Abstract
In South Africa, animals and plants are commonly used as traditional medicine for both the healing of ailments and for symbolic purposes such as improving relationships and attaining good fortune. The aim of this study was twofold: to quantify the species richness and diversity of traded animal species and to assess the trade in species of conservation concern. We surveyed the Faraday traditional medicine market in Johannesburg and conducted 45 interviews with 32 traders during 23 visits. We identified 147 vertebrates representing about 9% of the total number of vertebrates in South Africa and about 63% of the total number of documented species (excluding domestic animals) traded in all South African traditional medicine markets. The vertebrates included 60 mammal species, 33 reptiles, 53 birds and one amphibian. Overall, species diversity in the Faraday market was moderately high and highest for mammals and birds, respectively. Evenness values indicated that relatively few species were dominant. Mammal body parts and bones were the most commonly sold items (n = 453, excluding porcupine quills and pangolin scales), followed by reptiles (n = 394, excluding osteoderms), birds (n = 193, excluding feathers and ostrich eggs), and amphibians (n = 6). Most (87.5%) species traded were of Least Concern using IUCN criteria, although 17 species were of conservation concern. However, a higher than expected proportion of traders (62.5%) were selling listed species, which is a matter for concern and should be monitored in the future.
Keywords
- Biodiversity
- Threatened species
- Ethnozoology
- Mammal
- Bird
- Reptile
Published in Journal of Zoology, 2011, 284: 84–96.
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Acknowledgments
This study was funded by a National Research Foundation grant to M.J.W. In addition, V.L.W. was funded by a Postdoctoral Fellowship from the University of the Witwatersrand during the write-up of this paper. We are very grateful to Tebogo Mothupi, Zuko Mafani, Mdu Seakamela and Simphiwe Khuluse for collecting a significant portion of the data presented here. We also thank Solomon Mvubu, chairman of the Faraday Traders Committee, and all the Faraday traders for their co-operation, without whom, this study would not have been possible. We are grateful for updated species counts for South Africa from Bill Branch (reptiles), Louis du Preez (frogs), Trevor Hardaker (birds) and Chris Chimimba (mammals). The protocol for this research was approved by the University of the Witwatersrand Human Research Ethics Committee (Medical) (Protocol M0500945).
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Whiting, M.J., Williams, V.L., Hibbitts, T.J. (2013). Animals Traded for Traditional Medicine at the Faraday Market in South Africa: Species Diversity and Conservation Implications. In: Alves, R., Rosa, I. (eds) Animals in Traditional Folk Medicine. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-29026-8_19
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