Utilização de variáveis quantitativas na definição da importância de plantas medicinais utilizadas no município de Cerro Largo, RS

Abstract

Quantitative data is important to show the numerical ethnobotanical information, based on local knowledge about the different forms of plant resources usage resources by man. The objective of this paper was to verify, through quantitative variables, the importance of the species and families used as medicines, as well as verifying which body systems present a greater consensus of knowledge and use by the population of Cerro Largo. Techniques have been used to calculate the value of use of species (UVs) and families (FUV) and Informant Consensus Factor (FCI). The data were obtained from an ethnobotanical survey, conducted in the city of Cerro Largo, between August 2014 and July 2015. Only the plants identified up to the species level were selected, totaling 131, which were placed in 54 botanical families. The three species with higher UVs were Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf. (0,3), Achillea millefolium L. (0,46) and Plantago major L. (0,38). The three families with the highest FUV were Plantaginaceae (0,38), Equisetaceae (0,32) and Poaceae (0,23). The therapeutic indications were grouped into 18 body systems categories, with the category of digestive tract diseases with higher FCI (0,69), followed by the nervous system diseases, FCI equal to 0.68, and genitourinary tract diseases with FCI of 0.65. The categories of ear and the mastoid pituitary diseases, mental and behavioral disorders presented FCI equal to zero, that means that there was no agreement regarding the use of any species for these categories. This study emphasizes that ethnobotany should involve both qualitative and quantitative indexes to generate more accurate data on the use and importance of medicinal plants for communities. Just so, it is possible to estimate the cultural importance of the different taxons and help in the knowledge and conservation of the local biodiversity.