Knowledge, use, and management of magaba (Hancornia speciosa Gomes) by extrativist communities on the coast of Rio Grande do Norte, Northeast Brazil

ABSTRACT Mangaba (Hancornia speciosa) is a native fruit tree of Brazil and of great importance as an alternative source of income and subsistence for many rural communities of the Northeast region. This study aimed to identify and characterize the uses, local knowledge and management practices of H. speciosa in extrativist communities of the state of Rio Grande do Norte, Northeast Brazil. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 59 informants. The importance of mangaba was analyzed based on the mentioned types of uses and by calculating the use diversity index and consensus value among the interviewees. Knowledge of H. speciosa is equally distributed among communities. The categories of food (0.39) and commercialization (0.37) were the most relevant use categories. No significant differences were found in the diversity of uses between genders (p>0.05, U=414), with the only differences being found between age groups, for informants over 40 years of age (IDV: p<0.05, H=25.37; IVE: p<0.05, H=24.07). Results show that the informants are dependent on the resources offered by this species, and that its importance is mainly related to the use of fruits for food and commercialization. The main form of management of mangaba was collecting the fruit, followed by promotion, tolerance, and protection.