Ethnobotany of Mangroves and Mangrove Associates In Capiz Province Western Philippines

Harold O. Buenvenida
Capiz Ecology and Conservation Center, College of Agriculture and Fisheries
Capiz State University, Bailan Pontevedra, Capiz Philippines 5802
hobuenvenida@capsu.edu.ph / hobuenvenida@up.edu.ph

ABSTRACT

Historically, humans have utilized the mangroves for various purposes; food, medicine, building material
and structures and fuel or firewood-among others. This paper explored the traditional uses and cultural
connections of mangroves and mangrove associates in the province of Capiz, Panay Island, Western
Philippines. This study is a part of a large investigation of the mangrove ecosystems in the province of
Capiz. A survey was done and documented the ethnobotanical uses, particularly the medicinal use of
mangroves and its associated species present in the provinces’ coastal municipalities

Fieldwork coupled with semi-structured interviews and checklists were utilized to gather
relevant data. The plant importance was determine quantitatively by use report ( UR), use value ( UV)
and importance value ( IV). A total of 33 species were accounted including the true mangrove species
and the mangrove associates. These were the plant species found to have different medicinal and
traditional healing properties and usage. Nypa fruticans yielded a high importance value (0.83) because
of its utility , both species of Rhizopora yielded a high use report value, due to it common use as fodder
and purgative use. For the mangrove associates, Barringtonia asiatica commonly known as
bulobitoon has high use report and importance values the same with Ceasalpinia bonduc commonly
known as salimomonog. This study can open avenues for further pharmacological and health research
exploring the potentials of the mangrove resources present in our locality.
 

Keywords: mangroves, ethnobotany, medicinal plants, mangrove associates, TEK