Aspectos que Influenciam a Escolha de Locais de Coleta por Extrativistas de Macaúba no Cerrado Brasileiro

Abstract

The extractive communities of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) create preferences for collection sites based on accessibility, transport time and search, better quality and greater availability of resources. Among the species that supply NTFPs with a range of uses and with wide distribution, the macaúba palm (Acrocomia aculeata (Jacq.) Lodd. ex Mart.). Thus, a study was carried out in a location in the Cerrado with the objective of investigating the factors considered in the choice of collection sites by the people who extract the fruits. To this end, an ethnobotanical study was carried out with the community and two palm tree populations were evaluated in forest and pasture, regarding the population structure and fruit morphometry. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with extractivists and plots were set up in a forest and pasture environment, where the macauba individuals were classified into ontogenetic stages and the fruits and almonds were weighed. 23 macauba extractives were interviewed. All said that the main interest in the plant resides in the almond and that they prefer to collect heavier fruits and in areas with more open vegetation, such as cattle ranches, not distinguishing differences between the populations of the palm. The population structure data of both plant populations demonstrated that there are no differences in the total number of individuals and in each ontogenetic stage. As for the morphometry of the fruits, the macaubas collected in the forest were heavier on average and provided more almonds, pointing out that the predilection for pasture may be linked to other aspects, such as easy access in this area to the detriment of the forest.