Zoopharmacognosy — when animals medicate themselves
This article explores the concept of zoopharmacognosy, the study of how animals self-medicate using plants, roots, and fruits. It cites various scientific observations, such as orangutans using medicinal leaves to treat muscle pain and chimpanzees using plants to combat parasites.
Why it matters
Understanding animal self-medication provides insights into evolutionary biology and offers potential leads for human pharmacological research.
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.
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