Zoopharmacognosy — when animals medicate themselves
Chimpanzees in Nigeria have also been to swallow leaves of the plant Desmodium gangeticum (called ‘shalaparni’ in India) to get rid of parasites that bother the animal’s skin. Ancient Ayurveda practitioners such as Sushruta were also known to use this plant and its parts as parts of formulations to manage asthma, haemorrhoids, and typhoid. In the March 2008 issue of Resonance, the journal of the Indian Academy of Sciences, R.
- ▪Chimpanzees in Nigeria have also been to swallow leaves of the plant Desmodium gangeticum (called ‘shalaparni’ in India) to get rid of parasites that bother the animal’s skin.
- ▪Ancient Ayurveda practitioners such as Sushruta were also known to use this plant and its parts as parts of formulations to manage asthma, haemorrhoids, and typhoid.
- ▪In the March 2008 issue of Resonance, the journal of the Indian Academy of Sciences, R.
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An interesting review by G. Allen et al. in Scientific Reports (16,18690: 2026)reports on how orangutans, which are still present in the Sebangu forest in Central Kalimantan region in Indonesia, treat themselves by mixing saliva with the leaves of a plant botanists that call dracaena (a member of the asparagus family) and applying the mixture to their body in order to purify the air and relieve muscle pain and joint discomfort while carrying their babies.Botanists from Gujarat University, Ahmedabad, had previously shown that this evergreen plant has antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, and anticancer activities (Vasava et al., Int. J. R. Tech., 2025; 117-120).
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