic groups, previous investigations were conducted with the Jaccard similarity index (JI) to identify specificity and commonalities. For each documented species, the vernacular names, growth form, source, consumed parts, processing method, and the effectiveness, and additional use(s) of utilized plants were recorded. The original disease records were standardized according to the WHO International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC-3).ResultsThe ethnobotanical surveys documented 226 taxa (including species and varieties) from 84 families and 187 genera, with Lamiaceae, Apiaceae, and Fabaceae being the most frequently represented families. Of these, 59 taxa were primarily used as edible plants (EP), 70 taxa as medicinal plants (MP), and 97 taxa as medicinal food plants (MFP). For edible purposes, leaves were the predominated part and were typically stir-fried. For medicinal use, the main preparation method was decoction or alcohol maceration, and the primary used part were roots. A total of 47 human ailments mentioned by informants were classified into 13 ICPC-3 categories, with the “Immune System” category being the most numerous. The utilization of MFP and dietary regimen concepts reflects the rich biocultural diversity and survival wisdom of local people. A quantitative analysis using RFC demonstrated that plants such as Aralia gintungensis and Trachycarpus fortunei were important to local communites. Similarity analysis revealed that the difference between the Yi and Han people was minimal (JI = 0.62), whereas the plant species sold at the market and those used by village herbalists differed from each other (JI = 0.09). Additionally, in such remote areas, traditional markets serve as a critical nexus that connects livelihood support, knowledge transmission, and resource preservation.ConclusionThis study presented 226 taxa of edible and medicinal plants utilized by local communities in Jingdong, showcasing the rich biocultural diversity of this intermontane region. Additionally, the study analyzed how local traditional markets in remote mountainous areas function as essential hubs for socioeconomic interaction and living reservoirs of plant resources with their traditional knowledge. Our findings highlight the need to enhance attention and resource allocation to local markets, thereby enabling markets to mobilize their potentials in foresting the synergy between conservation and sustainable development through a bottom-up approach for the indigenous peoples and local communities.

BackgroundIt is increasingly recognized that climate change can alter the geographical distribution of vector-borne diseases (VBDs) with shifts of disease vectors to higher altitudes and latitudes. In particular, an increasing risk of malaria and dengue fever epidemics in tropical highlands and temperate regions has been predicted in different climate change scenarios. The aim of this paper is to expand the current knowledge on the seasonal occurrence and altitudinal distribution of malaria and other disease vectors in eastern Nepal.MethodsAdult mosquitoes resting indoors and outdoors were collected using CDC light trap and aspirators with the support of flash light. Mosquito larvae were collected using locally constructed dippers. We assessed the local residents’ perceptions of the distribution and occurrence of mosquitoes using key informant interview techniques. Generalized linear models were fitted to assess the effect of season, resting site and topography on the abundance of malaria vectors.ResultsThe known malaria vectors in Nepal, Anopheles fluviatilis, Anopheles annularis and Anopheles maculatus complex members were recorded from 70 to 1,820 m above sea level (asl). The vectors of chikungunya and dengue virus, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, the vector of lymphatic filariasis, Culex quinquefasciatus, and that of Japanese encephalitis, Culex tritaeniorhynchus, were found from 70 to 2,000 m asl in eastern Nepal. Larvae of Anopheles, Culex and Aedes species were recorded up to 2,310 m asl. Only season had a significant effect on the abundance of An. fluviatilis, season and resting site on the abundance of An. maculatus complex members, and season, resting site and topography on the abundance of An. annularis. The perceptions of people on mosquito occurrence are consistent with entomological findings.ConclusionsThis study provides the first vertical distribution records of vector mosquitoes in eastern Nepal and suggests that the vectors of malaria and other diseases have already established populations in the highlands due to climatic and other environmental changes. As VBD control programmes have not been focused on the highlands of Nepal, these findings call for actions to start monitoring, surveillance and research on VBDs in these previously disease-free, densely populated and economically important regions.

The backyard is an agroecosystem located near the home and fulf ills several functions and provides various services; in addition, one third of the Rural Production Units in Tlaxcala have this agroecosystem. In the mexican state of Tlaxcala, México, the primary sector is the one that contributes the least to the gross domestic product; it is divided into 60 municipalities and 66% of its territory is used for agricultural, livestock and forestry activities and little is known about this agroecosystem. The objective of the research was to make an approximation of its composition with respect to the plant and animal species found in the backyard. The Registry of Agricultural Producers of the State of Tlaxcala, Mexico, carried out by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) was used; as a member of the work team, a copy of the original database was obtained informally, which consisted of a total of 53 968 basic information cards; of that total, 17 236 reported backyard activities. The information was analyzed using frequency tables of data grouped and sorted into classes for both plant and animal species. Regarding the composition of the main vegetable species produced in the backyard, fruit trees such as peaches and corn stand out. Of the animal species produced, cattle and poultry are the most produced. On average, 91.15% of what is produced in the backyard is for self-consumption; the average area of the backyard was 215 m2. The composition of the Tlaxcala backyard was determined in terms of plant and animal species of certain economic importance; the results reported here can be useful for other research that continues with the characterization of the structure, composition and functioning of the backyard in the state of Tlaxcala.

Species-area relationship and richness persistence as a proxy of environmental carrying capacity: A case study in a neotropical show cave