Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants in Bozyazı district of Mersin, Turkey

Abstract

Ethnopharmacological relevance: This research contributes momentous ethnopharmaceutical information on medicinal plants used by local people who live in the Bozyazi district of Mersin in Turkey. Aim of the study: To arrange a list of herbal treatments from the Bozyazi region with their habitual use, plant parts and application methods besides computing some statistical indices. Materials and methods: Plant specimens that have been collected by herbalists or local people from Bozyazi for therapeutic purposes were investigated by visiting the villages during the study period, and then conveyed to the laboratory to diagnose the species. In addition, the relative frequency citation (RFC), use values (UV), informant consensus factor (ICF) and fidelity level (FL) were calculated. Results: In this survey conducted between 2013 and 2015, 159 taxa associated with 55 families, excluding 9 edible mushrooms, were detected as they have been utilized for centuries in terms of the healing by visiting 14 villages and 4 herbalist shops in Bozyazi. Lamiaceae, Asteraceae Orchidaceae, Rosaceae, Fabaceae and Geraniaceae have been determined as the most used families for therapeutic purposes. The study revealed that most of the residents concurred on the use of Sideritis erythrantha herba to cure respiratory diseases that demonstrated the highest fidelity level (89). 63 taxa have not matched with any studies conducted in and around the region. Conclusion: Throughout the research carried out Bozyazi district, it has been observed that people living in rural areas have more knowledge and experience about the use and benefits of plants, compared to the people living in the district center. It was detected that the medicinal plants have been used mostly in the therapy of Hemorrhoids. The most information is obtained from the mountain villagers and Yuruk nomads, having average ages of 463, during the whole study. In terms of ethnobotanical perspective, the district has stayed valuable due to the winding roads over the mountains and along the coast is very difficult to drive making Bozyazi too far from large cities and mass tourism centers. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.