Valuation of Forests and Plant Species in Indigenous Territory and National Park Isiboro-Sécure, Bolivia

Valuation of Forests and Plant Species in Indigenous Territory and National Park Isiboro-Secure, Bolivia. A quantitative ethnobotanical study was conducted in Indigenous Territory and National Park Isiboro-Secure (TIPNIS), Bolivia, to assess the usefulness assigned by local Yuracare and Trinitario ethnic groups to different terra firme and floodplain forests. Furthermore, we investigated which variables are good predictors for the use value attributed to plant species in the research area. Plants were collected during transect, walk-in-the-woods and homegarden sampling. Ethnobotanical and ethnoecological data of the inventoried plants were obtained from 12 Yuracare and 14 Trinitario participants through semistructured interviews. On average, 84% of species in transects were claimed to be useful to people. The understorey (2.5 cm ≤ dbh