The status and perception of medicinal plants by local population of Talassemtane National Park (Northern Morocco)

The humans have the capacity to transmit knowledge to other individuals remote in space and time by verbal and written means. Ethno-pharmacology is based on approaches from the sociocultural and natural sciences. Ethnobotanical research in the Talassemtane National Park was undertaken following a perspective to establish the base of comparative study with Andalusian and Sicilian regions. The aim of these studies was to analyze the data regarding interviewees (socio-demographic), status, perception of inhabitants of the Northern Morocco, confidence in the healing properties of medicinal plants, and conserving the traditional medicinal heritage of the Talassemtane National Park (TLSNP). This study was conducted in the National Park of Talassemtane for a three-year survey (2014-2017). In total, 200 local traditional informers were interviewed to explore the traditional ethnobotanical and ethno-pharmacological knowledge of the local population. Information was collected using open-ended and semi-structured interviews, followed by the analysis of data regarding the interviewees (socio-demographic) and the ethnobotanical or ethno-pharmacological data. In this study, we have identified a total of 152 medicinal plant species belonging to 44 botanical families. The most important family is that of the Apiaceae represented by 31 species. We identified 567 symptoms and diseases for the 152 taxa belonging to 44 included families, with a total of 9402 use reports (UR). They are used to treat up to 123 conditions or symptoms classified into 15 pathological groups according to the ICPC-2 classification of diseases. Concerning the diseases, the main pathological group treated is the one for digestive symptoms (D, 24%). The results show that 50 % of the local population still prefer to use traditional medicine for daily healthcare, and a few of them support these traditional medicines along with conventional drugs. The analysis of data obtained in this ethnobotanical study allowed us to identify the most commonly used medicinal plants in the TLSNP. The knowledge reported in this study is a very original source of information on the local traditional medical flora and provide an additional value to the emblematic Talassemtane National Park.