Abstract BACKGROUND: Nenmara Forest Division in Palakkad district, Kerala, is inhabited by three tribal groups in nine settlements. These communities have been using many of the plants from their surroundings to cure various diseases. METHODS: Medico-ethno-botanical surveys were conducted in different seasons in the tribal settlements of Nenmara Forest Division to collect the folklore claims and plants used by the tribal people. Ethno-medicinally important plants used by the tribal groups in the Nenmara Forest Division were recorded, collected, and herbarium prepared. Also, Sorensen similarity index (SI) and taxonomic distinctness of ethno-medicinally important plants in different habitats of the Nenmara Forest Division was analyzed by using PAST 4.03 software. RESULTS: A total of 27 species belonging to 26 genera and 19 families were documented with ethno-medicinal claims. Among the collected claims the major plant families reported for medicinal purposes were Zingiberaceae, Asteraceae, Euphorbiaceae, Apocyanaceae, Lamiaceae, Acanthaceae, Rutaceae, and Fabaceae. The most useful parts were the leaves. The maximum Sorensen SI was observed between wastelands and degraded forests. Likewise, maximum taxonomic distinctness was observed in the degraded forest habitat type. CONCLUSION: The study highlights the urgent need for conservation strategies to protect both biodiversity and traditional medicinal knowledge in the region. The species diversity index analyses can be useful for identifying high ethno-medicinally important species diversity or habitats and can be useful for formulating suitable conservation strategies for conserving ethno-medicinally important plants.
Thulasi et al. (Thu,) studied this question.