Conhecimento etnomicológico de uma comunidade rural no Sudoeste Paulista

Abstract

Ethnobiology is the study of a society’s knowledge of nature and how it is linked to its cultural and social development. Among the branches of ethnobiology, ethnomicology proposes to investigate the relationship between humans and fungi, their uses, meanings and perceptions. The ethnomycological study in Brazil still has a low number of references and much of the knowledge in this area was generated from studies with indigenous people. However, many other communities in our country can be recognized as holders of traditional knowledge, such as the caipiras. Thus, the present work aimed to investigate the ethnomycological knowledge of a rural community located in the Southwestern São Paulo, more specifically, in the Guareí Velho district, Angatuba. The project used the methodology of an ethnographic research, of a qualitative (stage 1) and quantitative (stage 2) character. The interviews in both stages involved questions about taxonomy, ecology and uses related to fungi. Fungal specimens collected and color photographs were used as a guiding resource for the discussion. Finally, in order to provide a counterpart to the community, two scientific dissemination materials were developed, one for the first stage and the other for the second. The materials developed addressed discussions on traditional knowledge and mycological scientific knowledge, although they have different purposes. The work recorded the medicinal use of puff-balls, the edibility report of the species Auricularia fuscosuccinea (Mont.) Henn. and the playful use of puff-balls and pasture agaricales. In addition, collaborators showed interest and admiration about fungal organisms, their morphological and ecological aspects, but they do not use them in their daily lives. Thus, we can infer that the community is characterized as neutral, since it does not fully fit the classification of mycophile-mycophobe proposed by Robert and Valentina Wasson.