Which plants matter? A comparison of academic and community assessments of plant value and conservation status in the Moroccan High Atlas.

As interest in including local communities and their knowledge in biodiversity conservation increases, challenges to do so become clear. One of them is to harmonize local and academic assessments of conservation status. Here, we document the culturally valuable flora of two Amazigh communities in the Moroccan High Atlas Mountains and contrast local conservation observations with IUCN and other red-listing assessments. Our study reveals two levels of mismatch. Unsurprisingly, the species of interest of these two knowledge systems differ considerably. Moreover, species' availability and populations' trends of change and the conservation evaluations often diverge between local and academic assessments. Locally valuable species are rarely threatened, but a focus on locally prioritized species is essential to ensure the active participation of local communities in conservation initiatives. Given the salient role of IUCN Red Lists in guiding conservation action, a better understanding of the differences in plant value and conservation assessments between the two knowledge systems can help harmonize biodiversity conservation and community wellbeing goals.

Phytochemical study and biological effects of the essential oil of Fraxinus dimorpha Coss & Durieu §.

The present study describes the phytochemical study, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of Fraxinus dimorpha essential oil, obtained from the leaves collected in the High Atlas Mountains. Forty compounds representing 86.2% with (E)-nerolidol as a major constituent and 29 compounds corresponding to 80.3% with eugenol as main components were identified from Ait M'hamed and from Siti Fadma, respectively. The F. dimorpha essential oil presents IC50 using DPPH varying from 5.33 to 6.03 mg/mL and EC50 using FRAP varying from 0.83 to 1.21 mg/mL. The antimicrobial activity of the oil was evaluated for ten microorganisms showed that the oil had a moderate potential activity. Fungal strains are more sensitive to the investigated oils, with a MIC varied between 1.8 and 3.8 mg/mL.