Tribal traditions and conservation perspectives of wild plants in Orakzai District, Pakistan

Abstract The present study deals with the traditional knowledge and conservation status of wild plant species in the tribal Orakzai district, an ecologically transitional zone between subtropical and temperate, which is still largely underexplored in quantitative and conservation ethnobotany. Semi-structured questionnaires and participatory observations were employed to interview local participants and plant specimens were collected in the study area. In total, 123 species belonging to 60 families and 112 genera were reported with multiple tribal applications. Trends in tribal practices and cultural outcomes of the reported taxa were assessed using quantitative indices including cultural importance index (CI), use diversity index (UDI), direct matrix ranking (DMR), informant consensus factor (I CF ), and Pearson correlation coefficient (PCC). Traditionally important medicinal plants, including Daphne papyracea, Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata, Salix babylonica, Berberis lycium, Hedera helix, and Pyrola chlorantha were identified in the surveys. Herbaceous species are the most common. Leaves, twigs and rhizomes were the main parts of the plants. The vulnerability status was determined by using a cross-referencing protocol based on a combination of community perceptions, field observations, IUCN categories and Kew’s predicted extinction risks. With this integrated protocol, 37% of species were classified as highly vulnerable, 19% as moderately threatened and 43% as least vulnerable. The study concludes that there is a dire need for plant conservation and preservation of tribal ecological knowledge.