An Ethnobotanical Assessment of Plant-Based Veterinary Remedies Practiced by Indigenous Communities in Bastar

Abstract

The present study was conducted to assess the ethnobotanical knowledge of plant-based veterinary remedies practiced by indigenous communities in Bastar division, Chhattisgarh, India. The primary objectives were to document the diversity of medicinal plants used in ethnoveterinary practices, identify the dominant plant families and plant parts employed, and evaluate the informant consensus on disease categories treated. A cross-sectional ethnobotanical survey was adopted employing semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and participatory field walks among 120 informants from Gond, Muria, Maria, and Bhattra tribal communities across 15 villages during 2019–2021. The hypothesis posited that indigenous communities of Bastar possess a rich and structured system of plant-based veterinary healthcare that remains largely undocumented. Data were analyzed using informant consensus factor (Fic), use value (UV), and fidelity level (FL). The results revealed that 58 medicinal plant species belonging to 34 families were utilized for treating 26 veterinary ailments in cattle, goats, and poultry. Fabaceae and Solanaceae emerged as the dominant families, while leaves were the most frequently used plant part (38.6%). The highest Fic was recorded for gastrointestinal disorders (0.89), followed by dermatological ailments (0.85). It is concluded that the Bastar region harbors significant ethnoveterinary knowledge that warrants systematic documentation, pharmacological validation, and integration into primary animal healthcare delivery systems.