People, Lemurs and Utilitarian Plants of the Littoral Forests in Southeast Madagascar

Bibliographic Data

ID11277992
AuthorsElena Račevska (0000-0001-6149-986X, Oxford Brookes University, corresponding author), Catherine M Hill (0000-0003-2372-5904), Hoby Tsimijaly Longosoa, Giuseppe Donati (0000-0002-4803-0642, Oxford Brookes University)
Year2022
Volume43
Issue6
Pages1000-1025
Publication date2022-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Primatology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0164-0291 • E-ISSN: 1573-8604
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s10764-022-00319-6
OpenAlexW4291145045
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited69

Tropical forests support a diversity of plants. Many of them are threatened, emphasising that their shared use by people and wildlife may benefit their conservation. Litt forests of southeast Madagascar, home to seven threatened lemur species, provide the Antanosy people with natural resources. In the early 2000s, protected areas were established in two regions that historically incurred different levels of anthropogenic pressures: Sainte Luce and Mandena. We explored the local use of plants as medicine, construction materials and firewood, and examined the overlap of plants used by people and the red-collared brown lemur ( Eulemur collaris ), the largest lemur in this ecosystem and an important seed disperser. Between July and October 2018, 60 adults (30 women, 30 men) participated in semi-structured interviews. Our findings show 122 plants are locally used as medicines, 60 as construction materials, and 71 as firewood. Of all utilitarian plants, 52 were confirmed in this lemur’s diet. Sainte Luce participants reported they used a higher diversity of species in all three categories. Western medicines were available and preferred to medicinal plants, but the choice also often depended on the health condition being addressed. Firewood was preferred to charcoal for cooking. Resource restrictions of the protected areas has negatively affected the local people. Local ethnobotanical knowledge reflects the importance of plants, while differences in plant use of the two communities reflect differences in biodiversity and socio-economic circumstances. Emphasising this interdependence, especially in forest restoration, could be a path towards conservation of plants, lemurs, and people, as well as traditional livelihoods

Agroforestry · Biodiversity · Biology · Ethnobotany · Firewood · Geography · Habitat · IUCN Red List · Lemur · Medicinal plants · Threatened species · Wildlife · Amphibian and Reptile Biology · Primate Behavior and Ecology · Wildlife Ecology and Conservation · Ecology

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