Journal of Applied Botany and Food Quality 90, 58 - 67 (2017), DOI:10.5073/JABFQ.2017.090.009 1University of Gastronomic Sciences, Pollenzo, Italy 2 Estonian Literary Museum, Tartu, Estonia The disappearing wild food and medicinal plant knowledge in a few mountain villages of North-Eastern Albania Andrea Pieroni 1 *, Renata Sõukand 2 (Received October 31, 2016) * Corresponding author Summary In recent years, an increasing number of ethnobotanical investiga- tions have focused on the documentation of folk plant knowledge sys- tems in mountainous areas of the Balkans, as this area is considered a very important reservoir of bio-cultural heritage. An ethnobotanical field study was carried out among (Gheg) Albanians living in eight villages of North-Eastern Albania. The field survey was conducted by interviewing 45 local, elderly informants, who retain folk plant knowledge. Sixty-three wild food and medicinal folk taxa and approx. 150 plant reports, as well as other domestic remedies, were recorded and re- present a crucial portion of the local cultural heritage related to tra- ditional food, medicinal, and veterinary practices; approximately one-third of the reports were not previously recorded in Albania or Kosovo. Among these findings, the uncommon, yet abandoned uti- lizations of wild pears to produce home-made vinegar, unripe wild apples, and grapes as starters/yeasts for baking, and a few unripe wild fruits, as well as beech cambium and Sedum album leaves as yogurt starters deserve further in-depth food technological and nu- traceutical investigation. The fact that the most interesting findings are represented by obsolete and past practices and that most of the se- lected villages were chosen expressly because of their disadvantaged economic conditions and, in a few cases, remarkable geographical isolation, demonstrates that even in remote areas of SE Europe eth- nobotanical knowledge is vanishing. Nevertheless, this study sup- ports the idea that territories which are less economically advantaged may retain more ethnobotanical knowledge than other, more “de- veloped” ones. Initiatives aimed at revitalizing traditional practices of wild food and medicinal plant use may be crucial in the study area for implementing rural development programs focusing on local food resources and associated small scale trade. Keywords: Albania; Wild Food Plants; Ethnobotany Introduction In recent years a number of field studies have explored the ethno- botany of pastoralist, mountainous areas of diverse Western Balkan countries, with the aim of recording a specific portion of their Tra- ditional Environmental Knowledge (TEK), which is represented by the folk perceptions, knowledge, practices, and beliefs concerning wild food and medicinal plants (Redžić, 2006 and 2007; JaRić et al., 2007 and 2015; ŠaRić-Kundalić et al., 2010 and 2011; MenKović et al., 2011; Mustafa et al., 2012a, 2012b, and 2015; Rexhepi et al., 2013; saviKin et al., 2013; pieRoni and Quave, 2014 and references therein; ZlatKović et al., 2014; Quave and pieRoni, 2015; pieRoni et al., 2017). The inland part of the Balkan Peninsula represents a tremendous reservoir of folk knowledge on wild plants, due to both its rich bio- diversity and ethno-religious-cultural diversity. The mountainous territories of Albania, in particular, due to their isolation and histori- cal vicissitudes of the 20th century, and the fact that they still largely rely upon small-scale agro-pastoral economies, may present a crucial arena for recording ethnobotanical knowledge of wild species. Local wild food and medicinal plants have been shown in recent studies to be one of the pillars of the subsistence economy of the local communities of mountainous areas in Albania, and folk know- ledge and practices concerning botanicals are not only important for understanding local perceptions and uses of plants, but also for providing baseline data that could be employed in projects aimed at developing programs for a sustainable valorization of the local flora. The main goal of the present study, therefore, was to document folk food and medicinal uses of wild plants in a few isolated mountainous municipalities of NE Albania, which represent the most economical- ly disadvantaged communities according to the most recent Albanian census (instat, 2012) and also the most isolated ones. In addition, a further objective of this study was to compare the collected data with the findings of previous ethnobotanical surveys conducted in Albania and Kosovo and to identify new plant uses and reports of potential interest to the small-scale specialty food arena and herbal markets. Materials and methods Study area Fig. 1 shows a map of the study area in NE Albania and the eight visited villages: six inhabited by Muslim (Gheg) Albanians: Arrën (1094 meters above sea level [masl]), Radomirë (1247 masl), Çidhen (609 masl), Grykë-Nokë (685 masl, Kalis (557 masl), and Çajë (1306 masl); one inhabited by Catholic (Gheg) Albanians: Domgjoni (649 masl); and one inhabited by “albanicized” (Muslim) Macedonians: Dovolan (615 masl). Each of the eight villages nowadays has a per- manent population between approx. 100 and 500 inhabitants. Most of the visited villages were selected for two reasons: 1) they were included in former municipalities which were among the most economically disadvantaged in Albania (taking as reference the num- ber of TVs and washing machines per household [instat, 2012]); and 2) they are located – with the exception of Dovolan – in remote mountainous areas, which are currently accessible (Arrën, Çidhen, Grykë-Nokë, Kalis) or were so until the last decade (Radomirë, Çajë, Domgjoni) only by using four-wheel drive vehicles and which remain isolated for several weeks during the snowy winters, due to the lack of a proper road infrastructure. Field study The field study was carried out during the summer 2016. Study participants were identified among elderly individuals who were engaged in agro-pastoral activities and still retained traditional en- vironmental knowledge. In-depth open and semi-structured inter- views were then conducted with 45 selected participants (28 men and 17 women between the ages of 45 and 85 years), with the majority of Disappearing ethnobotanical knowledge in remote villages of NE Abania 59 the informants, however, above 65 years of age. Study participants were asked about traditional (past and present) uses of wild plants in the food and medicinal domains, pertaining to both humans and animals, as well as the utilization of other possible domestic medici- nal remedies. To elicit these data, informants were requested to share their know- ledge via one or more of the following four approaches: 1. to freelist wild plants for food and medicine they currently use or have used during their lives; 2. to quote remedies based on wild plants or other domestic ingredients they have used for treating specific patholo- gies (listed by the researchers); 3. to show all wild species used for food and medicine they have stored at home; 4. while on short walks around their houses and pastures, to show all wild plants they know and have used. Specifically, the local name(s) of each reported taxon, plant part(s) used, and in-depth details about their manipulation/preparation and food or medicinal use(s) were recorded. Study participants were asked to report current uses considered “traditional”, i.e. considered part of the perceived cultural heritage, as well as uses they could recall from their childhood, which may no longer be exploited. In- terviews were conducted in the Albanian language with the help of an interpreter. Informed consent from all participants was verbally obtained prior to conducting interviews and ethical guidelines pre- scribed by the International Society of Ethnobiology (ise, 2008) were strictly followed. During the interviews, informants were al- ways asked to show the reported plants (fresh or dried) or to describe the plants and their ecology (if the plants were not available). Vou- cher specimens of all the species that were shown in the current study had been collected during previous fieldwork conducted in the neighboring areas of Gora and Gollobordo (pieRoni et al., 2014a; Quave and pieRoni, 2015) and are stored at the Herbaria of the Uni- versity of Camerino (CAME, Italy), University of Pristina (PRN, Kosovo), and Emory University (GEO, USA). The taxonomic iden- tification followed the official Flora of Albania (papaRisto et al., 1988; Qosia et al., 1992 and 1996; vangJeli, 2000), while the bo- tanical nomenclature and family assignments followed the plant list (2013), and the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group IV (stevens, 2016), respectively. Local plant names were transcribed following the rules of standard Albanian. Data analysis The collected field data were compared with the available ethno- botanical literature of Albania (pieRoni et al., 2005, 2011, 2014a, 2014b, 2015, and 2017; pieRoni, 2008; Quave and pieRoni, 2014 and 2015) and Kosovo (seJdiu, 1984; Mustafa et al., 2012a, 2012b, and 2015; pieRoni et al., 2017). Results and discussion A total of sixty-three wild food and medicinal folk taxa and approx. 150 plant reports, as well other domestic remedies, were recorded in the study area. Wild food plants and wild teas Tab. 1 presents the plant-based wild foods and teas mentioned by the informants. In the category “teas” we included all those infusions or decoctions locally prepared and drunk as recreational beverages, as well those drunk and ingested in order to obtain a specific, perceived therapeutic effect. Fig. 1: Map of the study site and visited villages. 60 A. Pieroni, R. Sõukand Tab. 1: Wild food plants and their traditional uses recorded in the study area (a few cultivated and semi-domesticated plants used in uncommon ways are also included) Botanical taxon, family, used parts, and Recorded local name(s) Traditional food use and eventually Similar use(s) voucher specimen code(s) perceived medicinal value previously recorded (treated disease) among Albanians in Albania and Kosovo Allium triquetrum L. (Amaryllidaceae) (?) Purris, Pras e egër Filling for pies, esp. white maize flour-based pies Partially Aerial parts (fresh) (peta, ljaknur, ljakrur) Amaranthus retroflexus L. (Amaranthaceae) Llaboda Filling for pies Yes Leaves (fresh) Artemisia absinthium L. (Asteraceae) PelinDOV Tea: stomach-ache, diarrhea Yes Aerial parts Asplenium trichomanes L. and possibly also Fir guri, Fir i egër Tea: kidney stones Yes Ceterach officinarum Willd. (Aspleniaceae) Aerial parts (dried) CAME26293 (A. trichomanes) Cornus mas L. (Cornaceae) Thona, Thana, Consumed raw or dried: stomach-ache, ulcers; Partially Fruits (fresh and dried) DrenilaDOV tea: diarrhea; compote: diarrhea; syrup: CAME-26279 cardiotonic, diarrhoea; fermented and distilled PRN-23/Pz/2013 in raki: cardiotonic, diuretic, blood depurative, anti-hypertensive; fermented in water a few weeks to obtain vinegar (uthull): cold Crataegus monogyna Jacq. and possibly Morrisi Consumed raw as a snack* Yes other Crataegus spp. (Rosaceae) Fruits (fresh) CAME26280 Fagus sylvatica L. (Fagaceae) Ahu Ground, mixed together with corn flour No Wood for making bread* CAME-26249 Fragaria vesca L. (Rosaceae) Dreza, Lulestrydhe Consumed raw as a snack Yes Fruits (fresh) CAME26247 Hordeum vulgare L. (Poaceae) Elbi Bread* Yes Fruits (dried) Hypericum perforatum L., (Hypericaceae) Lulë kuqë Tea: recreational Yes Flowering aerial parts GEO-020051 PRN-36/Pz/2013 Juglans regia L. (Juglandaceae) Arra Consumed fresh and dried, as a snack, often Yes Seeds and kernels together with honey: restorative; tea (kernel): CAME26238 cough Juniperus communis L. (Cupressaceae) Dëllinjë Distilled to obtain raki: digestive; Yes Cones (fresh and dried) fermented beverage (prepared by leaving the CAME26253 cones in water); tea: kidney problems and cough Malus sylvestris (L.) Mill. (Rosaceae) Molla e egër Unripe fruits were added to dough as a yeast/ Partially Unripe fruits (fresh)/ starter during the process of making bread, Fruits (fresh and dried) when sourdough was not available*; CAME26288 ripe fruits, fermented in water a few weeks, to produce vinegar (uthull), which is used for treating cold; oshaf: dried fruits are boiled and both the cooked fruits and the resulting liquid ingested Matricaria chamomilla L. (Asteraceae) Kamomili Tea: stomach-ache, digestive Yes Flowering tops (dried) CAME26235 Origanum vulgare L. (Lamiaceae) Çaj, Çaj i egër, Tea: recreational/panacea, sore throat, cough, Yes Flowering aerial parts (dried) Çaj mali, Çaj bjeshke head-ache GEO-020049 PRN-52/Pz/2013 Disappearing ethnobotanical knowledge in remote villages of NE Abania 61 Plantago major L. (Plantaginaceae) Bar preme, Bar premi, Tea: diuretic Yes Inflorescences (dried) Bar premti GEO-020043 PRN-54/Pz/2013 Primula veris L. (Primulaceae) Lule aguliçe Tea: diuretic, cough Partially Flowering tops (dried) GEO-020060 PRN-56/Pz/2013 Prunus avium (L.) L. and P. cerasus L. Qershi Tea: diuretic Yes (Rosaceae) Fruit peduncles (dried) CAME26240 (P. avium) CAME26298 (P. cerasus) Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. (Rosaceae) Kaisi, Kaisi e egër, Fermented and distilled in raki: Yes Fresh fruits Kumbull e egër cardiotonic, blood depurative CAME26266 Pyrus communis L. (Rosaceae) Dardhë Tea: diarrhea No Bark Pyrus pyraster (L.) Buirgsd. (Rosaceae) Dardhë e egër Compote; oshaf: dried, then boiled (both Partially Fruits (fresh and dried) the cooked fruit and the resulting liquid ingested); CAME26244 home-made vinegar (uthull): cold Rosa canina L. (Rosaceae) Kaça Tea: sore throat, cough, flu; boiled in water Yes Pseudofruits (dried) ShipunkaDOV and slightly fermented to obtained a gassy, CAME26237 sour beverage (lënge) Rubus ulmifolius Schott (Rosaceae) Manaferra (Fruits) consumed raw as a snack; fermented Partially Fruits/Young shoots and distilled in raki/ CAME26310 (Young shoots) tea: diarrhea in children Rubus ideaus L. (Rosaceae) Mjedra, Njetra Consumed raw as a snack Yes Fruits (fresh) Rumex acetosa, R. acetosella L., and Uthulla, Liakra e bjeske Consumed raw as a snack: filling for pies Partially R. pulcher L. (Polygonaceae) Leaves (fresh) CAME26243 (R. acetosa) Rumex patientia L. and possibly other Elqeta, Lepjeta, Lepjeta Filling for pies Yes Rumex spp. (Polygonaceae) e egër, Leqeta, Liakra e Leaves egër, Lakneshta, Liqet CAME26285 Salvia officinalis L. (Lamiaceae) Sherbela Tea: sore throat, cough, liver protective, Partially Leaves (dried) cardiotonic Satureja montana L. (Lamiaceae) Trumza Tea: recreational Yes Aerial parts Sideritis raeseri Boiss. & Heldr. and Çaj, Çaj të bardhë, Tea: recreational/panacea, sore throat, cough Yes possibly S. scardica Griseb., Lamiaceae Çaj fushe Flowering aerial parts (dried) CAME26281 (S. raeseri) Solanum lycopersicum L. (Solanaceae) Domate Soup No Unripe fruits Taraxacum officinale Weber (Asteraceae) Qumstore Filling for börek (peta) No Leaves CAME26289 Thymus ongicaulis C.Presl (Lamiaceae) Lisën Seasoning; tea: different ailments Yes Aerial parts CAME26272 Triticum monococcum L. (Poaceae) Tep Mixed with maize flour for baking bread* No Grainà Flour Urtica dioica L. (Urticaceae) Hitha, Hithal Filling for pies or consumed boiled; Yes Leaves (fresh) and roots tea: rheumatisms; tea (roots): colitis CAME26262 62 A. Pieroni, R. Sõukand Vaccinium myrtillus L. (Ericaceae) Borovnica, Consumed raw as a snack; tea: cough, blood Partially Fruits (fresh and dried) Qershia e egër depurative, cardiotonic; fermented beverage GEO-020040 PRN-87/Pz/2013 Vitis vinifera L. (Vitaceae) Rrush Unripe fruits are added to dough as a yeast/starter Partially Unripe fruits (fresh)/Fruits (fresh) during the process of making bread, when sourdough is not available*; ripe fruits are consumed fresh in winter for counteracting cold and flu; sometimes they are fermented in water a few weeks to naturally obtain vinegar (uthull): vinegar is heated with hot stones to eliminate possible alcohol and drunk as a digestive; ripe fruits can be fermented and distilled in raki, which is drunk for treating stomach-aches and digestive complaints Zea mays L. (Poaceae) Kolomoç Tea: diuretic Yes Stigma Unidentified taxon - aerial parts (fresh) Bar miseli Tea: cardiotonic No (?): identification based only on plant description and folk name; *: past use; DOV: folk name remembered and recorded in the “albanicized” Macedonian village of Dovolan; plants and uses mentioned by more than 50% of the informants are reported in bold. Forty-five folk wild taxa were recorded, for which we documented local name(s), taxonomic family, voucher code(s), used plant part(s), local food or herbal use(s), and their correspondence with the en- tire ethnobotanical literature of Albanians living in Albania and Kosovo. Approximately one-fifth of the recorded folk reports were not pre- viously recorded in Albania and Kosovo. Among the most uncommon uses, the following are worth mentio- ning: a soup made from unripe tomatoes; the use of Taraxacum in pies, which is commonly used in the folk cuisines of Slavic popula- tions in the Balkans but not much among Gheg Albanians (ŁucZaJ et al., 2013; pieRoni et al., 2014a); the production of home-made vinegar starting from wild pears; and the obsolete (past) uses of beech wood for making bread as well as unripe wild dog apples and grapes as starters/yeasts for baking bread. The most commonly cited wild food and herbal plants mentioned by the study participants (in bold in Tab. 1) included Cornus mas (fruits, processed in many ways), Origanum vulgare (flowering aerial parts, in teas), and Urtica dioica and Rumex patientia (leaves, both con- sidered very important wild leafy vegetables). Plant-based yogurt starters Tab. 2 indicates the domestic ingredients (mainly plant-based) that the informants remembered to have been used as home-made yo- gurt starters (i.e. starters used in the absence of previously produced yogurt). The entire set of mentioned plants listed in the table have never been recorded for such utilizations in the most globally inclu- sive economic botanical literature (hedRicK, 1972; facciola, 1998) and therefore deserve further investigation. In particular, the use of a few unripe wild fruits, as well as beech (Fagus sylvatica) cambium and fresh Sedum album leaves, as yogurt starters warrant further in-depth food technological and nutraceuti- cal evaluation and investigation. Moreover, the fact that all the mentioned uses refer to forest and mountain products, which were probably available during the trans- humance period spent in the higher Alpine pastures during summer, recalls traces of archaic pastoralist food customs. External plant remedies for curing humans and plant remedies used for treating animals Tab. 3 and 4 present the external plant remedies pertaining to hu- mans mentioned by the informants (as well as those few other do- mestic, external remedies arising from animal sources) and domestic (mainly plant-based) ethnoveterinary remedies, respectively. As in the previous tables, folk names and exact detailed, local, tradi- tional uses are reported. Those ingredients and reports that were mentioned by more than half of the study participants are highlighted in bold type. The majority of the recorded plant reports, especially those devoted to animal health, were used in the past and have been abandoned nowadays. Comparison with Albanian and Kosovar ethnobotanies Most of the recorded wild food and medicinal plant uses had been previously documented in other mountainous areas of Albania and Kosovo, although a few reports found in this study are novel. Among the food plant uses, these new reports include all reports re- lated to species utilized as (past) yogurt starters, as well as the uses of ground beech wood and emmer wheat flour – mixed with maize flour – for making bread, unripe tomatoes for preparing a specific sour soup, and dandelion leaves, as (bitter) filling for home-made börek. These reports can be explained by the permanence of archaic plant utilizations in the study area, which may be linked to its long history of isolation and famine and its ancestral pastoralist economy, which has left traces that possibly disappeared much earlier in other mountainous areas of Albania and Kosovo. In the medicinal domain, we recorded a few interesting “unknown” plant uses, which should be maybe further investigated pharma- cologically, such as fresh garlic for externally treating eye inflam- mations, fresh crushed nettle leaves for externally treating cuts, but- termilk for externally treating snake bites, as well as walnut teas, juniper berries, dwarf elderberry roots and elderberry branches for externally treating various skin problems in animals. All these reports demonstrate an interesting permanence of a few still living or remembered ethnoveterinary treatments. The last tra- ces of uncommon folk veterinary practices recorded in this study, as well as the past uses of wild plants as yogurt starters, attest an origi- nal bulk of TEK in NE Albania that shows the remarkable pastoralist attitudes and skills of the study communities. TEK in mountainous areas of Albania: quo vadis? The study sites were selected because of their disadvantaged eco- nomic situation and isolation, however, a relevant portion of the practiced TEK recorded in the present study refers only to recent Disappearing ethnobotanical knowledge in remote villages of NE Abania 63 Tab. 2: Traditional, domestic yogurt starters mentioned and used in the study area in the past Ingredient (botanical taxon, family, and used parts) Recorded local name(s) Similar use previously recorded among Albanians in Albania and Kosovo PLANTS Fagus sylvatica L. (Fagaceae) See Tab. 1 No Cambium Fragaria vesca L. (Rosaceae) See Tab. 1 No Unripe fruits Hypericum perforatum L. (Hypericaceae) See Tab. 1 No Fresh aerial parts Malus sylvestris Mill. (Rosaceae) See Tab. 1 No Unripe fruits Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. (Rosaceae) See Tab. 1 No Unripe fruits Prunus domestica L. (Rosaceae) See Tab. 1 No Unripe fruits Rumex acetosa L., R. acetosella L., and R. pulcher L. (Polygonaceae) See Tab. 1 No Fresh leaves Sedum album L. (Crassulaceae) Rrushi i egër, Rrush guri, Rrushi uiku No Fresh leaves Vitis vinifera L. (Vitaceae) See Tab. 1 No Unripe fruits OTHER INGREDIENTS Ants Milingonë Yes Clarified butter Tylënë No Rain Shi No Yogurt (sour) buttermilk Dhallët Yes Tab. 3: Traditional external remedies recorded in the study area Remedy (botanical taxon, family, used parts, Recorded local name(s) Traditional preparation and Similar use(s) and voucher specimen code(s)) medicinal value/treated disease previously recorded among Albanians in Albania and Kosovo PLANTS Achillea millefolium L. (Asteraceae) Bar premi Crushed and topically applied on cuts as an Yes Fresh leaves haemostatic and cicatrizer CAME26294 Allium cepa L. (Amaryllidaceae) Qepë Crushed, mixed with salt, and topically applied Yes Bulb for curing bruises Allium porrum L. (Amarylidaceae) Prash Instilled in the ear for treating ear inflammations Yes Leaf juice Allium sativum L. (Amaryllidaceae) Hudhra Crushed and applied on the eye region No Fresh bulb for treating inflammations Cornus mas L. (Cornaceae) See Tab. 1 Fermented into vinegar (uthull); applied on snake Partially Fresh fruits bites* or applied to the head for treating lice; fermented and distilled into raki, which is topically applied for disinfecting cuts, treating tooth-aches, eye inflammations, and ear-aches Malus sylvestris (L.) Mill. (Rosaceae) See Tab. 1 Fermented into vinegar (uthull); this is applied on Partially Fresh fruits snake bites* or applied to the head for treating lice Nicotiana tabacum L. (Solanaceae) Duhan Topically applied on cuts as a haemostatic Yes Dried leaves 64 A. Pieroni, R. Sõukand Plantago lanceolata L. (Plantaginaceae) Bar premti Topically applied as a cicatrizer Yes Fresh leaves CAME26284 Plantago major L. (Plantaginaceae) See Tab. 1 Topically applied as a suppurative Yes Fresh leaves Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. (Rosaceae) See Tab. 1 Fermented and distilled into raki; this is topically Partially Fresh fruits applied for disinfecting cuts, treating tooth-aches, eye inflammations, and ear-aches Prunus domestica L. (Rosaceae) Kumbull See Prunus cerasifera Partially Fresh fruits Sempervivum tectorum L. (Crassulaceae) Bar veshe Instilled in the ear for treating ear inflammations Yes Leaf juice GEO-020035 PRN-71/Pz/2013 Solanum lycopersicum L. (Solanaceae) Domate Considered a mosquito repellent No Fresh leaves Urtica dioica L. (Urticaceae) See Tab. 1 Crushed and topically applied for No Fresh leaves treating cuts and bruises Vitis vinifera L. (Vitaceae) See Tab. 1 Juice is instilled in the ear for treating ear Yes Juice of the fresh shoots and fresh fruits inflammations; fresh fruits are fermented into vinegar (uthull) and this is applied on snake bites* or to the head for treating lice; the fresh fruits are fermented and distilled into raki and this is topically applied for disinfecting cuts, treating tooth-aches, eye inflammations, and ear-aches Diverse tree species Burned into ash (fain), which in then boiled in Yes Wood water and topically applied, as an anti-lice agent and for treating cuts* OTHER INGREDIENTS Bear fat Dhjam ariu Extracted and stored; as an alternative, slices of meat Yes and fat are dried as pastrma; these are heated before use and the resulting melted fat is topically applied for treating burns Cow milk Qumështi i lopës Topically applied to treat eye inflammations Yes Curdle Djathi i bardhë Topically applied to treat eye inflammations Yes Egg Vezë The yolk is topically applied on eye inflammations No Hare Ljepur The meat is fried and consumed for treating No gunshot wounds* Hen anus Bytha e pulës Topically applied on snake bites, which “sucks out” Yes the poison; the hen dies and is thrown away afterwards* Human urine Urinë Topically applied on wounds Yes Leather Lëkurë Rubbed on cuts, as an haemostatic; burned, Partially the resulting smoke is considered a snake repellent Snake (not specified) Gjarpër Macerated in oil for several months in the sun, No the resulting extract is topically applied for treating burns*; snake head topically applied on the spot where the same snake had bitten* Yogurt (sour) buttermilk See Tab. 2 Topically applied on snake bites No Woman milk Tomël i gruas Topically applied to relieve eye and Yes ear inflammations* *: past uses; plant remedies and related uses mentioned by more than 50 % of the informants are reported in bold. Disappearing ethnobotanical knowledge in remote villages of NE Abania 65 Tab. 4: Ethnoveterinary remedies recorded in the study area Remedy (botanical taxon, family, Recorded local name(s) Traditional preparation and medicinal value/ Similar use(s) and used parts) treated disease previously recorded among Albanians in Albania and Kosovo PLANTS Hordeum vulgare L. (Poaceae) See Tab. 1 Boiled in water; the vapours are inhaled by the animal No Fruits for curing respiratory problems* Juglans regia L. (Juglandaceae) See Tab. 1 Tea (unripe pericarps): externally applied for treating No Unripe pericarps and kernels cow horn infections and skin cuts; decoction (unripe kernels): instilled in the ear for treating ear-aches Juniperus communis L. (Cupressaceae) See Tab. 1 Externally applied on wounds* No Cones Nicotiana tabacum L. (Solanaceae) See Tab. 3 Decoction: in external washes as an anti-parasitic No Stems Pinus spp. (Pinaceae) Pisha Topically applied on wounds and broken bones* Yes Resin Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. (Rosaceae) See Tab. 1 Fermented and distilled into raki; this is given to Partially Fresh fruits animals for treating diverse internal complaints Salvia officinalis L. (Lamiaceae) See Tab. 1 Tea: cough; rheumatisms Partially Leaves Sambuculus ebulus L. (Adoxaceae) Kigël Inserted into the animal’s ear for treating various No Roots diseases (goats, sheep); decoction: in external washes CAME26254 to disinfect the skin (all animals)* Sambuculus nigra L. (Adoxaceae) Shtog Mixed (aerial parts) with butter or (bark) with butter No Branches and bark and lime water, topically applied for treating burns PRN-69/Pz/2013 Tilia platyphyllos Scop. (Malvaceae) Lule blini Tea: respiratory problems* No Flowers CAME26241 Ulmus minor Mill. and possibly other Vidh Decoction: topically applied as a cicatrizer Yes Ulmus spp., Ulmaceae Bark CAME26308 Vitis vinifera L. (Vitaceae) See Tab. 1 Fermented and distilled into raki; this is given to Partially Fresh fruits animals for treating diverse internal complaints Zea mays L. (Poaceae) See Tab. 1 Boiled and given as food for treating internal No Fruits gastro-intestinal problems OTHER INGREDIENTS Bees wax Dyll bletesh Topically applied for treating eye inflammations No Egg See Tab. 3 Fried and applied on cuts or ingested raw for No counteracting bruises Hen anus See Tab. 3 Topically applied on snake bites, which “sucks out” the poison; the hen dies and is thrown away afterwards* Yes Mouton fat Dhjam deleje Burned, topically applied for treating wounds No Yogurt (sour) buttermilk See Tab. 2 Given to constipated animals No *: past uses. past folk plant uses which therefore indicates that it is remarkably eroded. The ethnobotanical heritage of the region is under threat for many reasons, but the key factor is the urbanization and migration process, which 25 years after the fall of Communism is still on-going in rural and mountainous areas of Albania. Young and middle-aged community members still migrate to Tirana or Western countries for work and they are more and more detached from traditional agro- pastoral activities, thus interrupting the oral transmission of TEK, and subsequently the daily practice of dealing with the surrounding plant environment, which ultimately affects the permanence of eth- nobotanical knowledge. The elderly portion of the population, which remains in the mountain 66 A. Pieroni, R. Sõukand villages, is still well connected to the traditional lifestyle, but they also highly rely upon remittances from relatives. On the other hand, it is precisely these mountainous areas, with their pristine environments, which could become of strategic importance for the development of sustainable eco-tourism activities and the small-scale trade of local herbal and wild food plants in the region. In fact, internal rural and mountainous areas in Albania, as a conse- quence of the political and economic developments of the country during the last century, have been largely unaffected by industria- lization and still offer an amazingly rich bio-cultural landscape. Conversely, the fact that the aforementioned social changes con- tribute to the disappearance of TEK has to be of great concern, as eco-tourism and small-scale chains of specialty foods and herbal products can only be put in place upon the permanence of local folk knowledge systems. Conclusions This study contributes to the documentation of vanishing Traditional Environmental Knowledge and research on the influence of isola- tion and economic disadvantage on the preservation of TEK. Despite the number of past studies conducted within Albania, the present research still provided several folk plant uses that had never been previously reported. 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