Ethnoveterinary plants of Ankober District, North Shewa Zone, Amhara Region, Ethiopia

Background: Traditional 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. Methods: Semi-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. Results: A 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. Conclusion: The 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

An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants in Mana Angetu District, South Eastern Ethiopia

This study documents indigenous medicinal plant utilization, management and the threats affecting them. The study was carried out in Mana Angetu district between January 2003 and December 2004. Ethnobotanical data were collected using semi structured interviews, field observations, preference and direct matrix ranking with traditional medicine practitioners. The ethnomedicinal use of 230 plant species was documented in the study area. Most of the plants (78.7%) were reportedly used to treat human diseases. The most frequently used plant part were roots (33.9%), followed by leaves (25.6%). Most of the medicinal species (90.4%) were collected from the wild. Direct matrix analysis showed that Olea europaea L. Subsp. cuspidata (Wall. ex G. Don) was the most important species followed by Acacia tortilis (Forssk.) Hayne (120) indicating high utility value of these species for the local community. The principal threatening factors reported were deforestation (90%), agricultural expansion (85%) and fire (53%). Documenting the eroding plants and associated indigenous knowledge can be used as a basis for developing management plans for conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plants in the area

Wild edible plants in Ethiopia : a review on their potential to combat food insecurity

This work reviews literature on ethnobotanical knowledge of wild edible plants and their potential role in combating food insecurity in Ethiopia. Information on a total of 413 wild edible plants belonging to 224 genera and 77 families was compiled in this review. Shrubs represented 31% of species followed by trees (30%), herbs (29%) and climbers (9%). Families Fabaceae (35 species), Tiliaceae (20) and Capparidaceae (19) were found to be represented by the highest number of edible species. About 56% (233) of species have edibility reports from more than one community in Ethiopia. Fruits were reported as the commonly utilized edible part in 51% of species. It was found that studies on wild edible plants of Ethiopia cover only about 5% of the country’s districts which indicates the need for more ethnobotanical research addressing all districts. Although there have been some attempts to conduct nutritional analyses of wild edible plants, available results were found to be insignificant when compared to the wild edible plant wealth of the country. Results also show that wild edible plants of Ethiopia are used as supplementary, seasonal or survival food sources in many cultural groups, and hence play a role in combating food insecurity. The presence of anthropogenic and environmental factors affecting the wild plant wealth of the country calls for immediate action so as to effectively document, produce a development plan and utilize the plants

Antimicrobial activity of traditional medicinal plants from Ankober District, North Shewa Zone, Amhara Region, Ethiopia

Context: Traditional medicinal plants have long been used in Ethiopia to treat human and livestock ailments. Despite a well-documented rich tradition of medicinal plant use in the country, their direct antimicrobial effects are still poorly known. Objective: To investigate the antimicrobial activity of 19 medicinal plant species that were selected based on the ethnobotanical information on their traditional use to treat infectious diseases in Ankober District. Methods: About 23 different ethanol extracts of plants obtained by maceration of various parts of 19 medicinal plant species were studied for potential antimicrobial activity using a broth microdilution method against Bacillus cereus, Bacteroides fragilis, Candida albicans, Clostridium perfringens, Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enteritidis, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Streptococcus pyogenes. Results: Plant extracts from Embelia schimperi Vatke (Myrsinaceae) showed the strongest antibacterial activity with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value of 64 mu g/ml against B. cereus, L. monocytogenes, and S. pyogenes. Growth inhibitory activities were also observed for extracts of Ocimum lamiifolium Hochst. (Lamiaceae) against S. pyogenes, and those of Rubus steudneri Schweinf. (Rosaceae) against S. epidermidis at an MIC value of 128 mu g/ml. Generally, 74% of ethanol extracts (17 extracts) showed antimicrobial activity against one or more of the microbial strains tested at an MIC value of 512 mu g/ml or below. Discussion and conclusions: Results confirm the antimicrobial role of traditional medicinal plants of Ankober and warrant further investigations on promising medicinal plant species so as to isolate and characterise chemicals responsible for the observed strong antimicrobial activities

Ethnomedicinal study of plants used for human ailments in Ankober District, North Shewa Zone, Amhara Region, Ethiopia

Background: Ankober District has long been inhabited by people who have a long tradition of using medicinal plants to treat human ailments. Overexploitation of medicinal plants coupled with an ever-increasing population growth, deforestation and agricultural land expansion threatens plants in the area. Hence, this study aimed at documenting and analyzing the plant-based ethnomedicinal knowledge of the people in order to preserve the dwindling indigenous knowledge. Methods: Ethnobotanical data were collected using semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, participant observation and walk-in-the-woods. Quantitative approaches were used to determine Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) and Fidelity level (FL) values. Statistical tests were used to compare the indigenous knowledge on medicinal plants among different informant categories. Results: A total of 135 medicinal plant species belonging to 128 genera and 71 botanical families were reported to treat human diseases in the District. Families Asteraceae (12 species, 9%) and Fabaceae (10, 7.4%) were found to be best represented in the area. About 44% of preparations were reported to be obtained from roots. Significant difference (P < 0.05) was observed on the mean number of medicinal plants reported by groups of respondents compared within age, literacy level and experience parameters. Highest ICF values were recorded for gastrointestinal & parasitic and dermatological disease categories (0.70 each) indicating best agreement among informants knowledge on medicinal plants used to treat aliments in these categories. Highest fidelity level values were recorded for Zehneria scabra (95%) and Hagenia abyssinica (93.75%) showing conformity of knowledge on species of best healing potential. Podocarpus falcatus was ranked first in a direct matrix ranking exercise of multipurpose medicinal plants. The output of preference ranking exercise indicated that Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata was the most preferred species to treat atopic eczema. Conclusion: The study revealed that Ankober District is rich in medicinal plant diversity and associated indigenous knowledge. However, anthropogenic factors coupled with acculturation and very poor conservation efforts threaten medicinal plant survival in the area. Promoting a complementary in situ and ex situ conservation strategy for medicinal plants of the District is highly recommended

Plants used in traditional management of human ailments at Bale Mountains National Park, South Eastern Ethiopia

Though the majority of people in Ethiopia at large, and at Bale Mountains National Park in particular, rely on ethnomedicinal plant species to manage human ailments, the indigenous knowledge largely remains undocumented. Therefore, an ethnobotanical study was conducted on medicinal plant species used to manage human ailments at Bale Mountains National Park, Southeastern Ethiopia. Observations and semi-structured interviews were used to gather ethnobotanical data. Altogether, 56 ailments were reported to be managed using 101 different ethnomedicinal plant species. Consensus of traditional healers was high in managing eczema (ICF = 0.58), tinea versicolor (ICF = 0.50), rheumatism (ICF = 0.43), haemorrhoids (ICF = 0.33), earache (ICF = 0.33) and gonorrhoea (ICF = 0.27). The mean number of plant species used by each healer showed significant difference with district. Most medicinal plant species reported in this study were found to be under threat and this calls for urgent conservation measures so as to maximize the sustainable use of these vital resources in the study area

Linking ethnobotany, herbaria and flora to conservation: the case of four angiosperm families at the National Herbarium of Ethiopia

Herbarium specimens are underexploited sources of plant use information for conservation purposes. We assessed a total of 4717 specimens representing 293 species deposited at the National Herbarium of Ethiopia, belonging to families Rubiaceae (2505 specimens representing 109 species), Solanaceae (894/69), Cucurbitaceae (743/66) and Burseraceae (575/49) for information documenting their use. In addition, relevant volumes of Flora of Ethiopia and Eritrea were examined for recorded traditional uses. Data were analysed to identify specimen and flora representations of locally useful species so as to detect anthropogenic influences against them. It was found that 34.5% (101 species) had documented ethnobotanical uses. About 10% (29 species) were found represented each with only single specimen, hence hardly possible to detect their conservation status. The presence of limited plant use information calls for an effort for future plant collections, label preparations and flora revisions. Moreover, prior attention has to be given for documentation and conservation of red listed endemic species that have traditional use reports.Keywords: biodiversity, conservation, ethnobotany, herbaria, indigenous knowledgeJournal of East African Natural History 101(1): 99&#8211;125 (2012