Abstract
The relationship between humans and nature is defined by culture. Accordingly, the use, conceptions, and perceptions of resources differ among cultural groups, even among those inhabiting the same region or those who come into contact with the same biota. In particular, mushrooms evoke a wide range of sentiments. During ethnobiological tours in Mexico, semi-structured interviews were carried out with 37 individuals of each community, from ten Wixarika and mestizo communities, living in the same locality and sharing similar resources, in the municipality of Villa Guerrero in northern Jalisco, Mexico. Furthermore, informal interviews with four Wixarika and five mestizo key informants were conducted. The topics treated were regarding the traditional nomenclature and classification, uses, and knowledge of mushrooms and related practices. Wixarika names of 37 mushroom species with edible, medicinal, and recreational uses were recorded. In addition, the Wixaritari were found to associate toxic mushrooms with the divine, as evidenced by one case of the use of mushrooms as a hierophanic agent. Each culture’s knowledge of the phenology and ecology of mushrooms was recorded in addition to data highlighting the cultural exchange between the Wixaritari and mestizos. However, a loss in the knowledge and practices concerning mushrooms was observed as a result of social changes. Even so, both cultures prefer mushrooms to other foods, including meat, especially Volvariella bombycina and Pleurotus djamor.
Highlights
Environmental, biological, and cultural factors have influenced the relationships established between humans and the different components of nature
Mexico is a culturally and biologically diverse country where the traditional knowledge of each region and among its peoples has been conserved to a certain extent (Boege 2008)
The use of mushrooms has been documented in 15 of the 68 indigenous groups of Mexico and in various mestizo communities living in rural areas (Garibay-Orijel and Ruan-Soto 2014) —understanding Mexican mestizos as those resulted by the mixture of Amerindian and European ancestors (Silva-Zolezzi et al 2009)
Summary
Environmental, biological, and cultural factors have influenced the relationships established between humans and the different components of nature. As a result of human-nature interactions, societies have constructed different sets of knowledge over time. Traditional ecological knowledge represents the culmination of wisdom, practices, and beliefs transmitted generationally regarding the relationship of living things (Berkes et al 2000). The knowledge sets of human groups are not dissociated but rather form part of a worldview that unites the past with the future and integrates visible elements and materials with those that are subjective and mystic as well as Mexico is a culturally and biologically diverse country where the traditional knowledge of each region and among its peoples has been conserved to a certain extent (Boege 2008). The use of mushrooms has been documented in 15 of the 68 indigenous groups of Mexico and in various mestizo communities living in rural areas (Garibay-Orijel and Ruan-Soto 2014) —understanding Mexican mestizos as those resulted by the mixture of Amerindian and European ancestors (Silva-Zolezzi et al 2009).
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