TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE ABOUT FOREST SPECIES: DIFFERENT TIMES, DIFFERENT VIEWS

The utility of traditional knowledge in drawing up restoration and conservation plans for the Brazilian Atlantic Forest still receives little attention. In the present study we sought identify the threats of loss of the traditional knowledge about forest species as well exemplify how it could be use as complement to the formal knowledge in the Atlantic Forest restoration. The traditional knowledge about flora was assessed to determine whether it differ according to age of people and landscape conservation status. The list of species from the traditional knowledge differed from those from formal botanical surveys and mention some species known to occur in the Atlantic Forest that did not appear in the list of botanical formal surveys. This result suggests the natural rarity of these species and/or drastic reduction of occurrence due to overexploitation in the past. The results point to the importance of actions for maintaining traditional knowledge with actions that motivate young people to acquire knowledge about vegetation today under the domain of elderly. The relevance of traditional knowledge in addition to formal knowledge for the choice of species for forest restoration was also highlighted.