Past, present and potential uses of native flora and wildlife of the Monte Desert

This paper provides an overview of the traditional uses of native flora and wildlife in the Monte Desert. The uses of several native plant products, such as Prosopis wood and pods, Cercidium gum, Bulnesia wax, and Larrea and Grindelia resin are discussed in an economic context. We provide a detailed description of the uses of animal products, such as hides, furs, bones, meat, feathers and fat. Legal regulations to guarantee wildlife conservation are discussed. We conclude that currently, the most feasible options for sustainable economic wildlife utilization seem to be guanaco live shearing and the use of rhea products obtained from captive-bred animals. We propose four options for the sustainable economic utilization of flora: (1) the harvest of non-wood forest products; (2) periodic selective logging of a limited number of mature trees in natural forests; (3) the establishment of native tree plantations; and (4) the domestication of native shrubs or herbs capable of yielding industrial raw materials such as fatty acids, resins or gums.