A Stem-based Ethnobotanical Quantification of Potential Rain Forest Use by Mirañas in NW Amazonia

Abstract

Potential plant uses in Colombian Amazonia were analyzed in relation to landscape, stem diameter, habit, and family taxonomy, on the basis of one experienced informant and applying a 2.5 cm diameter cut-off. In 30 0.1 - ha plots, 13,934 plant stems were recorded, 90% of which had some kind of usefulness. The proportion of useful stems was lowest in floodplain and highest in swamp and white sand plots. Between 0 and 11% of the useful stems in the plots were from lianas. Fuel uses were important. Thicker stems were more useful for Food and Animal Food than slender stems. In logistic regression, family taxonomy had a stronger effect on the probability of stem usefulness than DBH, habit (liana or not) or landscape. Individual plants from one family (or genus or species) often show little variation in usefulness, hampering the binary analysis by means of logistic regression of use against plant taxonomy.