BackgroundTrough collections of plants and interviews with 110 individuals, an ethnobotanical study was conducted in order to determine the knowledge and use plant species in Rayones, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. The aim of this study was to record all useful plants and their uses, to know whether differences exist in the knowledge about the number of species and uses between women and men, and to know if there is a correlation between the age of individuals and knowledge of species and their uses.MethodsA total of 110 persons were interviewed (56 men, 56 women). Semistructured interviews were carried out. The data were analyzed by means of Student t test and the Pearson Correlation Coeficient.ResultsA total of 252 species, 228 genera and 91 families of vascular plants were recorded. Astraceae, Fabaceae and are the most important families with useful species and Agave and Opuntia are the genera with the highest number of useful species. One hundred and thirty six species are considered as medicinal. Agave, Acacia and Citrus are the genera with the highest number of medicinal species. Other uses includes edible, spiritual rituals, construction and ornamentals. There was a non-significant correlation between the person’s age and number of species, but a significant very low negative correlation between the person’s age and number of uses was found.ConclusionsKnowing their medicinal uses is an important issue for the people of Rayones. Boiling and preparing infusions are the main ways of using plants by residents. The leaves, the branches, and the fruits are the most commonly used parts. Almost 18% of the flora is used for wood and construction purposes. Several uses such as cosmetic, shampoo, firming skin tonics and health hair products recorded in Rayones has not been reported for other areas in the state of Nuevo León. In Rayones, women have a greater knowledge about plants and their uses than men, particularly, medicinal plants, but, men have a greater knowledge about wood and construction species.

BackgroundCuatrociénegas is a region of unique biological, geological, geographical and evolutionary importance. It is part of the Chihuahua Desert, its current population is mestizo; however, it has a high historical, cultural and tourist relevance. It has been cataloged as a Flora and Fauna by Mexican law, as well as a High Protection site by the World Wildlife Fund and UNESCO. Because of its complex biological and sociocultural characteristics, we consider it important to know, determine, identify and analyze the traditional ethnobotanical knowledge and practices in this region.MethodsBetween 2016 and 2019, seven field trips were made to document the knowledge and use of flora. Cuatrociénegas is a protected area, collecting botanical material is regulated, so specimens were photographed and collected in neighboring communities, and in public and private gardens. Later permission was obtained to complete the collection of specimens (2019-2020). The plants were identified and entered into the flora database of the state of Coahuila, and deposited in the Herbarium of the Faculty of Forest Sciences, Autonomous University of Nuevo León, Mexico. One hundred and ten local residents (50 men and 60 women) aged between 27 and 91 years were interviewed (semi-structured interviews). The cultural importance of ethnobotanical resources (cultural significance index) and its significance with respect to ethnobotanical richness in other Biosphere Reserves in Mexico (Mann-Whitney test) ware evaluated.Results and DiscussionThe ethnobotanical information registers 158 species and 132 genera in 57 vascular and non-vascular families, documenting a greater knowledge and use of cultivated species (84) with respect to wild species (74). The diversity of plants reported, compared to other ethnobotanical studies carried out in Biosphere Reserves, is similar. The people local pay special attention to medicinal and ornamental plants. The species that presented the highest use values are Larrea tridentata, Jatropha dioica and Machaeranthera pinnatifida, three characteristic species of the desert region.ConclusionsThe particular diversity of wild flora in Cuatrociénegas Valley, combined with the varied introduced flora, is an important multifunctional resource. Special attention to introduced species is associated with use restrictions; as well as the high value of ornamental species, difficult to maintain in desert areas. The extensive knowledge and use of ethnobotany are an example that biocultural diversity (at the conceptual level) is also, strongly associated with socio-ecological system with mestizo groups and semi-urban rural landscapes, ceasing to be exclusive to indigenous regions.

A study of piedmont scrub adjacent to the Gulf Coastal Plain in the State Nuevo Leon was carried out. Canopy cover values, density, height, frequency, and importance value from all shrub species of the piedmont scrub were recorded in each of the 39 sites sampled. We recorded 233 taxa, including 55 families, 150 genera, and 228 species. Thirty nine of the species define almost 95% of the different vegetation associations of the piedmont scrub. Seven dominant growth forms were recorded, shrubs, trees, rosetophyllous, succulents, herbs, lianas, and parasites. The shrubs are the dominant specie (116 species), followed by trees (39) and shrubby and herbaceous succulents (26). Non-thorny shrubs are the dominant species in the three strata of the piedmont scrub. Based on importance values of the 39 most important species, piedmont scrub was classified by means of cluster analysis. Four main groups and eight plant associations are recognized. We recorded 19 endemic species into the piedmont scrub, 15 herbs, three succulents (small cacti) and one tree, there is not endemic shrubby species in the piedmont scrub. Logging is the main cause of piedmont scrub loss around metropolitan area: Logged areas are converted to human settlements.

Resumen. Se clasifi can 39 áreas de pastizal halófi lo del noreste de México con el objetivo de cuantifi car la diversidad, superfi cie e impacto debido al manejo antrópico al que están sometidas. La cobertura, densidad, frecuencia y diversidad de las especies se cuantifi caron al menos en 200 cuadrantes de 1 m 2 en cada área de pastizal. La información se analizó mediante índices de similitud de Sörensen, coefi cientes de correlación cofenético, análisis de conglomerados, índice de diversidad de Shannon-Wiener y pruebas de Kruskall-Wallis. Se registraron 53 familias, 174 géneros y 284 especies de plantas vasculares; 17 especies son endémicas en estos pastizales. Las áreas de pastizal con manejo pastoreo-agricultura poseen mayor diversidad de especies, mayor abundancia de malezas y menor abundancia de endémicas. Las áreas con manejo de pastoreo, poseen menor diversidad de especies, menor abundancia de malezas y mayor densidad de especies endémicas. La agricultura mecanizada es la principal causa de pérdida de pastizal halófi lo y del hábitat del perro de las praderas. La pérdida total de pastizal halófi lo en el noreste de México fue de 71.5% de su superfi cie hasta el año 2007.

Background Cuatrociénegas, part of the Chihuahuan Desert, is a region of unique biological, geological, geographical, and evolutionary importance. Its current population is mestizo; nevertheless, it has high national historical, cultural, and touristic relevance in Mexico. It has been cataloged as nationally significant for its flora and fauna by Mexican law, as well as being designated a High Protection site by the World Wildlife Fund and UNESCO. Because of its diverse and complex biological and sociocultural characteristics, we considered it important to determine, identify, and analyze various aspects of the traditional ethnobotanical knowledge and practices in this region. Methods Between 2016 and 2019, seven field trips were made to document the knowledge and use of flora. Cuatrociénegas is a protected area, collecting botanical material is regulated, so specimens were photographed and collected in neighboring communities, and in public and private gardens. Later permission was obtained to complete the collection of specimens (2019–2020). The plants were identified and entered into the flora database of the state of Coahuila, and deposited in the Herbarium of the Faculty of Forest Sciences, Autonomous University of Nuevo León, Mexico. One hundred ten local residents (50 men and 60 women), aged between 27 and 91 years, were interviewed (semi-structured interviews). The cultural importance of ethnobotanical resources (cultural significance index) and its significance with respect to ethnobotanical richness in other Biosphere Reserves in Mexico (Mann-Whitney test), and similarities in the diversity of exotic species (Sørensen index) were studied. Results and discussion The ethnobotanical information registers 158 species and 132 genera in 57 vascular and non-vascular families, documenting a greater knowledge and use of cultivated species (84) with respect to wild species (74). The diversity of plants reported is compared to other ethnobotanical studies carried out in Mexican Biosphere Reserves. These results are highly relevant, in spite of unique exotic species. The people local pay special attention to medicinal and ornamental plants. The species that presented the highest use values are Larrea tridentata, Jatropha dioica, and Machaeranthera pinnatifida, three species characteristic of the desert region. Conclusions The particular diversity of wild flora in Cuatrociénegas Valley, combined with the varied introduced flora, is an important multifunctional resource. Special attention to introduced species is associated with harvesting use restrictions in the protected area as well as the high value of ornamental species that are difficult to maintain in desert areas. The extensive use of ethnobotanical knowledge is an example that biocultural diversity (at the conceptual level) is also strongly associated with socio-ecological systems incorporating mestizo groups and semi-urban rural landscapes, thus ceasing to be an exclusive focus of indigenous communities and regions.