Composition of forests and vegetation in the Kailash Sacred Landscape, Nepal

Kunwar, Ripu M.; Fadiman, Maria; Hindle, Tobin; Suwal, Madan Krishna; Adhikari, Yagya P.; Baral, Kedar; Bussmann, Rainer W.

doi:10.1007/s11676-019-00987-w

Cited by 30 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Previous studies have shown that convenience or accessibility for collecting a plant contributes to the tendency for local people to collect that plant in the vicinity of settlements [20,25,[47][48][49]. Our study area, Douyu Village, contains complex terrain in a small geographical area with an extreme variety in altitude.…”

Section: Useful Wild Plants Along An Altitudinal Gradientmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wild plants used by the Lhoba people in Douyu Village, characterized by high mountains and valleys, in southeastern Tibet, China

Chen

Yang

et al. 2021

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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Background Douyu Village, inhabited by the Lhoba people, is situated within the Eastern Himalayas, in southeastern Tibet, China. The village is located among high mountains and valleys, which feature complex terrain with cold and dry climates and distinctive vegetation types and species. The Lhoba people in this village are isolated from other groups in China. The Lhoba people have lived in this village since the 15th century and mainly depended on gathering, hunting, and swidden agriculture before the 1960s. Because they have a long history and live under extreme climatic, geographical, and ecological conditions, the Lhoba people in Douyu Village may have unique traditional knowledge about wild plants. Thus, this research aims to record the traditional botanical knowledge of the Lhoba people in Douyu. Methods An ethnobotanical study was conducted on the Lhoba people in Douyu Village in Longzi County, Tibet, China. Semi-structured interviews and group discussions with informed consent were used in the study. We interviewed 41 informants (14 key informants) between 18 and 75 years of age. All information was collected, organized, and compiled into “use reports” for quantitative analysis. The informant consensus factor (ICF) was used to determine the homogeneity of the informants’ knowledge of medicinal plants, while the cultural importance index (CI) was used to estimate the cultural importance of shared species. Results A total of 91 wild species (90 vascular plants and 1 fungus) belonging to 71 genera and 39 families utilized by the Lhoba people in Douyu were documented. Of these species, Pimpinella xizangense and Wikstroemia lungtzeensis are endemic to Longzi County, while Sinopodophyllum hexandrum and Paeonia ludlowii are endangered species in China. All habitats, from the field vegetation at the valley bottoms to the alpine shrubland and meadows, were used for plant collection, and the numbers of species of plants collected from the various vegetation types (except for fields) decreased with increasing altitude. Our study found that 55 species are edible plants and fungi, 29 species are medicinal plants, and 38 species are used for other purposes. Medicinal plants are used for 11 categories of diseases, among which diseases of blood-forming organs (ICF = 0.96) and gastrointestinal diseases (ICF = 0.95) exhibited the highest ICF values. Based on the CI values, the most important plants in this study area are Berberis xanthophloea, B. kongboensis, Sinopodophyllum hexandrum, Vicatia thibetica, and Hippophae rhamnoides subsp. gyantsensis. Moreover, a comparison of the wild plants used by Lhoba ethnic groups in three counties in China showed significant differences among these regions. Conclusions Our study demonstrates that the wild plants utilized by the Lhoba people in Douyu Village are highly diverse, at 90 plant and one fungal species, which reflects not only the number of species but also their diversified functions. The extreme climatic, geographical, and ecological conditions of Douyu within the high mountains and valleys of the Eastern Himalayas potentially affect the Lhoba people’s culture, including plant utilization practices, and contribute to the rich diversity of the wild plants used by the local people.

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Section: Useful Wild Plants Along An Altitudinal Gradientmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wild plants used by the Lhoba people in Douyu Village, characterized by high mountains and valleys, in southeastern Tibet, China

Chen

Yang

et al. 2021

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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“…Because of the insufficient food, household heads often go to nearby forests for collection of plants to complement the household food, economy and healthcare. Nearby forests, considered as open free access commodity [6] are often foraged for collecting fuelwood, vegetable, food plants, and medicinal plant collection and grazing.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The country has only 14.75% arable land [4] that lies mostly at lowlands and hills. Less availability of arable land accelerates the human pressure on remaining agricultural land [5] and surrounding open-access forests [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors that influence the plant use knowledge in the middle mountains of Nepal

et al. 2021

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An account of total of 58 plant species including 57 genera and 43 families was reported as useful in ethnomedicine from semi-structured questionnaire survey to the 76 participants of Kaski and Baitadi districts, Nepal. Fieldwork and participatory meetings were carried out between September 2017 and January 2018. A total of 419 emic use reports including 150 from Kaski and 269 from Baitadi were reported from 58 ethnomedicinal plant species. Each species was reported for 2–43 use reports and each participant recorded 1–12 use reports. About 25% (n = 104) use reports were associated with the treatment of digestive system disorders followed by 83 for general complaints. Of the species assessed, 53 species had IASc value < 0.25 and only five species had > 0.25. Species Swertia chirayita, Paris polyphylla, Bergenia ciliata, Valeriana jatamansi and Centella asiatica with > 0.25 IASc were found to be highly consented; however they were incongruent between the sample groups and sites. Divergent plant use knowledge specific to each sample district and group was corresponding to the heterogeneity of socio-economy and culture of the sites. Gender, ethnicity, household economy and food availability of the respondents were leading factors affecting the plant use knowledge. Despite the sites were relatively homogenous in eco-physiography, they possessed the distinct plant use knowledge, hinted that the socio-economic factors are more explanatory in plant use knowledge.

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“…Majority of the people (76.86%) live in the rural area and agriculture is the mainstay of local livelihood. Most of the rural settlements are close to the forest area and fuelwood is the major source of energy [48]. Other livelihood strategies include animal husbandry, summer grazing, and collection, use, and trade of forest products.…”

Section: Study Area and Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization and management of human-wildlife conflicts in mid-hills outside protected areas of Gandaki province, Nepal

et al. 2021

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With the intent to better management human wildlife conflict (HWC) and wildlife conservation in mid-hills outside protected areas of Gandaki province, Nepal, we analyzed the patterns and drivers of HWC. Using data collected from literature, government records and questionnaire survey, we investigated temporal, seasonal and spatial distribution of human casualties caused by wildlife attacks. We also appraised the perception of local people towards wildlife conservation. We have recorded 77 cases (69 human injuries and 8 mortalities) during the period of nine year between 2011 and 2019. The number of wildlife attacks increased over this period. Wildlife attacks were more frequent in winter with 50% (42) of attacks occurred between September and December. Common leopard (Panthera pardus) and Himalayan black bear (Ursus thibetanus laniger) were the major species involved in these conflicts. Common leopard was the most feared species that causes highest number of human mortalities (87%, n = 67); the most severe type of HWC outcome. Forty-eight percent (n = 37) attacks were reported at human settlement areas followed by 27% attacks in agriculture land (n = 21) and 24% (n = 19) in forest. Generalized linear model analysis on spatial variables showed that the probability of human attacks increases with decreasing elevation (β = -0.0021, Z = -1.762, p = 0.078) and distance from the forest (β = -0.608, Z = -0.789, p = 0.429). We recommend to decrease habitat degradation / fragmentation, carry out habitat management program within forest to increase prey availability to decrease the wildlife invasion into human settlement area, and decrease dependency of people on forest resources by providing alternative livelihood opportunities. Simplified relief fund distribution mechanism at local level also helps alleviate the impact of HWC. The knowledge obtained by this study and management measures are important for better human-wildlife co-existence.

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Composition of forests and vegetation in the Kailash Sacred Landscape, Nepal

Cited by 30 publications

References 35 publications

Wild plants used by the Lhoba people in Douyu Village, characterized by high mountains and valleys, in southeastern Tibet, China

Wild plants used by the Lhoba people in Douyu Village, characterized by high mountains and valleys, in southeastern Tibet, China

Factors that influence the plant use knowledge in the middle mountains of Nepal

Characterization and management of human-wildlife conflicts in mid-hills outside protected areas of Gandaki province, Nepal

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