A survey of medicinal plants in BaVi National Park, Vietnam: methodology and implications for conservation and sustainable use
Introduction
Considerable and growing attention has been given in recent years to issues surrounding the in situ conservation, and ecologically- and economically-based sustainable use, of wild (i.e. undomesticated) populations of medicinal plants (MPs) (e.g. Akerele et al., 1991, Plotkin & Famolare, 1992, Balick et al., 1996). Most conservation focus has been given to individual, internationally and regionally economically significant, over-exploited MP species (Anon., 1995–1997). Nowhere are these issues more acute as in tropical and sub-tropical regions (e.g. Africa, the Americas, Asia), where still today most people rely on medicinal, timber, and an array of other non-timber vegetable/animal products, derived principally from increasingly degraded, fragmented, species-diverse forest and savanna biomes (e.g. Farnsworth & Soejarto, 1991, Toledo et al., 1992, Iwu, 1996, Voeks, 1996, Caniago & Siebert, 1998).
Medicinal plant conservation has an extensive contemporary literature covering a range of subject areas. Schippmann (1997) provides 590 references for the period 1990–1996, derived from over 50 relevant journals, newsletters, and databases. This work covers, in ranked thematic order, mostly: economic and trade aspects (181 entries); status and threat issues pertaining typically to individual taxa (166); cultivation and harvesting issues (120); regional/culturally focused ethnobotany studies (110 entries); species descriptions and identification (100); and policy and legislation issues, including intellectual property rights (71). Most listed regional studies have focused on the Indian subcontinent, followed by the Americas then China, with relatively few concerning Africa and South-east Asia (Schippmann, 1997).
Few studies address, or provide regional empirical examples of, quantitative ecological survey (i.e. resource inventory), sustainability, and associated database designs. As noted by Hall and Bawa (1993), however, the undertaking of ecological surveys focusing on the distribution, abundance and population structures of MPs is fundamental to the assessment of the conservation status of wild populations, and prerequisite for addressing harvesting sustainability of key or target species. Principles and guidelines concerning MP conservation database design, networking and maintenance, are outlined in Synge and Heywood (1991). Toledo et al. (1992) provide a rare example of a national MP database then under development for tropical forest regions in Mexico, combining data from regional ethnobotanical studies with plant species inventories undertaken at a range of scales (e.g. sites, ⩽ 1 ha; localities, 1–10 ha; regions, up to ca. 1000 ha).
In this paper, we describe the application of a standard quantitative ecological survey design for assessment of the distribution, abundance and status of MPs, as used by the Dao ethnic group, in BaVi National Park, northern Vietnam. The design has potential also for various inventory, conservation, and sustainability assessment applications at broader regional scales. As discussed below, the assessment and conservation of MPs in Vietnam is a critical ecologic, cultural and economic issue in that country; Schippmann (1997) lists just two Vietnamese references, and single references for neighbouring Kampuchea and Laos. The project was undertaken collaboratively between the Vietnam National University (Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies), Hanoi College of Pharmacy, the Association for Research and Environmental Aid (an Australian Non-Government Organisation aid agency), and the Australian Nature Conservation Agency (now included within Environment Australia).
Section snippets
Regional context and study area
Spanning the tropical, monsoon climatic zone, Vietnam has a high biodiversity with more than 10,000 described species of higher plants (Pham, 1999), of which 3200 species have been recorded as having medicinal properties (Vo, 1997). However, with a high population density and increasing demands for economic development, Vietnam has lost more than 50% of its forest cover over the past five decades (Vietnam Ministry of Science, Technology and Development, 1995). Current rates of deforestation of
Medicinal plants
MPs used by Dao people were recorded in interviews and participatory field surveys, particularly with herbalists and collectors, over 2 years. Specimens of all MPs were collected during field trips. One complete set of reference specimens is lodged with the Herbarium of the Hanoi College of Pharmacy (HNP).
Throughout the paper, reference is made to a subset of MPs, the Important Medicinal Plant (IMP) species. IMPs were identified using standard Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) techniques
Medicinal plants
A total of 207 MPs, of about 300 recorded in the BaVi area (AREA 1993), were sampled in the 126 transects. Many of those unrecorded, however, occur as exotics grown only in home gardens. Forty one IMP species, of a total of 44 determined through the PRA process, were sampled in transects; the three unrecorded species are all considered to be very rare in the local area by Dao herbalists. Of the 44 IMPs, three are grown already in home gardens (Alstonia scholaris, Cinnamomum zeylanicum,
Status of medicinal plant species in BaVi National Park
Data presented here were derived from 126 transects sampling just 6.3 ha, or 0.09% of the total area of BaVi National Park. The sampling effort was not randomly distributed; rather, plots were located mostly with respect to a stratified design focusing on sampling major habitats across the full altitudinal range. This resulted in uneven sampling intensity over the Park area; for example, 80 transects were used to sample vegetation in the core area of the Park above 400 m, at a sampling density
Acknowledgements
We are extremely grateful to Professor Vo Qui and Dr. Peter Bridgewater, and contributing organisations, for the support and foresight to undertake this project. Mr. Le Van Lanh and Mr. Phung Tien Huy assisted with organising the initial field program. Tracey May produced Fig. 1. William Milliken and two anonymous referees are thanked for their constructive comments on the manuscript.
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