Volume 191, 15 September 2016, Pages 135–151
Review
- a Grupo
de Investigación de Recursos Etnobiológicos del Duero-Douro (GRIRED),
Facultad de Biología, Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca E-37071, Spain
- b Equipo de Antropología Social y Cultural, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Extremadura, Badajoz E-06006, Spain
- c Departamento de Terapéutica Médico-Quirúrgica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Extremadura, Badajoz E-06006, Spain
Abstract
Ethnopharmacological relevance
This
review documents the wide and varied repertoire of traditional
practices based on the use of wild vertebrates in Spanish
ethnoveterinary medicine (EVM) from the early 20th century to the
present. Empirical practices, both ritual and magical, are recorded, and
these EVM data are compared with those of other countries in the
Mediterranean Region and Latin America. The data collected here could
form a scientific foundation for future inventories of traditional
knowledge and help in the discovery of new drugs for livestock.
Materials and methods
A
qualitative systematic review of international and national databases
in the fields of ethnobiology, ethnoveterinary medicine, folklore and
ethnography was made. Information was obtained from more than 60
documentary sources.
Results
We
recorded the use of 30 wild vertebrates and a total of 84 empirical
remedies based on the use of a single species. The two most relevant
zoological groups are reptiles and mammals. A wide diversity of body
parts or products have been and are used. The meat and skin of snakes
are the animal products most commonly used. These zootherapeutic
resources have been and are used to treat or prevent ca. 50 animal
diseases or conditions, in particular digestive and reproductive
ailments, together with some infectious diseases. Sheep, cattle and
equines form the group of domestic animals in which the greatest number
of useful species are employed. In addition, many remedies and practices
of the magical type are documented. In comparison with other culturally
related areas, this is a rich heritage.
Conclusions
Contemporary
Spanish EVM practices amass a great richness of wild animal-based
remedies. A diversity of animal parts or products have been used,
offering a cultural heritage that could be a fundamental step in the
discovery of new and low-cost drugs for treating livestock and
alternative materials for pharmaceutical purposes. This overview
contributes to the inventory of some uses and rituals seriously
threatened by the progressive loss of local veterinary knowledge.
Graphical abstract
Abbreviations
- EVM, Ethnoveterinary medicine;
- TEK, Traditional Ecological Knowledge;
- LVK, local veterinary knowledge
Keywords
- Wild vertebrates;
- Ethnozoology;
- Zootherapy;
- Veterinary practices;
- Spain
© 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
