Background: The classification and application of Daur medicine is an essential part of Chinese ethnomedicinal knowledge. However, the cataloging of traditional Daur medicine is still limited. As Daur medicine is gradually being replaced by traditional Chinese and modern medicine, further research is urgently needed.
Methods: We collected ethnobotany and ethnozoology data via semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and extensive literature reviews. Medicinal samples and specimens were collected during field investigations from June 2015 to October 2018. Attending diseases and ailments were classified according to the International Classification of Diseases 11th (ICD-11). The expression correlation of medicine classification, medicine and disease was assessed using Cytoscape 3.6.1 software. Use values were calculated to determine the importance of tradition medicinal plants and animals.
Results: We documented 30 plant species (from 19 families) and 21 animal species (from 11 families). The majority of the species were previously collected from natural habitats but they have gradually become cultivated. The most widely utilized plants were herbs (21 species), followed by shrubs (4), trees (3), and fungus (2). The most utilized groups of animals were mammals (14 species), followed by birds (5), amphibians (1), and reptiles (1). Medicines were mostly administered orally (39), but were also externally applied (11), or via both routes (9). Informants indicated that medicines were prepared via decoction (21), grinding (11), boiling (10), extraction (8), and burning (7). Most medicines are taken/consumed as a drink (37), eaten (16), or made into pills and powders (7), but also used as an anointment/wash (6), wrap/dressing (5), in the nose, eyes, and mouth (4), or as a fumigate (2). The reported traditional Daur medicines treated 76 human diseases or ailments classified under 13 disease categories, based on the ICD-11. The most commonly used medicinal species were Cervus elaphus, Cervus nippon, Capreolus capreolus, Gallus gallus, Canis lupus familiaris, Betula platyphylla, and Artemisia integrifolia.
Conclusions: A wealth of ethnobiological and ethnozoological knowledge exists, which may lead to the development of new drugs; thus, such knowledge urgently requires documentation. The information documented in the present study will be useful for future studies on the ethnopharmacological and traditional knowledge of the Daur region.