Traditional or local ecological knowledge is developed from the continuous relationship between humans and their environment, mainly through the daily use of natural resources. The abandonment of uses, on the other hand, may cause the loss of this kind of knowledge, which frequently occurs due to changes in life style. In this paper, we aimed to evaluate the knowledge and the dynamics of the effective use of native forests in western Santa Catarina state, Brazil. Data collection and analysis were based on the integration of qualitative and quantitative ethnobotanical methods. The results revealed that farmers have comprehensive knowledge of the native forest species of the region and the effective present use of these forest resources is mainly for subsistence, highlighting the dependence of farmers on firewood. However, timber use has declined in recent years due, mainly, to limitations of legal access to native forest species. Farmers older than 40 years cited higher species richness, with a more equitable distribution of species, compared to younger farmers. In addition, attenuation of the correlation between knowledge and present use of species among younger people was noticed. The data suggest the existence of a gradual process of loss of transmission of traditional local knowledge and that there is a risk of erosion of accumulated knowledge.
quantitative ethnobotany; family farming; Seasonal Deciduous Forest; forest regulations; Brazilian Mata Atlântica
