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Método Participativo para la Evaluación Rápida de Diversidad de Plantas con un Sistema de Clasificación Popular en un Bosque Tropical Lluvioso: Caso de Estudio en Xishuangbanna, China
Author(s) -
JINXIU WANG,
HONGMAO LIU,
HUABIN HU,
LEI GAO
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
conservation biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.2
H-Index - 222
eISSN - 1523-1739
pISSN - 0888-8892
DOI - 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2004.00075.x
Subject(s) - indigenous , biodiversity , geography , rainforest , traditional knowledge , china , plant species , plant diversity , ethnobiology , agroforestry , plant community , ecology , ethnobotany , citizen journalism , biodiversity conservation , biology , medicinal plants , species richness , political science , archaeology , law
Rural indigenous people are often very knowledgeable about plant and animal species, including their identification and ecology. The use of indigenous knowledge has increasingly attracted attention in scientific circles. The Dai people, a dominant nationality in southwestern Yunnan, China, have developed their own traditional plant classification system. In a case study in Xishuangbanna, we compared the differences in number of plant species identified between scientific and Dai folk classification. The Dai people identified more than 80% of the plant species, and the correspondence between folk and scientific plant species was 87.7%. Our results indicate that folk plant classification could be used in rapid assessment of plant species in certain regions. The use of folk systems of plant classification for rapid biodiversity assessment will contribute to conservation of both indigenous knowledge and regional biodiversity.