Vulnerability assessment of high-valued medicinal plants in Langtang National Park, Central Nepal

Abstract

Langtang National Park (LNP, Nepal) is a unique habitat for a number of highly valuable medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs). The medicinal plants have intense local utilisation as well as high trade demand. Due to increased collection pressure on available resources and unsustainable harvesting methods, many wild medicinal herbs have become vulnerable. In this study, an attempt has been made to identify high-valued medicinal plants of LNP and evaluate their potential endangerment by using a method called rapid vulnerability assessment (RVA). It was found that the vulnerability of medicinal plants was due to high utilisation of plant parts, habitat specificity, life forms, high trade demand, excessive local utilisation and unsustainable harvesting practices. Of the 51 species of MAPs prioritised by the Conservation Assessment and Management Planning (CAMP) workshop for the prioritisation of threatened medicinal plants in the Himalayas, 20 species were identified as high-valued medicinal plants in LNP. Aconitum spicatum, Nardostachys grandiflora and Neopicrorhiza scrophulariiflora were identified as the most vulnerable species followed by Dactylorhiza hatagirea, Swertia chirayita, Delphinium himalayai, Rheum nobile and Asparagus racemosus.