Joseph Issaka Boussim

Medicinal plants in Baskoure, Kourittenga Province, Burkina Faso: an ethnobotanical study.

AIM OF THE STUDY The majority of people living in Kourittenga Province, Burkina Faso, are highly dependent on medicinal plants for their daily health care. Knowledge on the use of medicinal plants by traditional healers is being seriously threatened, due to the fact that it is commonly transferred from one generation to another only verbally. Moreover, recent environmental changes, deforestation, and unsustainable rates of exploitation, represent a serious risk for plant species diversity. Thus, there is a need to record and document indigenous knowledge on medicinal plants in this country. The aim of this study was to report on the use of medicinal plants by traditional healers to treat human diseases in a rural area located in the East-Centre Region of Burkina Faso (Baskoure Area), which has not yet been studied from an ethnobotanical point of view. MATERIALS AND METHODS The research was carried out over a period of 8 months, by means of open-ended and semi-structured interviews. A total of 41 traditional healers were interviewed, and group meetings were organised with family members and other local inhabitants having knowledge of traditional medicine. RESULTS A total of 190 plant species were recorded. Most medicinal plants used to prepare concoctions were herbs, and leaves were the most frequently used parts. A high percentage of plants were used against gastrointestinal diseases and malaria, which are the prevalent diseases in the study area. The major source of remedies came from wild plants, indicating that cultivation of medicinal plants is not a common practice. CONCLUSIONS Our study represents an inventory on medicinal plants used in a rural area of Burkina Faso, and confirms that wild plants are widely utilised as health remedies in this area. The collected data may help to avoid the loss of traditional knowledge on the use of medicinal plants detained by traditional healers, and represent the preliminary information required in view of a future phytochemical investigation on the most used plants.

Spectrum of plant species foraged by Apis mellifera adansonii Latreille in the North Sudanian phytogeographical region of Burkina Faso

Abstract Melissopalynological analysis of 60 honey samples collected from 50 Kenyan Top Bar Hives in the North Sudanian phytogeographical region of Burkina Faso established the plant species foraged by honeybees Apis mellifera adansonii. Forty-three pollen types from 29 families were identified in the honey samples. The most common families were Mimosaceae (9.30%), Asteraceae (6.98%) and Anacardiaceae (6.98%). The most frequently visited plants were Combretum (66.66%), Tridax procumbens (66.66), Acacia seyal-group (50%), Cleome viscosa-group (50%) and Cyperus esculentus (41.67%). The results showed that Apis mellifera adansonii is polylectic with a heterogeneous foraging behaviour. Pollen analysis showed that the honeys from the two main honey flows of Burkina Faso were polyfloral.

Allometric models to estimate foliage biomass of Tamarindus indica in Burkina Faso

Tamarindus indica L. is a multi-purpose tropical species. In West Africa the local people use its leaves daily as a source of food, medicine and income. To prevent the over-exploitation of this species for its use for non-timber forest products, the estimation of foliage production needs to be adressed. This study aimed to (1) assess the effects of distribution zone and tree size on foliage production of T. indica in Burkina Faso, and (2) develop allometric equations to estimate foliage biomass of this species. A semi-destructive method was used to assess foliage biomass of 120 trees over six stem-diameter size classes within two distribution zones (Sub-Sahelian and North-Sudanian). A two-way ANOVA was perfomed to test the effect of distribution zone and tree size class on foliage production. Allometric equations were fitted with 80% of the sample trees randomly selected and 20% were used for model validation. The results showed that between the two factors, tree size class exhibited a significant effect on foliage production of T. indica both in the Sub-Sahelian and North-Sudanian zones. Allometric equations to predict the foliage biomass of T. indica were similar for its distribution zones in Burkina Faso. Therefore, a general model is adequate for the prediction of foliage biomass of T. indica at a larger scale including a variety of ecological conditions. Stem diameter at 1.3 m aboveground was the most accurate predictor variable (adjusted R2 = 0.81) with a prediction error of −2.76%. This study opens up new potentials to develop and use allometric equations for West African trees of high socio-economic value in their effective and sustainable use for non-timber forest products.

The effects of physicochemical variables and tadpole assemblages on microalgal communities in freshwater temporary ponds through an experimental approach

BackgroundIn freshwater systems, microalgae are the major biomass of microorganisms. They occur in ecosystems that are largely structured by the climatic regime, the physical and chemical environments with which they interact, and the biological interactions that occur within them. Amphibian larvae are most present in standing water habitats where they are important primary and secondary consumers and even predators. Studies conducted in America and Europe have shown that tadpoles play an important role in the regulation of the algal community structure and water quality in ecosystems. This article aimed to study the effects of the physicochemical variables and tadpole assemblages of four species on microalgae in artificial freshwater ponds using an experimental approach in the Pendjari area, a flora and fauna reserve located in the extreme north-west of Benin.ResultsThe species of phytoplankton and periphyton recorded in ponds were among the taxonomical groups of chlorophytes, cyanophytes, euglenophytes, diatoms and dinoflagellates. Chlorophytes were the dominant group in the algal communities. Physicochemical variables affected the biomass of the different communities of algae in temporary freshwater ponds. Transparency and pond size were the most determinative variables of the structure of microalgae communities in ponds. Tadpoles of Kassina fusca, Ptychadena. bibroni, and Phrynomantis microps were important for the regulation of the water quality and algal community structure by grazing and filter-feeding.ConclusionsA decrease in the tadpole population in the artificial temporary ponds due to predation by carnivorous tadpoles of Hoplobatrachus occipitalis caused a disturbance of the algal community structure. This means that the decline of the amphibian population will critically lead to the impoverishment of ecosystems, thereby negatively influencing aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.