People using macro-fungal diversity in Oaxaca, Mexico

Abstract

Traditional mycological knowledge of most Mexican ethnic groups has proven to be extensive and profound, consuming nearly 300 species of wild mushrooms. In this paper, we identified the mushrooms used by Zapotecs of Ixtlan, Oaxaca, compiled their traditional knowledge and analyzed their relation to macro-fungal diversity and usage. We collected mushrooms and conducted ethnomycological research between 2000 and 2003. We used participant observation and applied 50 interviews and 47 questionnaires to a randomly selected sample pool of local informants. Forty-three mushroom taxa had local anthropocentric interest and corresponded to 26 folk species. Thirty-seven taxa were wild edibles, three were cultivated edibles, two toxic and one had recreational use. Wild edible taxa represented 38.54% of useful species recorded in the zone. Taxa belonged to 19 families, with Pluteaceae being the most represented with six species, followed by Hydnaceae and Hydnangiaceae with five. From the 20 genera represented, Amanita had six species and Hydnum and Laccaria had five. Informants knew aspects of fungal nature and life-cycle, substrates, habitats and ecological relations of mushrooms with plants. Edible fungi were the most used non-timber forest resource, with 65.96% of informants reported to collect them. On average, interviewees consumed mushrooms 3.04 days a month. Everyone had access to mushrooms independently of age, sex or occupation. The mechanisms involved in the mushroom appropriation process were gathering, purchasing and reciprocal gifts. The mushroom exploitation was composed of different gathering strategies: casual or intentional and randomly or directed. We also found inside-forest promotion of Tricholoma magnivelare development, and outside-forest semi-culture of Neolentinus lepideus. These people use macro-fungal diversity, mainly for food, in an integrated subsistence system that joins modern and traditional practices.