The ethnobotany, ecology and biological activity of two pioneer tree species of Costa Rica’s secondary forests: Simarouba amara and Vismia macrophylla

Costa Rica’s Northern Zone has experienced decades of deforestation, resulting in a mosaic of grasslands, secondary forests and primary forests.  We studied two pioneer tree species (Simarouba amara and Vismia macrophylla) that affect forest recovery following disturbance and are vital to the local community as medicines for infections. Sustainable harvesting practices and medicinal uses of these plants were learned through interviews with local healers who then assisted in conducting ecological and GIS surveys of 35 Vismia and 48 Aceituno. To preliminarily evaluate their medicinal efficacy, we conducted triplicate disc diffusion and 96-well plate assays and found the bark of both tree species affects the fungus Candida albicans in vitro and Vismia leaves show activity against gram-positive (Bacillus subtillis) and gram-negative (Escherichia coli) bacteria. As the area of secondary forests expands, these species offer local healers the opportunity to use secondary forests while permitting recovery following disturbance to proceed.