Ethnobotany of medicinal plants used in Eastern Mallorca (Balearic Islands, Mediterranean Sea)

Ethnopharmacological relevance

This paper represents the first large-scale ethnobotanical study in the island of Mallorca, and provides significant information on pharmaceutical plant uses, built up from interviews with native people from this touristic hotspot, demonstrating its ethnopharmacological importance.

Aim of the study

To collect, analyse and evaluate the ethnobotanical knowledge concerning medicinal plants in a north-eastern Mallorcan area (municipalities of Artà, Capdepera and Son Servera; 298 km², 31,764 inhabitants).

Materials and methods

We performed semi-structured interviews with 42 informants (mean age 77; 40% women, 60% men), identified the plant taxa reported and analysed the results, comparing them with those found in the current Mallorcan ethnobotanical information and in other territories.

Results

The informants reported data on 121 human medicinal plants representing 64 botanical families. Around 45 medicinal uses reported, concerning 37 species, have not or have very rarely been cited as medicinal. An index of medicinal importance is proposed.

Conclusions

All efforts addressed to compiling ethnobotanical information in industrialised or touristised areas such as Eastern Mallorca are still valuable. New possibilities can be explored to give practical value to Mallorcan ethnobotanical data in the frame of considering traditional plant knowledge as part of the islanders’ lifestyle and healthy habits.