Ethiopian herders have used 27 wild plants to treat livestock for generations
Gebrezgabiher G, Meresa D.
Ethnobotany
Pastoralists in one of Africa's harshest environments have kept their animals healthy for generations using wild plants alone, and the specific species they trust most, like the desert date and the milkweed shrub, are now priority candidates for modern veterinary drug research.
In a remote part of Ethiopia, local herders have long relied on wild plants to treat sick animals instead of manufactured medicines. Scientists sat down with 13 knowledgeable community members and catalogued 27 plant species used for everything from wound care to joint problems. The two plant families doing the most heavy lifting were spurges and legumes, and nearly all of this knowledge lives only in the memories of older community members, which is why documenting it now is urgent.
Key Findings
27 medicinal plant species across 14 families were recorded; Euphorbiaceae (35.71%) and Fabaceae (28.57%) were the dominant families.
Leaves were the most-used plant part (54.55%), applied mainly by crushing (61.77%) via dermal or oral routes, which together accounted for over 70% of treatments.
Balanites rotundifolia (relative importance 0.88) and Calotropis procera (relative importance 0.78) ranked as the most culturally significant species, while musculoskeletal disorders showed the highest community agreement on which plants to use (ICF = 0.67).
chevron_right Technical Summary
Researchers documented 27 medicinal plant species used by pastoralists in Ethiopia's Megale district to treat livestock, finding that traditional knowledge is concentrated among elders and urgently needs preservation before it disappears.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Indigenous Knowledge of Medicinal Plants for Treating Livestock Ailments in Megale District, Afar Region, Ethiopia.
<h4>Background</h4>Ethnoveterinary medicine (EVM) remains central to livestock health management in Afar region of Ethiopia. However, this Indigenous knowledge is increasingly threatened by environ...
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