Importance of ethnobotanical studies in protected areas: A case study in Brazil

Abstract

Ethnobotanical studies in Brazil indicate a strong relationship between local Communities that detain Traditional Ecological Knowledge and the plants used by them. Brazilian protected areas (PAs) may be operating as refuges for these populations due to the providing of non-timber forest products used for subsistence. Here we aimed to explore the current state of ethnobotany research in brazilian PAs by exploring their geographical scope (regions and biomes), the populations involved and their occurrence in different PAs categories. For that, we did a bibliographic survey of studies published in journals between 2006 and 2019, totaling 67 studies. Our results showed that Atlantic Forest was the most studied biome and the northeast region was the most studied region. In addition, the most studied traditional populations are were the artisanal farmers and rural communities. The data also revealed that the Sustainable use PAs contain the most studies, but Parks were the most studied category. Finally, we also found that surveys on the knowledge of medicinal plants use was the main studied theme.