Background The aim of the study was to record wild plants and fungi sold in the capital of Armenia. This is the first large market survey in the Caucasus region. The area of the Caucasus is characterised by a very high diversity of climates, flora and languages which results in very rich traditions of plant use. Methods Interviews were conducted and photos and voucher specimens were taken during multiple visits made over 4 years. We studied 37 locations and 136 people were interviewed. Results As many as 163 plant species, belonging to 44 families and 110 genera, were recorded on Yerevan markets. This included 148 wild food species, 136 medicinal species, 45 species sold for decoration, 15 species of wood and 9 species of insect repellents. Also 14 wild species of fungi were sold, including 12 food species. Conclusions The list of plants sold in the markets of Yerevan is very extensive and diverse, and includes many species of wild fruits, vegetables and medicinal plants, some of them never listed in ethnobotanical directories before. A characteristic feature of this market is a large representation of lacto-fermented products. Some of the species sold in Yerevan have never been reported as human food either in wild edible plant word lists or in ethnobotanical publications, e.g. Angelica tatianae, Ferulago setifolia and Heracleum chorodanum. Fungi are also well represented.

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The traditional identification of plant-parasitic nematode species by morphology and morphometric studies is very difficult because of high morphological variability that can lead to considerable overlap of many characteristics and their ambiguous interpretation. For this reason, it is essential to implement approaches to ensure accurate species identification. DNA barcoding aids in identification and advances species discovery. This study sought to unravel the use of the mitochondrial marker cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (coxI) as barcode for Longidoridae species identification, and as a phylogenetic marker. The results showed that mitochondrial and ribosomal markers could be used as barcoding markers, except for some species from the Xiphinema americanum group. The ITS1 region showed a promising role in barcoding for species identification because of the clear molecular variability among species. Some species presented important molecular variability in coxI. The analysis of the newly provided sequences and the sequences deposited in GenBank showed plausible misidentifications, and the use of voucher species and topotype specimens is a priority for this group of nematodes. The use of coxI and D2 and D3 expansion segments of the 28S rRNA gene did not clarify the phylogeny at the genus level.

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Background The traditional knowledge about plants and their uses in Turkey is disappearing in recent years because the new generations of villagers migrate to big cities for a better life. Afyonkarahisar located at the intersection of roads and phytogeographical regions (Mediterranean, Iran-Turan, and Euro-Siberian) has more than 2500 plant species. This richness of plant diversity promotes the indigenous commuity for the traditional use of wild plants. The aim of the study is to show wild plants' ethnobotanical usages associated with medicinal, food, fodder, and household goods in 31 settlements within the boundaries of Afyonkarahisar province. Methods The ethnobotanical data were collected from 46 informants by means of semi-structured interviews from 2012 to 2014. Ethnobotanical uses of plants of the study area were conducted in the vicinity of Afyonkarahisar (5 districts, 8 towns, 15 villages, and 3 neighborhood centers). Results One hundred and thirty plant taxa belonging to 39 families were recorded and collected. Hundred and seventy-eight different uses of these plants were documented and used generally for medicinal (84), food (68), fodder (16), household goods (3), dyes (3), handicrafts (3) and religious (1). Conclusion This study provides interesting uses of plants in the local community of Afyonkarahisar and its surrounding area, in what purpose they make use of plants, how they make use of them and obtained results will contribute to economy of villagers. Since the local people, especially in villages, are poor and do not have health care, they use the plants to treat illnesses, food, fodder, household goods and other uses (evil eye). Also this study will light the way for posterity for next generations.

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As human populations expand, there is increasing demand and pressure for land. Under this scenario, behavioural flexibility and adaptation become important processes leading to the persistence of large carnivores in human-dominated landscapes such as agroecosystems. A growing interest has recently emerged on the outcome of the coexistence between wolves and humans in these systems. It has been suggested that spatial heterogeneity in human activities would be a major environmental factor modulating vulnerability and persistence of this contentious species in agroecosystems. Here, we combined information from 35 den sites detected between 2011 and 2012 in agroecosystems of western Iran (Hamedan province), a set of environmental variables measured at landscape and fine spatial scales, and generalized linear models to identify patterns of den site selection by wolves in a highly-modified agroecosystem. On a landscape level, wolves selected a mixture of rangelands with scattered dry-farms on hillsides (showing a low human use) to locate their dens, avoiding areas with high densities of settlements and primary roads. On a fine spatial scale, wolves primarily excavated dens into the sides of elevated steep-slope hills with availability of water bodies in the vicinity of den sites, and wolves were relegated to dig in places with coarse-soil particles. Our results suggest that vulnerability of wolves in human-dominated landscapes could be compensated by the existence of spatial heterogeneity in human activities. Such heterogeneity would favor wolf persistence in agroecosystems favoring a land sharing model of coexistence between wolves and people.

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The antioxidant properties of 10 edible plants of the Turkmen Sahra region in Golestan province in northern Iran, including Allium paradoxum, Allium rubellum, Foeniculum vulgare, Mentha longifolia, Origanum vulgare, Prunus divaricata, Rubus sanctus, Rumex tuberosus, Satureja mutica and Spinacia turkestanica were evaluated by four different methods; free radical scavenging using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), evaluation of xanthine-oxidase activity, inhibition of lipid peroxidation by the ferric thiocyanate method, and the deoxyribose degradation assay. All species tested except A. paradoxum and P. divaricata showed antioxidant activity at least in one assay. The pro-oxidant activities were also assayed for these species and S. mutica, M. longifolia, and O. vulgare showed significant pro-oxidant activity.

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