Biocultural diversity of herpetofauna in South Africa : State and relevance as a science-based policy tool for conservation and social inclusion

PhD (Science with Environmental Sciences), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus

The world’s regions of high biodiversity in general also have high cultural or linguistic diversity. Researchers noticed this coincidence and started to question whether the connection between the two diversities extended beyond their geographical co-occurrence. This concept of an inextricable connection between biological and cultural diversity became known as biocultural diversity and started being a research topic in the 1990s. Answering research questions about the interlinking of social and biological components of the world requires knowledge from different scientific fields. Ethnobiology which combines social and biological science methodology to investigate past and present relationships between biodiversity and people’s cultures, provided an ideal hybrid approach to investigate biocultural diversity. Through this approach that transcends scientific disciplines, the current research provides the first comprehensive analysis of the relationship between South African cultures and the country’s diversity of herptiles (frogs and reptiles). South Africa as a country rich in both biological and cultural diversity has a low number of biocultural diversity research in comparison to other research topics. Frogs and reptiles feature in many South African cultural practices and the interaction of South Africa’s cultures with the country’s herptile species is generally believed to be based on negative perceptions which pose a conservation threat for those species. This comprehensive analysis confirms conservation threats arising from traditional cultural practices in addition to highlighting prospects for social inclusion and just conservation planning that can be derived from the interactions of cultural diversity with biodiversity (specifically herptile diversity). Furthermore, the cultural importance of biodiversity can influence accumulation of primary biodiversity data that is used in biodiversity research and conservation. The study shows herptiles are important to various elements of people’s traditional cultures including language, entertainment, spirituality, traditional medicine and gastronomy. Within each element of culture there is either consumptive use of herptiles, or cultural practices are non-detrimental towards herptiles species. By increasing the understanding of the relationship between the two diversities, previously neglected perceptions of the natural environment are revealed along with cultural practices that promote or compel protection of nature. Increased understanding also makes it possible to extend the generic species names used by different cultures into individual names for all described species to enable better communication between specialists and society at large. Compiling comprehensive lists of species names in indigenous languages advances development of African languages and fosters learning about wildlife in vernacular. Cultural norms and practices relating to herptiles can provide opportunities to enhance teaching about herptiles by incorporating practical components of their importance to people. The conservation prospects and marginalised wildlife perspectives highlighted here can be incorporated into South African conservation planning to make conservation initiatives more just and inclusive towards South Africa’s diverse people and their contexts. From a policy perspective, this socially inclusive and just approach to conservation is attainable since South Africa’s environmental management principles provide for consideration of all perspectives and knowledge (including indigenous knowledge) in environmental management and decision-making. Ensuring that this and other biocultural diversity studies realise the ambitions of becoming science-based policy tools for conservation and social inclusion will require collaboration between various parties that are interested in and/or affected by the management of South Africa’s natural environment.

Doctoral