Abstract

The present study was carried out in the protected area of Greater Himalayas, Uttarakhand, India. The study was carried out to understand the consensus on medicinal plants by inhabitants of Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary. The study documented 21 plant species that are used medicinally in 17 ailment categories. Out of 21 plant species, 12 species were reported for a single ailment separately and 8 species were reported by informants for more than one ailment. The consensus of informants for the roots and rhizomes were the most frequently used plant parts (68%). The plants which are under rare list in IUCN Red List category observed in the study area are Picrorhiza kurrooa, Aconitium hetrophyllum andPodophyllum hexandrum. The Consensus index factor (F_ic) was found to be higher in the Haematological illness category (1.00) followed by Dermatological and Ophthalmological category which was (0.98).

Key words: Ethnomedicinal plants, consensus, informants, ailments, Himalaya.