MEDICINAL PLANT ECOLOGY~ KNOWLEDGE AND CONSERVATION

IN KALIMANTAN~ INDONESIA 1

IZEFRI C A N I A G O AND STEPHEN E SIEBERT 2

Caniago, Izefri (USAID NRMP2, Jl. Madiun 3, Jakarta Pusat, 10230, Indonesia) and Stephen
F. Siebert (School of Forestry, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812). MEDICINALPLANT
ECOLOGY, KNOWLEDGEAND CONSERVATIONIN KALIMANTAN,INDONESIA.Economic Botany
52(3)229-250. 1998. This study documents the abundance, distribution and knowledge of me-
dicinal plant species in a Ransa Dayak village and adjoining forest in West Kalimantan, In-
donesia. Over 250 medicinal plant species from 165 genera and 75families are utilized by the
local healer. Late successional, primary and river bench forests contained the highest diversity
of locally-utilized medicinal species and the greatest number of species restricted to a single
forest type for which alternative species or remedies were unavailable. Epiphytes and trees
restricted to primary forests are particularly important sources for plants used to treat unusual
ailments. A 100% survey of village residents 15 years of age and older (N = 32) revealed that
people older than 25 years of age, and older females in particular, possessed greater knowledge
of medicinal plants and their uses than younger people and males. All residents, except the
male healer, were more knowledgeable about medicinal plants found in early successional
forests than those of primary forests. Commercial logging and the loss of traditional knowledge
through acculturation pose twin challenges to the persistence of traditional medicinal plant use
in this Ransa village and throughout much of Kalimantan.

Penelitian ini mengumpulkan informasi mengenai keberadaan, penyebaran dan pengetahuan

tentang jenis tumbuhan obat di daerah perkampungan Daya' Ransa dengan hutan sekitarnya
di Kalimantan Barat, Indonesia. Lebih dari 250 spesies tumbuhan obat dari 165 genus dan 75
suku digunakan oleh dukun setempat. Hutan sekunder tua, hutan primer dan daerah hutan
sepanjang pinggir sungai merupakan tipe hutan yang memiliki keanekaragaman dan jenis tum-
buhan obat paling tinggi yang hanya tumbuh di tipe hutan tersebut serta tidak adanya jenis
tumbuhan obat pengganti untuk mengobati penyakit yang sama di tipe hutan lain. Jenis epipit
dan pohon yang ditemukan khusus di hutan primer mempunyai arti sangat penting bagi ma-
syarakat karena digunakan untuk menogobati jenis penyakit yang tidak biasa. Dari survey
100% yang dilakukan terhadap penghuni desa yang usianya lebih dari 15 tahun (N = 32)
diketahui bahwa penduduk yang berusia lebih dari 25 tahun, terutama perempuan berusia tua,
mempunyai pengetahuan yang lebih banyak mengenai pemanfaatan tumbuhan obat dibanding-
kan dengan laki-laki dan perempuan yang lebih muda. Seluruh penduduk, kecuali sang dukun,
lebih mengetahui pemanfaatan tumbuhan obat yang tumbuh di hutan sekunder muda diban-
dingkan dengan tumbuhan obat yang tumbuh di hutan primer. Kegiatan pembalakan hutan
berskala besar (HPH) dan hilangnya pengetahuan tradisional lewat perubahan budaya adalah
dua tantangan yang dihadapi untuk dapat mempertahankan pemakaian dan melestarikan tum-
buhan obat di kampung ini khususnya dan di seluruh Kalimantan umumnya.
Key Words: medicinal plants; abundance and distribution; secondary forest; primary forest;
Ransa Dayak; acculturation; Indonesia.

Many rural people throughout the tropics rely
on medicinal plants because of their effective-
ness, a lack of modern medical alternatives, and
cultural preference (Balick, Elisabetsky and Laird
1996; Plotkin and Famolare 1992). On a global
~Received 6 March 1997; accepted 28 December
1997.
2 Correspondence.
basis, approximately 80% of the world's popula-
tion is believed to rely, to some extent, on me-
dicinal plants (Famsworth 1988), yet fewer than
10% of the world's approximately 250000 flow-
ering plant species have been examined for phar-
maceutical properties (Stix 1993). Moreover, little
is known about the abundance and distribution of
medicinal plants or the effect of timber harvesting
on medicinal plant populations.

Economic Botany 52(3) pp. 229-250. 1998

9 1998 by The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY 10458 U.S.A.
230 ECONOMIC BOTANY
Indigenous forest-dwelling peoples tend to be
particularly dependent upon medicinal plants
and often possess exceptional medicinal plant
knowledge (Comerford 1996; Johnston and Col-
quhoun 1996; Milliken and Albert 1996). How-
ever, exposure to modem culture, increased
trade, and access to modem conveniences (in-
cluding modem medicines) are altering the dis-
tribution and extent of local knowledge and use
of medicinal plants in these societies (Leach
1994; Plotldn 1988; Rocheleau 1995).
The availability of medicinal plants is also re-
duced by forest conversion and land degrada-
tion. For example, millions of hectares of forests
in Kalimantan, Indonesian have been converted
to secondary forests, agricultural fields and
grasslands through intensive timber harvesting
and shifting cultivation by recent immigrants
and indigenous inhabitants. Furthermore, most
remaining forests are under contract to timber
concessionaires and are scheduled to be logged
within the next decade (Primack and Lovejoy
1995). Timber harvesting generally results in a
simplification of forest structure and damage to
the residual stand. In Sabah, Malaysia, for ex-
ample, Nussbaum, Anderson and Spencer
(1995) found that 30% of the total ground sur-
face was impacted by logging roads and skid
trails, and that fully 80% of the forest was dis-
turbed in felling operations. Logging also alters
soil and hydrologic regimes; raises ground and
interior forest illumination levels; increases the
intensity and variability of diurnal temperature
and humidity conditions; and results in soil com-
paction, reduced water infiltration, and reduced
plant growth (Bruijnzeel 1991; Nussbaum, An-
derson and Spencer 1995).
Following disturbance (whether natural tree
fall, logging or shifting cultivation), secondary
vegetation usually quickly reestablishes. While
secondary rain forest succession varies, early
secondary forests frequently differ from late
successional and primary forests in that they are
less diverse and relatively simple in terms of for-
est structure (Whitmore 1984). Secondary for-
ests developed following shifting cultivation dif-
fer from those succeeding logging in that they
are usually more uniform in size and age, are
dominated by one or a few species, and contain
residual crop and herbaceous weeds (Richards
1996).
Timber harvesting and forest clearing may al-
ter the abundance and distribution of medicinal
[VOL. 52
plants. In fact, entire life forms may disappear
given severe disturbance. For example, the
growth and reproduction of epiphytes (an im-
portant group of medicinal plants) can be ad-
versely affected by slight micro-climatic
changes and the loss of specific bark conditions
found only on certain mature canopy trees
(Whitmore 1984).
Rapid social change and acculturation can
also affect local knowledge of and interest in
medicinal plant use. Forest-dwelling inhabitants
of Kalimantan, such as the Dayak, now compete
with commercial logging for agricultural land
and forest resources. Consequently, these soci-
eties are now exposed to radically different val-
ues and economic opportunities (Denslow and
Padoch 1988; Padoch and Peluso 1996).
This study explores the implications of com-
mercial logging and acculturation on the avail-
ability and knowledge of medicinal plant species
in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, a region expe-
riencing extensive timber harvesting and rapid
social change. Specifically, we describe medic-
inal plant species and their uses in a Ransa Day-
ak village, the abundance and distribution of me-
dicinal plants in eight locally-recognized forest
types, and the extent of medicinal plant knowl-
edge and use among local people by age and
gender.
RESEARCH SITE AND METHODS
RESEARCH SITE
This study was conducted in the Dayak vil-
lage and adjoining forests of Nanga Juoi, West
Kalimantan, Indonesia (112~ and 0~
Nanga Juoi is located near the Bukit Baka/Bukit
Raya National Park and a large forest conces-
sion operated by PT Kurnia Kuala Kapuas
(PTKKK). Vegetation in the area ranges from
lowland dipterocarp to montane forests and con-
tains a rich assemblage of the region's flora and
fauna (Nooteboom 1987), including an estimat-
ed 2000-4000 vascular plant species (Davis
1995).
Nanga Juoi (population 16 households; 32
adults) is inhabited by a Dayak sub-group
known as the Ransa who report living in the area
for generations. Many villagers observe tradi-
tional practices, including extensive use of me-
dicinal plants. In recent years, large-scale timber
harvesting involving forest clearing and con-
struction of logging roads, and the establishment
1998] CANIAGO & SIEBERT: MEDICINAL PLANT ECOLOGY, KALIMANTAN 231

TABLE 1. FORESTCLASSIFICATIONAMONGTHE RANSA DAYAK OF NANGA JUOI.

Ransa term Ecological phase Key characteristics Sampling methodology

Tempalai initial secondary suc- 1 yr. after cessation shift- 382 x 2mplots
cession ing cultivation
Bawas young secondary for-
est
baling early plants to l0 cm dbh, age 23 2 x 2 m plots
1-4 yrs.
beliung late plants to 20 cm dbh, age 11 10 X 10 m plots
4-10 yrs.
Agung old secondary forest
kelengang early plants 20-40 cm dbh, age 23 2 x 100 m plots
10-20 yrs.
tua late plants 40-80 cm dbh, un- 30 2 X 100 m plots
cultivated 40+ yrs.
Rimba primary forest species rich, structurally 7 2 m x 1 km transects
diverse, never cultivat-
ed
Bekas tebang logged forest logged 1994 3 2 m x 1 km transects
Pinggir Sungai river bench forest species rich, protected, 10 10 X 10 m plots
never cultivated

of a national park (and subsequent prohibition
against traditional forest farming and collecting
activities) has altered both the physical environ-
ment and traditional village life (Belsky 1992).
In 1994, the timber concessionaire constructed
roads connecting the village and primary forest
and began widespread logging.
RESEARCH METHODS
We utilized a variety of research methods to
conduct this study including: participant obser-
vation, formal and informal surveys of all vil-
lage residents age 15 years and older, and estab-
lishment of random sample plots and line tran-
sects of varying size and lengths in eight locally-
recognized forest types. Initial plant collecting
and interviews with knowledgeable healers from
Nanga Juoi and neighboring villages were con-
ducted between 1992 and 1995. A regionally-
recognized healer from the village, Udat bin
Badung (age 63), served as principal informant.
A detailed ethnobotanical survey, including col-
lection of voucher specimens of all medicinal
species utilized by the healer, and extensive plot
and transect sampling was completed in 1995.
Medicinal plant specimens were identified in the
local vernacular by the healer and in scientific
nomenclature by taxonomists from Herbarium
Bogoriense, Indonesia. Much of the voucher ma-
terial was available in sterile condition only and
thus could be identified to genus only. Where
the healer and botanical interpretations differed,
we recorded both (i.e., in several instances the
healer identified distinct species that herbarium
botanists considered single species).
The Ransa Dayak of Nanga Juoi have devel-
oped a forest classification system which they
use to demarcate hunting areas, swidden farms,
and sites for medicinal plant collecting. The
Ransa classification system includes four pri-
mary successional stages reflecting the transition
from abandonment of recently cultivated swid-
dens through primary forest and parallels that
described by tropical ecologists (Richards 1996;
Whitmore 1984) (Table 1). Like its scientific
counterpart, the Ransa system is based on a pro-
gression from a single layer of shade-intolerant
pioneer species through development of struc-
turally complex, species-rich dipterocarp domi-
nated forests.
The distribution of forest types in Nanga Juoi
is complex because of the patchy distribution of
both agricultural activities and the typically
patchy distribution of tropical plants (Gentry
1991). In 1994, the number of young fallow sites
was small relative to old fallow, recently logged
forest, and primary forest. Furthermore, unlike
primary and logged forest, swiddens typically
232 ECONOMIC BOTANY
TABLE 2. THE NUMBER OF MEDICINAL PLANT SPE-
CIES BY LIFE FORM.
Number of
Life form species
Epiphyte 15
Fern 14
Herb 65
Shrub 15
Tree 81
Vines 45
Aquatic plants
TOTAL 237
occur in clusters near settlements and in areas
with favorable soil and slope conditions. Thus,
we used a variety of methods to sample the
abundance and distribution of medicinal plants
in the different forest types (Table 1).
In the earliest successional stage (tempalai),
where densities of some medicinal species were
very high, we established 38 2 • 2m random
sample plots. In young secondary forest (bawas
baling), which had high densities of relatively
few medicinal species, and occupied a smaller
area, we established 23 2 • 2m plots. In later
successional stages where densities of individual
medicinal plants were lower and land areas larg-
er, but sites remained clustered, we sampled us-
ing larger sample plots and line transects, spe-
cifically: 11 10 • 10m plots in early young suc-
cessional sites (bawas beliung), 23 100 • 2m
plots in early old sites (agung kelengank), and
30 100 • 2m plots in late successional sites
(agung tua). In primary and logged forests,
where plant densities were low, land areas large,
and sites not clustered, we sampled using 2m
wide • 1000m long transects (three in recently
logged forest between the park and the village
and seven in primary forests). Finally, in fiver
bench forests (pinggir sungai) we sampled using
ten 10 • 10m plots. In each sample plot or tran-
sect, the identity, life form, and number of each
medicinal species was noted. If locally-impor-
tant medicinal plants were not recorded in any
sample plots, the healer was asked to provide
information regarding their relative abundance,
distribution, and site preferences. These methods
follow guidelines recommended by Hall and
Bawa (1993).
To ascertain the extent of medicinal plant
knowledge and use among people in Nanga Juoi,
we interviewed all village residents 15 years of
[VOL. 52
age and older (n = 32). Formal surveys were
completed at the end of the research period after
villagers had become familiar with the study and
researchers. We also spoke to all village resi-
dents on an informal basis to corroborate the
survey data and to gather additional information.
In the surveys, people were asked if they knew
the identity and use of all of the medicinal plants
utilized by the healer. They were also asked to
identify the specific ailments treated with each
plant, the plant part used, and how it was used.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
THE IDENTITY AND U S E OF
MEDICINAL PLANTS
The healer of Nanga Juoi identifies and uses
over 250 medicinal species from at least 165
genera and 75 families; 163 of these plants were
identified to species level (Appendix 1). Trees
were the primary source of medicinal plants in
terms of number of species (81), followed by
herbs (65) and vines (45). Epiphytes, ferns, and
aquatic plants comprised a smaller proportion of
the medicinal plant flora (Table 2).
These medicinal plants are used to treat a
wide variety of ailments in Nanga Juoi, includ-
ing: those of the skin, eye and ear; to treat head-
aches, provide astringents, relieve toothache
pain; and to treat general and specific problems
associated with the respiratory, circulatory, di-
gestive, nervous and reproductive systems (Ap-
pendix 1). Some species are used on a regular
basis to treat common ailments (particularly
headaches, fever, skin ailments and digestive
problems), while others are only occasionally
used to treat specific and unusual ailments such
as those used for treating heart disorders and
kidney diseases. It is difficult to state which me-
dicinal plants are most important to the Ransa
Dayak. As Grenand (1992) has noted, the term
"useful species" does not have the same mean-
ing for all cultures and probably not for all in-
dividuals within a society. In fact, the Nanga
Juoi healer, Udat bin Badung, observed that "all
plants in the forest are useful" to the Ransa.
Similar values are found in other cultures, such
as the Mende of West Africa who report that
"We Mende feel that all plants can be medi-
cines." (Leach 1994).
THE ABUNDANCE AND DISTRIBUTION OF
MEDICINAL PLANTS
Medicinal plants as identified by the Ransa of
Nanga Juoi are abundant and widely distributed
1998] CANIAGO & SIEBERT: MEDICINAL PLANT ECOLOGY, KALIMANTAN
TABLE 3. MEDICINAL PLANT SPECIES DIVERSITY
AND ABUNDANCE BY FOREST TYPE.
Number Total
of density
Forest type species (per ha)
Initial Secondary 37 132 271
Young Secondary (early) 29 94 990
(old) 36 24491
Old Secondary (early) 79 9112
(old) 28 5806
Primary 42 744
Logged 18 1108
River Bench 61 37 750
in the forests around Nanga Juoi (Table 3). Me-
dicinal plant diversity was highest in old sec-
ondary forest (79 species), river bench (61 spe-
cies), and primary forest sites (42 species), and
lowest in logged (18 species) and early succes-
sional forests (29-37 species). Not surprisingly,
individual plant population densities were high-
est in early successional and logged forests
where several species were observed in very
high densities. Thus, medicinal plant popula-
tions appear to exhibit the same general diver-
sity and density patterns characteristic of tropi-
cal forests, namely: high species diversity, but
low individual population densities in late suc-
cessional and primary forests, and low species
diversity, but large populations of a few species
in early successional stages.
Analysis of species-sampling curves in the
sample plots revealed that the number of species
recorded in young secondary, primary, logged,
and river bench forests reflected actual plant
species richness (i.e., species-sampling curves
were flat at the conclusion of the sampling; no
new species were recorded in the latter sample
plots). However, the curve was still rising in old
secondary forest sites (agung kelengang), which
suggests that more species may occur in this for-
est type than were actually recorded.
The abundance and distribution of medicinal
plants is affected by successional stage and com-
petition over such factors as light. Thus, it is not
surprising that populations vary by life form in
different forest types. Epiphytic medicinal
plants, for example, are restricted to primary,
river bench, and late successional forests where
vegetation is older, forest structure more com-
plex, and specific micro-environmental condi-
tions required for growth and reproduction exist.
233
TABLE 4. T H E NUMBER OF MEDICINAL PLANT SPE-
CIES WITH RESTRICTED DISTRIBUTIONS.
Number of restricted species
Recorded Reposed by
Forest type in plots memcme man
Initial Secondary 1 6
Young Secondary 2 6
Old Secondary 4 13
Primary Forest l0 15
In contrast, shade intolerant herbaceous medic-
inal plants dominate the early successional forest
types.
Seventeen medicinal species were restricted to
a specific forest type as determined through
sampling (40 species according to the healer)
(Table 4). Primary forests contained the largest
number (10) of restricted species (15 according
to the healer). If successional phases are grouped
into young and old stages, the results are even
more pronounced; 13 species were restricted to
young successional stages and 53 species were
restricted to late successional and primary for-
ests. Obviously, early successional environments
are ill-suited for certain primary forest species
(e.g., those requiring low-light, constant temper-
atures, high humidity, and specific structural
characteristics). Conversely, all of the medicinal
plants restricted to early successional stages are
common elsewhere in Indonesia (i.e., Blumea
balsamifera, Mallotus paniculatus, Melastoma
affine, Pityrogramma tartarea, Urena lobata,
and Cassia alata (Wijayakusuma, 1996).
Traditionally, the residents of Nanga Juoi
maintained small areas of primary forests (gu-
pung) for religious reasons. These forests have
reportedly remained free of agriculture for hun-
dreds of years, but are used for collecting me-
dicinal plants. River bench forests contain high
medicinal species diversity and high population
density values (13 000/ha) in comparison to oth-
er forest types. Thus, river bench forests may be
a particularly important reserve for medicinal
species in Kalimantan, just as Peruvian Amazon
flood plain forests were found to be the most
ethnobotanically important forest type (Phillips
et al. 1994).
While the maintenance of small forest re-
serves may contribute to the conservation of me-
dicinal plants, small reserves can not insure their
long-term survival. For example, Turner, et al.
234 ECONOMIC BOTANY
TABLE 5. IMPACTS OF MEDICINAL PLANT HAR-
VESTING BY LIFE FORM.
Number of species
Epi- Aquat-
Harvesting type phyte Fern Herb Shrub Tree Vine lC
Destructive 12 2 25 4 21 11
Non-destructive 3 12 40 11 60 34
(1995) recorded a 51% loss of plant species rich-
ness over a 100 year period in a 4 ha lowland
rainforest fragment in Singapore, with shade tol-
erant understorey shrubs, climbers and epiphytes
showing particularly high extinction rates. Ex-
tensive logging and the creation of isolated for-
est patches will pose similar problems for the
conservation of medicinal plant species around
Nanga Juoi. Similar patterns probably occur
throughout Kalimantan as a result of extensive
timber harvesting.
The future availability of medicinal species
may also be affected by destructive harvesting
practices (i.e., if the entire plant or roots are har-
vested) (Table 5). Epiphytes are the most threat-
ened plant type in this regard; fully 80% of epi-
phytic medicinal plant harvesting is fatal. This
could be of significant medical importance be-
cause 11 out of 15 epiphytic medicinal species
treat illnesses for which alternative remedies are
unavailable. For example, Mapania cuspidata,
an epiphyte restricted to primary forests, is used
to treat heart ailments and no alternative species
or remedies are available. After epiphytes, tree
species restricted to primary forests warrant spe-
cial conservation attention as 21 medicinal trees
are harvested in a destructive manner.
MEDICINAL PLANT KNOWLEDGE AMONG
RESIDENTS OF NANGA JUt!
The residents of Nanga Juoi possess widely
varying knowledge of medicinal species and
their uses (Table 6). In general, older people and
older females, in particular, are more knowl-
edgeable about medicinal plants than young peo-
ple and males. Men and women over the age of
25 could identify and describe the use, on av-
erage, of 46% of the medicinal plants utilized by
the healer, or twice as many as younger people
(23%). Older females were the most knowledge-
able group; they could identify and describe the
uses of 50% of all species, while young males
could identify only 11%.
[VOL. 52
TABLE 6. MEDICINAL PLANT KNOWLEDGE AMONG
NANGA J u o I RESIDENTS.
Mean
medicinal
plant Number
Resident group knowledge (N = 32)
1 All males 26% 12
1 All females 42 20
People older than 25 46 11
People younger than 25 23 21
Males older than 25 41 9
Males younger than 25 11 3
Females older than 25 50 12
Females younger than 25 34 8
Only three people in the village could identify
and describe 75-100% of the medicinal plants
utilized by the healer. This included two older
women and one older man. Overall, 38% of the
villagers had very limited knowledge (0-25%)
of medicinal plants. Informal discussions with
villagers revealed that young men were interest-
ed in medicinal plants primarily for increasing
sexual potency and providing supra-natural abil-
ities, while young women were interested in
them for treating menstrual problems and as cos-
metics.
Although the primary healer in Nanga Juoi is
a man (a position based on his extensive medic-
inal knowledge), women are generally more
knowledgeable about medicinal plants than men
and are the primary medicinal healers in other
Ransa Dayak communities. Gender differences
with respect to plant knowledge and use is wide-
spread in many rural societies and reflects the
fact that women tend to be more responsible for
family and especially child health care, and a
division of labor in which women often tend
fields and gardens (Leach 1994; Rocheleau
1995). In Nanga Juoi, women work in swiddens
that are located near the village and that were
cleared from secondary forests. This may ex-
plain their greater familiarity with medicinal
plants found in early successional environments.
In contrast, older men are more knowledgeable
about medicinal species found in primary forests
(traditional male activities involved hunting and
forest product collecting in primary forests in
the proposed national park). Younger males no
longer hunt and collect rattan as did their elders,
but instead work as commercial loggers where
they learn little about medicinal plants. For ex-
ample, Doyo bin Udat, the 20 year old son of
1998] CANIAGO & SIEBERT: MEDICINAL PLANT ECOLOGY, KALIMANTAN
the healer, could identify only 9% of the medic-
inal plants prescribed by his father.
All villagers (young and old) were more fa-
miliar with medicinal plants of early succession-
al environments (e.g., ferns and herbs) than
those found in primary forest. Seventy medicinal
species were used by more than half of all vil-
lagers and over half of these occur in young sec-
ondary forests or are cultivated. Only 12 species
(17%) were from primary forest. These regularly
used species are used to treat common ailments
such as headaches and fevers, skin problems,
and diarrhea, and to enhance general health and
fertility. Voeks (1996) observed similar patterns
in coastal Brazil where he found that second
growth forests yielded 2.7 times the number of
medicinal species as primary forests and that
healers demonstrated a strong preference for hu-
man-disturbed areas. Voeks attributed this to the
high relative availability and intrinsic value of
disturbance species, as well as the increasing
rarity of primary forests and acculturation (i.e.,
loss of traditional plant knowledge). The Ransa
Dayak of Nanga Juoi appear to be in transition
along this continuum with the healer still utiliz-
ing primarily primary, river bench and late fal-
low forest species, while villagers are more
knowledgeable about early successional species
and young people have little medicinal plant
knowledge at all.
The Ransa recognize two primary types of
medicinal plant knowledge and treatment: plants
that contain natural compounds used for the
treatment of specific ailments and specialized
plants that contain both natural compounds and
provide supra-natural powers. The former are
frequently used' by the healer and villagers alike,
while supra-natural plants are used only by the
healer. Knowledge of supra-natural plants is ac-
quired through dreams and extensive knowledge
of the forest. Leach (1994) describes a very sim-
ilar pattern of medicinal plant knowledge and
use among the Mende of West Africa where
healers regularly visit primary forest not only to
collect specific medicinal species, but also to
seek assistance from forest spirits to learn of
new medicines and as a means of demonstrating
their bravery and power to other villagers.
Medicinal plant knowledge, use, and the
transfer of knowledge to younger generations
can be affected by religious beliefs. In Nanga
Juoi, visiting Protestant clergy discourage the
use of medicinal plants because they consider it
235
a form of traditional magic. However, only one
villager indicated that he would not use medic-
inal species for this reason and his wife reported
using them to the same extent as other villagers.
Catholic priests, on the other hand, do not dis-
courage villagers from using medicinal plants.
Increased contact with outsiders (i.e., loggers
and teachers), improved transportation and the
growing availability of modern medicines are al-
tering the knowledge and use of traditional plant
medicines. While all villagers expressed interest
in learning about medicinal plants, most stated
that they preferred biomedical alternatives, par-
ticularly for treating headaches, light fevers, and
mild stomach aches due to their perceived great-
er effectiveness. The high cost of traditional me-
dicinal treatment (i.e., the healer expects pay-
ment, such as a chicken, for providing care and
even more for sharing knowledge) appears to
discourage the use of traditional medicines by
some Nanga Juoi villagers, particularly if less
expensive biomedical alternatives are available.
Finally, no one is currently apprenticing with the
elderly healer of Nanga Juoi. Thus, when he and
other knowledgeable older people die, a signif-
icant portion of local ethnopharmacological
knowledge will vanish as well, particularly that
pertaining to species collected from primary for-
ests for use in treating rare and unusual aliments.
These same factors were believed to explain the
loss of traditional ethnobotanical knowledge in
an lban community in Sarawak, Malaysia (Jar-
vie and Perumal 1994). Changing values, land
and resource conflicts, and the absence of ap-
prentices threaten persistence of traditional me-
dicinal plant use in many traditional societies
(Comerford 1996; Voeks 1996).
CONCLUSION
Late successional, primary and river bench
forests contained the highest diversity of medic-
inal species and the highest number of species
restricted to specific forest types. All of the for-
est types sampled contained higher medicinal
species diversity levels than logged forests, al-
though logged forests contained greater numbers
of certain individual medicinal plants. While
simply totaling the number of useful species in
a given forest is not a measure of that forest's
importance (Phillips et al. 1994), the fact that
primary and river bench forests contained the
largest number of restricted species for which
alternative remedies were unavailable and that
236 ECONOMIC BOTANY
most remaining primary forests are subject to
logging, suggests that the conservation of pri-
mary and river bench forests will be crucial to
the continued availability of traditional medici-
nal plant species. As is the case in other tropical
environments (Leach 1994), the primary forests
around Nanga Juoi provide medicines for rare
ailments that can not be treated by other means
and are an irreplaceable repository for the fu-
ture.
The conservation of primary and river bench
forests will require curtailing logging activities
over large contiguous areas so as to maintain
reproductively viable populations of desired spe-
cies, many of which occur at low population
densities. Epiphytic species appear to be the
most threatened group of medicinal plants in this
context, followed by primary forest trees, due to
their restricted distributions (i.e., specific habitat
requirements), low population densities and the
destructive nature of medicinal harvesting.
This study indicates that there is a profound
and growing knowledge gap between old and
young people, and between men and women in
Nanga Juoi. Young men in particular possess lit-
tle knowledge of medicinal plants and no one is
apprenticing with the elderly healer. When the
healer and other knowledgeable elders of Nanga
Juoi die, a large portion of the collective medic-
inai plant knowledge will perish as well, partic-
ularly that derived from primary forest and that
pertaining to supra-natural powers. Traditional
medicinal plant use will likely persist in Nanga
Juoi and elsewhere in Kalimantan only if suffi-
cient primary forests near villages are reserved
from logging, and if local people retain their val-
ue for and knowledge of medicinal plant use.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This research was supported by a grant from the USAID-funded In-
donesia NRM/ARD Project. We appreciate the comments and suggestions
provided by Jill Belsky, Jim Jarvie, an anonymous reviewer, and the
editor on earlier drafts of this manuscript, and are grateful to the staff of
Herbarium Bogoriense for assistance in identifying voucher specimens,
We especially appreciate the generosity, patience and assistance of Udat
bin Batung and the residents of Nanga Juoi.
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