TRADITIONAL MEDICINAL PLANTS IN HADES FOREST, DOBA WEREDA, WEST HARARGHE, ETHIOPIA; LOCAL KNOWLEDGE, CONSERVATION STATUS AND THREATS

Abstract

Medicinal plants play a vital role in primary healthcare systems in Ethiopia, where access to modern medical services remains limited. This ethnobotanical study was conducted in Hades Forest and the surrounding communities of Doba Woreda, West Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia, to document traditional medicinal plant knowledge, assess patterns of use, and evaluate conservation status and threats. Data were collected from 120 informants, comprising 105 randomly selected general informants and 15 purposively selected key informants, using semi-structured interviews, guided field walks, and direct observations. Quantitative ethnobotanical indices, including preference ranking, Informant Consensus Factor (ICF), Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC), Relative Importance Index (RI), and Cultural Importance Index (CI), were applied to analyze medicinal plant use patterns and cultural significance. A total of 49 medicinal plant species belonging to 32 families were recorded for the treatment of human and livestock ailments. Ocimum lamiifolium and Verbascum sinaiticum were the most preferred species for medicinal use, while Echinops kebericho exhibited the highest RFC (74.1%) for livestock ailments and the highest Cultural Importance Index (0.7). Informant consensus was highest for dermatological disorders in humans and digestive disorders in livestock (ICF = 0.96). Traditional medicinal knowledge was predominantly transmitted orally within families, with elders possessing significantly greater knowledge than younger informants and general community members (P < 0.05). However, no significant differences in medicinal plant knowledge were observed across gender or educational levels (P > 0.05). Several medicinal plant species, including Cissampelos mucronata and Myrtus communis, were identified as increasingly threatened due to anthropogenic pressures such as deforestation and agricultural expansion. The study highlights the rich ethnomedicinal knowledge associated with Hades Forest, alongside the vulnerability of both medicinal plant resources and orally transmitted indigenous knowledge, emphasizing the need for locally tailored conservation and sustainable management strategies.