Medicinal Plants of Tecopatlán, Jalisco, Mexico: Description of the Uses and Environmental Availability

  • Adrian Gutiérrez Alonso Natural Resources and Ecology Department, University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus, Autlán, Mexico.
  • Elizabeth Anne Olson Department of History, Sociology, and Anthropology, Southern Utah University, Cedar City, USA.
  • Judith Cevallos Espinosa Natural Resources and Ecology Department, University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus, Autlán, Mexico.
  • Jesús Juan Rosales Adame Natural Resources and Ecology Department, University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus, Autlán, Mexico.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.14237/ebl.11.1.2020.1614
Keywords: Traditional ecological knowledge, Medicinal plants, Ethnobotany, Mexico

Abstract

The non-Indigenous, mestizo, ejido (communal agricultural land) Tecopatlán is located in the municipality of Autlán de Navarro, Jalisco, in the influence zone of the Sierra de Manantlán Biosphere Reserve (SMBR). The primary purpose of this research was to characterize traditional knowledge of medicinal plants held by residents of Tecopatlán in relationship to the land use patterns of the ejido. We interviewed 34 people, selected by convenience sampling, to identify their knowledge of medicinal plants and the local environment. Informants reported a total of 72 medicinal species, belonging to 45 botanical families, distributed across 67 genera. Of the plants recorded, 55 were exogenous and 19 were native species. Informants were surveyed regarding common ailments and the plants used to treat those ailments. The most common ailments reported include diabetes, coughs, kidney problems, nerves, stomach pain, insomnia, cancer, and stroke. The land use patterns described by community members reveal specific areas of the local environment that have the most commonly used medicinal plants.

Author Biographies

Adrian Gutiérrez Alonso, Natural Resources and Ecology Department, University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus, Autlán, Mexico.

Adrian Gutiérrez Alonso works in the Natural Resources and Ecology Department at the University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus.

Elizabeth Anne Olson, Department of History, Sociology, and Anthropology, Southern Utah University, Cedar City, USA.

Elizabeth Anne Olson is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology in the Department of History, Sociology, and Anthropology at Southern Utah University.

Judith Cevallos Espinosa, Natural Resources and Ecology Department, University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus, Autlán, Mexico.

Judith Cevallos Espinosa works in the Natural Resources and Ecology Department at the University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus.

Jesús Juan Rosales Adame, Natural Resources and Ecology Department, University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus, Autlán, Mexico.

Jesús Juan Rosales Adame works in the Natural Resources and Ecology Department at the University of Guadalajara, South Coast Campus.

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Published
2020-09-29
How to Cite
Gutiérrez Alonso, A., Olson, E. A., Cevallos Espinosa, J., & Rosales Adame, J. J. (2020). Medicinal Plants of Tecopatlán, Jalisco, Mexico: Description of the Uses and Environmental Availability. Ethnobiology Letters, 11(1), 118-127. https://doi.org/10.14237/ebl.11.1.2020.1614
Issue
Vol 11 No 1 (2020)
Section
Research Communications

Copyright (c) 2020 Adrian Gutierrez Alonso, Elizabeth A. Olson, Judith Cevallos Espinosa, Jesús Juan Rosales Adame

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