Abstract
Cactaceae species have diverse uses in Brazil, principally in the northeastern region of that country, and show morphological and physiological characteristics adapted to different environments and being useful to the man as well to the animals. In general, cacti are perennial and present in all stations, and demonstrate specialized survival characteristics, and may present leaves modified to form spines, and these species are generally suculent. These plants have significant biological and ecological value in the northeastern of Brazil being present in the Caatinga environment which is characterized as an ecosystem presenting adverse environmental conditions in terms of both its climate and soils. Cactaceae are cited in the historical tome of the 17 th century, Historia Naturalis Brasiliae (1648), by Piso and Marcgrave which contains one of the first considered scientific records of the Brazilian flora. In light of the singular value of this work, seven species of Cactaceae cited by those naturalists were examined in detail. It was also aimed to establish past-present timelines of Cactaceae species comparing their historic and present qualitative and quantitative uses. It was utilized as methodological path: documental, qualitative and quantitative researches. It was observed that six of the seven species described in that work are still utilized for different uses or/and conservative uses by human populations. The use-categories of Cactaceae cited in the original work and in more recently documents are: medicinal, ornamental, food resources, accessories, shade, bio-indicators, construction, magic-religious, fuel, forage, living fences, technology, and veterinary. It is remarkable that the categories medicinal, forage and living fences are cited in both past and present records. The records of Piso and Marcgrave are of significant importance in terms of understanding the temporal dynamics of the use of Cactaceae species, and the wellspring of this work ensures its continued contribution to future research in different areas.
Highlights
Seven cactus species occurring in northeastern Brazil were cited in the Historia Naturalis
Those naturalists described the botanical characteristics of the plants and noted their various uses - indicating the importance of those species to the inhabitants of that region even at that early time after colonization
The descriptive and illustrative data of the Cactaceae, as recorded by Piso and Marcgrave (1648), are presented in table 1 and presented in figure1. Those authors took special interest in recording the popular names of the species, often indicating their ethnic origins, as in the case of Cereus jamacaru DC. The anatomical characteristics they noted included all of the plant organs, and comparisons were made with other plant groups (drawing analogies for example, between Opuntia brasiliensis (Willd.) Haw. and Pinus sp.)
Summary
The family Cactaceae comprises approximately 1500 species with distributions concentrated in the Americas (SOUZA and LORENZI, 2008) that demonstrate specific morphological and physiological adaptations to the environmental conditions of the habitats in which they occur (HUNT, 1999; LENZI, 2008).The Cactaceae are visible in the semiarid Caatinga biome of northeastern Brazil (SOUZA and LORENZI, 2008), with many endemic species (TAYLOR and ZAPPI, 2004; LUCENA et al, 2013).Cacti were extensively cultivated in Europe starting in the 16th century after their introduction by English, Dutch, and Spanish commercial agents and botanists returning from the Antilles, Mexico, and Central and South America (CERUTTI, 1998).This family has very unique characteristics that have been appropriated by humans for many purposes, depending on the species, region, and local culture (e.g., HOLLIS and SHEINVAR, 1989; CASAS et al, 1999). Many cactus species have great cultural and commercial value, and are used in many different ways, including as food resources for both humans and cattle during periods of extended droughts, as sources of wood products and water, in landscaping and traditional medicine – in addition to their ecological functions, including promoting vertebrate and invertebrate diversity (e.g., SILVA, 1984; LIMA, 1996; CERUTTI, 1998; ZAPPI et al, 2011) These plants are greatly valued, principally in northeastern Brazil, there are certain factors that limit their usefulness, such as the low protein content found in some species and the fact that their consumption is culturally associated with periods of economic difficulties and food scarcity (ARAÚJO, 2004; ALMEIDA, 2007;), causing a local devaluation of these resources (GUINANDE LEMESSA, 2000)
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