The role of folklore in environmental conservation: evidence from Edo State, Nigeria

SUMMARY

A number of wild biotic resources used by man for food, shelter and cultural activities are now either rare, endangered or extinct. The problem of adequate protection for these resources stems from habitat loss and lack of adequate information on how biotic resources were sustained through traditional ecological knowledge in the past. This study investigated the significance of folklore on environmental conservation in the rainforest belt of Edo State, Nigeria. Data were derived from a questionnaire survey involving 400 respondents in six rural settlements between May and November, 1992. From the analysis of these data, most indigenous folklores influenced the conservation of the environment. Nevertheless, the changing religious beliefs of the people in a heterogeneous composition of settlements, market-based agricultural production, and changes in the recreational activities of young people have disintegrated the traditions on which the folklores were based. Thus, the role of folklore in biotic conservation has diminished considerably, even though it has ensured long-term preservation of the existing pockets of natural forests.

Key words:

• Nigeria
• Edo
• folklore
• conservation
• natural resources