REVIEW article
Front. Conserv. Sci.
Sec. Plant Conservation
Volume 6 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fcosc.2025.1569528
Of shrub, cactus, vine and toad: Psychedelic species of conservation concern
Provisionally accepted
- 1Chacruna Institute, San Francisco, United States
- 2Independent Researcher, Market Harborough, United Kingdom
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Psychedelics have a profound potential to catalyse psychological change and transformation andor support traditional cultures and ways of life. However, many naturally occurring psychoactive plants and animals are facing threats from climate change, habitat loss and other anthropogenic pressures like overharvesting. In this narrative review we examine some ofwill dive deep into the conservation issues pertaining toaround some of the most well-known naturally occurring psychedelics: peyote (Lophophora williamsii), ayahuasca vine (Banisteriopsis caapi), iboga (Tabernanthe iboga) and the Sonoran Desert toad (Incilius alvarius) and iboga (Tabernanthe iboga). For each of the four species we aim to: review their conservation status; assess the sustainability of current sourcing practices; discuss pathways for sustainability of access; examinedescribe the efforts which are underway tofor preserveing these medicines by Indigenous people and local communities; and propose how these efforts could be supported or expanded. This review focuses on an urgent issue of conservation of naturally occurring psychedelic plant and animal speciesmedicines and draws attention to their conservation needs. We conclude that despite biological and ecological differences, all four species face similar knowledge gaps limiting evidence-based conservation. Priorities across species include: long-term ecological and demographic monitoring; genetic and chemical diversity studies; sustainable harvest and management research; integration of Iindigenous knowledge and sociocultural research into conservation frameworks.
Keywords: psychedelic conservation, Lophophora williamsii, Banisteriopsis caapi, Incilius alvarius, Tabernanthe iboga
Received: 01 Feb 2025; Accepted: 27 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Ermakova and Gandy. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Anna Ermakova, Chacruna Institute, San Francisco, United States
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