In situ Management and Patterns of Morphological Variation of Ceiba aesculifolia subsp. parvifolia (Bombacaceae) in the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley

Abstract

In situManagement and Patterns of Morphological Variation ofCeiba aesculifoliasubsp.parvifolia(Bombacaceae) in the Tehuacan-Cuicatlan Valley. Archaeological studies in Mexico’s Tehuacan Valley that were conducted during the 1960s revealed that the prehistoric use of “pochote” Ceiba aesculifolia was mainly for its edible roots and seeds. Recent ethnobotanical studies in the villages of Coxcatlan, San Rafael, and San Jose Tilapa, municipality of Coxcatlan, Puebla, documented that currently seeds are the most important plant parts of this tree used in the region. Local people recognize three morphological types of pochote trees: the purple-reddish, the pale green, and the dark-green reddish fruit variants, the first two being preferred because of their larger and more abundant seeds. This study documents the patterns of morphological variation of C. aesculifolia in human-managed and unmanaged populations in the communities just mentioned in order to analyze whether management has been directed to favor abundance of morphological types preferred by people. The main morphological types named by people were characterized by morphometric studies, and their frequencies in populations under different management intensity were evaluated through vegetation sampling. The morphometric studies corroborated that the morphological types recognized by people are identifiable groups, whereas vegetation sampling revealed that pochote variants preferred by people (the purple-reddish fruit type) were relatively more abundant in human-managed areas than in natural vegetation. This information suggests the occurrence of artificial selection associated with in situ management of this plant species.