Conocimiento etnobotánico de las plantas utilizadas en Chancah Veracruz, Quintana Roo, México

Abstract

In response to concern for conserving biodiversity and given the growing need for regional increase in ethnobotany sustainability of medicinal plants, in the village of Chancah Veracruz, Quintana Roo, basic information about the use of regional plants was produced. Based on interviews with the inhabitants, it was determined that 53 per cent used plants for medicinal purposes, 20 per cent for their food, 20 per cent as medicines and food, and seven per cent as ornamental items and crafts. We identified 29 species that are used by the villagers - mostly women. Both, the classification and the uses of each species employed in the village were retained as evidence of a very close relationship between the environment (plants) and its inhabitants which fits the main feature of ethnobotany: study the interrelation between human beings and plants through time in different cultural and ecological environments.