Traditional Management and Diversity of Opuntia: General Panorama in Mexico and a Case Study in the Meridional Central Plateau

Abstract

This chapter shows a general panorama of the biocultural importance of the Opuntia genus in Mexico, and a case study directed to illustrate more specifically such relevance. The case study was conducted in one of the regions of Mexico where the highest diversity of species and ethnovarieties of Opuntia occur, and where this variation has been strongly rooted in the regional cultures. The Opuntia genus comprises more than 200 species, numerous intraspecific taxa and even more ethnovarieties of cactus pears. It is native to the Americas, with a wide distribution in arid and semiarid lands through subpolar, temperate, subtropical, and tropical regions, from Canada to Patagonia. At least 84 species and numerous intraspecific taxa have been recorded to occur in Mexico; nearly 50 of them are used by different human cultures, and about 15 are cultivated, showing signs of domestication. Nowadays, some Mexican prickly pears like O. ficus-indica, O. streptacantha, O. robusta, O. cochenillifera, and O. auberi are cultivated throughout the world due to their economic and cultural values as food, ornaments, fodder, health-promoting benefits, as main host plant of cochineal, and for multiple other uses and applications. Some species were introduced to the Old World after the European colonization of the Americas and currently are invasive in areas of Australia, Asia, Africa, and Europe, causing severe ecological and economic problems. Since pre-Columbian times, the cactus pear species played agroecological roles in different regions of the Americas. In Mexico, these plants have been used since prehistory by native peoples and currently are important sources of livelihood, outstandingly human food. Fruits and young tender stems of practically all species, and flower buds of some of them, are edible. Their fruits are consumed fresh, and these and other edible parts are prepared in multiple ways in the Mexican cuisine, contributing to diet-nutritious components like amino acids, vitamins, proteins, minerals, dietary fibers, betalains, and phenolic compounds. The young tender cladodes are very much appreciated as vegetables in Mexican cuisine with dozens of recipes developed through history. The mature cladodes are also used to feed livestock; when dried, these are used as firewood. Their easy vegetative propagation and fast growth make Opuntia plants favorable for their cultivation, their use in borders of terraces against soil erosion, as live fences, and as main crops in intensive and extensive plantations. Due to their crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) and water use efficiency, Opuntia spp. provide ecological benefits for recovering and improving degraded lands, landscapes rehabilitation, biodiversity preservation, and prevention of desertification. The case study reported in this chapter was conducted in the Meridional Central Plateau of Mexico, a region historically inhabited by different Chichimec Indigenous peoples, which developed a remarkable cultural history of interactions with prickly pears since pre-Columbian times. Then, after the European conquest, peoples of the region maintained traditional use and developed innovations associated with new socio-ecological contexts, strongly influenced by livestock raising and modern agriculture intensification. The study area is a remaining of the cultural region called “Tunal Grande” or “Gran Tunal,” because of the abundance of forests dominated by Opuntia spp. The name “Tunal” derives from the word tuna, of Caribbean origin but adopted in Spanish to refer to fruits of these plants. The case study documented the local classification of varieties and species of Opuntia, their uses, and management forms in the community of Laguna de Guadalupe in the state of Guanajuato. There, we identified 30 traditional varieties of 10 Opuntia species managed in two main environmental units: the monte (patches of thorn-scrub and secondary forests) and home gardens. In the monte, people let standing phenotypes of species and varieties that are more valued because of their attributes; in addition, they carry out practices that promote the abundance of these favorable species and varieties. In home gardens, people cultivate the most appreciated species and varieties and practice more intensively human selection that guides processes of domestication. We documented the different uses of species and varieties of Opuntia, their economic importance for local people, and their historical and current role as components of the biocultural diversity. We finally discuss the main cultural and economic factors influencing contemporary changes in the local landscape and human culture, and the socio-ecological perspectives for conserving the important biocultural heritage related to Opuntia.