Harvesting and Supply Chain Analysis of Ethnobotanical Species in the Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve of India

Realizing the historical importance of central Indian forests in terms of ecological, social and economical perspectives and the present socio-economic changes in the community due to several reasons, the present study was conducted. It aimed at addressing the status of harvesting pattern and supply chain structure of various ethno-botanical species by the tribal communities in the Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve of India. The questionnaire surveys were conducted in the villages of buffer zone areas of the Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve and market places for studying the trends and status of collection, seasons of collection, prices, and supply chain of ethnobotanicals. A total 14 ethno-botanical species were found in active trade, and in majority of cases their gum, fruit and seed were collected. The gum yielding species such as Acacia nilotica, Anogeissus latifolia, Sterculia urens, Terminalia tomentosa and Terminalia arjuna were found to be highly paid species among all traded ethno-botanical species. The trade in ethnobotanicals and market trends seemed quite lucrative to the tribal communities and hence they have started unsustainable harvesting of tradable forest resources to get maximum returns unlike their ancestors. Of the total tradable ethnobotanical species 8 species have qualified to various threat categories of IUCN Red List. The results of this study are further discussed in view of the conservation and management of ethnobotanical species.