Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Metema and Quara districts, Northwestern Ethiopia
Abstract Background Wild edible plants (WEPs) are vital to enhance food security and generate income. Despite Ethiopia’s vast area and cultural diversity, there remains a need for further investigation of WEPs. Therefore, this study aimed to document WEPs, and the indigenous knowledge associated wit...
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| Language: | English |
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BMC
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-025-00761-9 |
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| author | Daniel Tadesse Getinet Masresha Ermias Lulekal Asmamaw Alemu |
| author_facet | Daniel Tadesse Getinet Masresha Ermias Lulekal Asmamaw Alemu |
| author_sort | Daniel Tadesse |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Wild edible plants (WEPs) are vital to enhance food security and generate income. Despite Ethiopia’s vast area and cultural diversity, there remains a need for further investigation of WEPs. Therefore, this study aimed to document WEPs, and the indigenous knowledge associated with them in the Metema and Quara districts of north-western Ethiopia. Methods Data on WEPs were collected through semi-structured interviews with 396 informants, guided field walks, focus group discussions, and market surveys. The data were analyzed using preference ranking, priority ranking, direct matrix ranking, and Jaccard’s index. Results We documented 51 WEPs that were distributed among 26 families and 39 genera. Fabaceae was the most represented family with eight species. Trees accounted for 49% of WEPs and were primarily consumed by their fruits (57%). Local communities usually consume these plants raw as a supplementary food, although some require processing. Of the recorded WEPs, 94.1% had multipurpose uses, in addition to nutrition. The main threats to WEPs availability were agricultural land expansion, fuelwood harvest, and construction use. Conclusions WEPs play a crucial role in enhancing food security, nutrition, and income generation for local communities. However, they are facing increasing threats from human activity. Therefore, sustainable utilization, conservation efforts, and collaboration among stakeholders are necessary for the future use of WEPs. Furthermore, a nutritional composition assessment is recommended for the most promising WEPs. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7c4a662c1a6f4b60ac689b52d68aff78 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1746-4269 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine |
| spelling | doaj-art-7c4a662c1a6f4b60ac689b52d68aff782025-02-09T12:50:56ZengBMCJournal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine1746-42692025-02-0121112710.1186/s13002-025-00761-9Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Metema and Quara districts, Northwestern EthiopiaDaniel Tadesse0Getinet Masresha1Ermias Lulekal2Asmamaw Alemu3Department of Plant Sciences, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, University of GondarDepartment of Biology, College of Natural and Computational Sciences, University of GondarDepartment of Plant Biology and Biodiversity Management, College of Natural and Computational Sciences, Addis Ababa UniversityDepartment of Forestry, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, University of GondarAbstract Background Wild edible plants (WEPs) are vital to enhance food security and generate income. Despite Ethiopia’s vast area and cultural diversity, there remains a need for further investigation of WEPs. Therefore, this study aimed to document WEPs, and the indigenous knowledge associated with them in the Metema and Quara districts of north-western Ethiopia. Methods Data on WEPs were collected through semi-structured interviews with 396 informants, guided field walks, focus group discussions, and market surveys. The data were analyzed using preference ranking, priority ranking, direct matrix ranking, and Jaccard’s index. Results We documented 51 WEPs that were distributed among 26 families and 39 genera. Fabaceae was the most represented family with eight species. Trees accounted for 49% of WEPs and were primarily consumed by their fruits (57%). Local communities usually consume these plants raw as a supplementary food, although some require processing. Of the recorded WEPs, 94.1% had multipurpose uses, in addition to nutrition. The main threats to WEPs availability were agricultural land expansion, fuelwood harvest, and construction use. Conclusions WEPs play a crucial role in enhancing food security, nutrition, and income generation for local communities. However, they are facing increasing threats from human activity. Therefore, sustainable utilization, conservation efforts, and collaboration among stakeholders are necessary for the future use of WEPs. Furthermore, a nutritional composition assessment is recommended for the most promising WEPs.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-025-00761-9Edible plantsEthnobotanyIndigenous knowledgeMetemaQuaraWild edible plants |
| spellingShingle | Daniel Tadesse Getinet Masresha Ermias Lulekal Asmamaw Alemu Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Metema and Quara districts, Northwestern Ethiopia Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine Edible plants Ethnobotany Indigenous knowledge Metema Quara Wild edible plants |
| title | Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Metema and Quara districts, Northwestern Ethiopia |
| title_full | Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Metema and Quara districts, Northwestern Ethiopia |
| title_fullStr | Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Metema and Quara districts, Northwestern Ethiopia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Metema and Quara districts, Northwestern Ethiopia |
| title_short | Ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in Metema and Quara districts, Northwestern Ethiopia |
| title_sort | ethnobotanical study of wild edible plants in metema and quara districts northwestern ethiopia |
| topic | Edible plants Ethnobotany Indigenous knowledge Metema Quara Wild edible plants |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-025-00761-9 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT danieltadesse ethnobotanicalstudyofwildedibleplantsinmetemaandquaradistrictsnorthwesternethiopia AT getinetmasresha ethnobotanicalstudyofwildedibleplantsinmetemaandquaradistrictsnorthwesternethiopia AT ermiaslulekal ethnobotanicalstudyofwildedibleplantsinmetemaandquaradistrictsnorthwesternethiopia AT asmamawalemu ethnobotanicalstudyofwildedibleplantsinmetemaandquaradistrictsnorthwesternethiopia |