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Field Tropical Ethnobotany

ITEC-Bocas del Toro

Panama

Carlos R. Ramirez, Ph.D.

Required Book :

Alexiades, M. N. Editor.  1996.  Selected Guidelines for Ethnobotancal Research:  A Field Manual.  The New York Botanical Garden.  Bronx, NY.

Recommende Book :

Smith, N. et al.  2001.Flowering Plants of the Neotropics.  Priceton University Press. Princeton, NJ.

Grading Policy

Students should arrange credit for the course through their home institutions.

Grades will be based on two written exams (10% each), one field practical exam (30%), group project participation (25 %) and an individual project (25%).

Tentative Schedule

Suggested Readings

1- Schultes, R. E. and S. von Reis, Editors. Ethnobotany, Evolution of a Discipline.             

           Timber Press.  Portland, OR.

2- Whitmore, T. C.  1999. An introduction to Tropical Rain Forests.  Oxford University Press.

3- Alexiades, M., N.  1996. Editor.  Selected Guidelines for Ethnobotanical

            research: A Field Manual.  The New York Botanical Garden.  Bronx, NY.

4- Lentz, D. and C. R. Ramirez-Sosa.  2003.  Ceren plant resources and diversity.  Pages 33-42

            in Sheets, P.  Before the Volcano Erupted: The Ancient Village of Central America. 

            University of Texas Press.  Austin, TX.

5- Plotkin, M.J.  1995.  The importance of ethnobotany for tropical forest conservation.  Pages

           147-156. In Schultes, R. E. and S. von Reis, Editors. Ethnobotany, Evolution of a    

           Discipline.  Timber Press.  Portland, OR.

6- Terborgh, J. 1992.  Diversity and the Tropical Rain Forest.  Scientific American Library. 

            New York, NY.  Pages 1-11 and 74-103.

Examples of Potential Research Projects (individual or group projects)

• Frei, B., O. Sticher, and M. Heinrich.  2000.  Zapotec and Mixtec use of tropical habitats for securing medicinal plants in Mexico,  Economic Botany 54(1): 72-81.
• Calderon, A. I., C. K. Angerhofer, J. M. Pezzuto, N. R. Farnsworth, R. Foster, R. Gupta, and D. D. Soejarto.  2000.  Forest plots as a tool to demonstrate the pharmaceutical potential of plants in a tropical forest on Panama.  Economic Botany 54(3): 278-294.
• Dahdouh-Guebas, F., C. Mathenge, J. G. Kairo, and N. Koedam.  2000.  Utilization of mangrove wood products around Mida Creek (Kenya) amongst subsistence and commercial users.  Economic Botany 54(4): 513-527.
• Gragson, T. L.  1997.  The use of underground plant organs and its relation to habitat selection among the Pumé Indians of Venezuela.  Economic Botany 51(4): 377-384.
• Ogle, B. M., H. T. Tuyet, H. N. Duyet, and N. X. Dung. 2003. Food, feed, or medicine: the multiple functions of edible wild plants in Vietnam. Economic Botany 57(1): 103-107. 
• Corlett, J. L., E. A. Dean, and L. E. Grivetti. 2003. Botanical diversity in an urban setting.  Economic Botany 57(30; 365-379.
• Fu, Y., H. Guo, A. Cheng, Y. Cui, and C. Padoch.  2003.  Relocating plants from Swidden fallows to gardens in Southwestern China.  Economic Botany 57(3): 389-402.
• Van den Eyden, V., E. Cueva, and O. Cabrera.  2003.  Wild foods from Southern Ecuador.  Economic Botany 57(4): 576-603.
• Cahill, J. P.  2003.  Ethnobotany of Chia, Salvia hispanica L. (Lamiaceae). Economic Botany 57(4): 604-618.y
• Velasquez Runk, J.  2002.  Wouman and Embera use and management of the fiber palm Astrocaryum standelayanum (Aracaceae) for Basketry in Eastern Panama.  Economic Botany 55(1): 72-82.

The following publications are available for consultation in the Field Station

• Henderson, A., G. Galeano, and R. Bernal.  1995.  Field Guide to the Palms of Americas.  Princeton University.  Princeton, NJ.
• Terborgh, J.  1992.  Diversity and the Rain Forest.  Scientific American Library.  New York, NY.
• Croat, T. B.  Flora of Barro Colorado Island.  1978.  Stanford University Press.  Stanford, CA.
• Maas, P. J. M. and L. Y. Th.  Westra 1993.  Neotropical Plant Families.  Koeltz Scientific Books.  Germany/USA.
• Whitmore, T. C.  1998.  An Introduction to Tropical Rain Forests. Second edition.  Oxford University Press.  Oxford, England.
• Luna, L. E. and P. Amaringo.  1991.  Ayahuasca Visions: the Religion Iconography of a Peruvian Shaman.  North Atlantic Books.  Berkeley, CA.
• Heywood, V. H.  1993. Flowering Plants of the World.  Oxford University Press.  New York, NY.