USEFUL LIANAS OF THE SIONA-SECOYA INDIANS FROM AMAZONIAN ECUADOR

An ethnobotanical inventory of lianas was carried out in a 1-ha plot o f tropical moist forest in the Cuyabeno Reserve, Amazonian Ecuador. We obtained information about the uses that the Siona-Secoya Indians hav e for lianas. Of 98 species in the 1-ha plot, 47% were useful for the Siona-Secoya. Of the species used, 67% were for medicines, food, stimu lants, and poisons; 17% had ritual applications, and 15% were used to make ropes or to weave baskets, toys, and ornaments. The species of li anas that were most useful were the ones with the highest values of ec ological parameters such as density, dominance, and relative length. T here is a close relationship between the ecological characteristics of the liana community and the uses made of it by the Indians.