Wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in Central Mexico

Abstract Background In Central Mexico is located an ecoturistic town in Nanacamilpa, state off Tlaxcala. The main activity of the villagers in the summertime is the ecotourism activity including gastronomic use of wild mushrooms. The aim of this paper is to describe the traditional knowledge of mush...

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Main Authors: Adriana Díaz-Pérez, Adriana Montoya, Alejandro Kong, Mariana Cuautle, Laura Trejo-Hernández, Luís Pacheco-Cobos, Marco Antonio Hernández-Muñoz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-05-01
Series:Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-025-00758-4
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author Adriana Díaz-Pérez
Adriana Montoya
Alejandro Kong
Mariana Cuautle
Laura Trejo-Hernández
Luís Pacheco-Cobos
Marco Antonio Hernández-Muñoz
author_facet Adriana Díaz-Pérez
Adriana Montoya
Alejandro Kong
Mariana Cuautle
Laura Trejo-Hernández
Luís Pacheco-Cobos
Marco Antonio Hernández-Muñoz
author_sort Adriana Díaz-Pérez
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background In Central Mexico is located an ecoturistic town in Nanacamilpa, state off Tlaxcala. The main activity of the villagers in the summertime is the ecotourism activity including gastronomic use of wild mushrooms. The aim of this paper is to describe the traditional knowledge of mushrooms and discuss the role and perspectives in the business of ecotourism. Methods Interviews in town and local school and forest trips with local experts were the main techniques used. To compare the number of mushrooms mentioned by persons of different age category and gender, during a free-listing task, a two-way ANOVA test was used. The local names used by interviewed persons were compared by a Chi-square analysis. A person-mushrooms network was performed using ANINHADO program. Results A list of 61 species of mushrooms was generated, including 43 traditional names, selling prices, and criteria for distinguishing edible mushrooms during collection. No differences were found in the mushroom species mentioned by gender, indicating that both men and women prefer the same species. In the case of 10 most mentioned mushrooms by age group, the mushroom mentioned was dependent on the age class. The network analysis shows that experts are familiar with nearly all the mushroom species mentioned (49.0%), whereas non-experts only recognize the most notable species (9.0%). Conclusions Several wild mushroom species are important to the community of San Felipe Hidalgo; however, Lyophyllum spp. have true cultural significance. It is necessary to include activities related to mushrooms at school level to reinforce traditional knowledge of young people. Expert mushroom collectors are reliable and qualified people for the identification of wild species.
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spelling doaj-art-151cb5043d934ff0b36367e5543f49a42025-08-20T02:03:32ZengBMCJournal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine1746-42692025-05-0121111810.1186/s13002-025-00758-4Wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in Central MexicoAdriana Díaz-Pérez0Adriana Montoya1Alejandro Kong2Mariana Cuautle3Laura Trejo-Hernández4Luís Pacheco-Cobos5Marco Antonio Hernández-Muñoz6Facultad de Estudios Superiores Zaragoza, Carrera de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de MéxicoCentro de Investigación de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de TlaxcalaCentro de Investigación de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de TlaxcalaCentro de Investigación de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de TlaxcalaIxM-CONAHCYT – Jardín Botánico, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de MéxicoFacultad de Biología-Xalapa, Universidad Veracruzana, Cto. Gonzalo-Aguirre Beltrán S/N Zona UniversitariaFacultad de Estudios Superiores Zaragoza, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Herbario FEZAAbstract Background In Central Mexico is located an ecoturistic town in Nanacamilpa, state off Tlaxcala. The main activity of the villagers in the summertime is the ecotourism activity including gastronomic use of wild mushrooms. The aim of this paper is to describe the traditional knowledge of mushrooms and discuss the role and perspectives in the business of ecotourism. Methods Interviews in town and local school and forest trips with local experts were the main techniques used. To compare the number of mushrooms mentioned by persons of different age category and gender, during a free-listing task, a two-way ANOVA test was used. The local names used by interviewed persons were compared by a Chi-square analysis. A person-mushrooms network was performed using ANINHADO program. Results A list of 61 species of mushrooms was generated, including 43 traditional names, selling prices, and criteria for distinguishing edible mushrooms during collection. No differences were found in the mushroom species mentioned by gender, indicating that both men and women prefer the same species. In the case of 10 most mentioned mushrooms by age group, the mushroom mentioned was dependent on the age class. The network analysis shows that experts are familiar with nearly all the mushroom species mentioned (49.0%), whereas non-experts only recognize the most notable species (9.0%). Conclusions Several wild mushroom species are important to the community of San Felipe Hidalgo; however, Lyophyllum spp. have true cultural significance. It is necessary to include activities related to mushrooms at school level to reinforce traditional knowledge of young people. Expert mushroom collectors are reliable and qualified people for the identification of wild species.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-025-00758-4Traditional knowledgeHuman-mushrooms-networksEcotourismEthnomycologyFirefliesBioculture
spellingShingle Adriana Díaz-Pérez
Adriana Montoya
Alejandro Kong
Mariana Cuautle
Laura Trejo-Hernández
Luís Pacheco-Cobos
Marco Antonio Hernández-Muñoz
Wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in Central Mexico
Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine
Traditional knowledge
Human-mushrooms-networks
Ecotourism
Ethnomycology
Fireflies
Bioculture
title Wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in Central Mexico
title_full Wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in Central Mexico
title_fullStr Wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in Central Mexico
title_full_unstemmed Wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in Central Mexico
title_short Wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in Central Mexico
title_sort wild fungi used in an ecoturistic town in central mexico
topic Traditional knowledge
Human-mushrooms-networks
Ecotourism
Ethnomycology
Fireflies
Bioculture
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-025-00758-4
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