Threatened Medicinal Plants and their Conservation in Himachal Himalayas

Abstract

The paper analyses 133 rare, sensitive and threatened medicinal plant species of Himachal Himalayas for their status with the help of use pattern, nativity and endemism and explores possibilities for their conservation. These species constitute 17% trees, 23 % shrubs and 60 % herbs distributed over 59 families. The listed species include those that have been considered prone to endangerment or referred as endangered in literature and through experts' group exercises. These include 34 % endemism (Indian Himalayan Region) of the total defined taxa in the paper. The above total assessed taxa show high nativity (>53 %) to Himalayan region. A higher percentage of species (> 50 %) under ethno-medicinal as well as commercially medicinal use category indicate high pressure on the same. Destructive nature of use pattern, i.e. root (60 %), whole plant (16 %), bark/wood/resin (19 %) further indicates threats from harvesting. Special stress is made on 45 threatened species assessed under IUCN and other experts' criteria for Himachal Himalaya. Species prioritization using differcnt exercises is given high value in wide scale conservation strategies, either by means of in-situ or ex-situ methods.