Institute of Botany, Nature Research Centre, Žaliųjų Ežerų Str. 47, 12200, Vilnius, Lithuania.
Institute of Lithuanian Literature and Folklore, Antakalnio Str. 6, 10308, Vilnius, Lithuania.
J Ethnobiol Ethnomed. 2024 Sep 18;20(1):88. doi: 10.1186/s13002-024-00730-8.
Even in mycophilic nations, mushroom foraging and use traditions may vary from region to region, making it part of cultural diversity and a source of traditional knowledge even in modern and changing societies. The main objective of our study was to investigate mushroom foraging and use traditions in major ethno-regions of Lithuania, to record and analyse whether and how biogeographical and ethno-cultural features influence these traditions, what is their biocultural significance, and whether they persist in the face of societal and environmental change.
The study conducted a survey among 106 respondents from eleven administrative units of Lithuania, representing four ethno-regions (Žemaitija, Suvalkija, Dzūkija and Aukštaitija, the latter divided into North and East). The age of the respondents ranged from 32 to 97 years (mean 70 years, median 68 years). Each respondent was asked six questions about mushroom species and mushroom foraging. The interviews were accompanied by 50 photographs of different mushroom species. The similarity between mushroom foragers' preferences in ethno-regions and the sets of mushroom species used for food and medicine was tested using cluster analysis. Clustering was carried out using Sørensen distances and the method of cluster mean linkage method.
The number of mushroom species recognised per respondent was quite similar, with the lowest number of mushroom species recognised in Žemaitija and the highest in Eastern Aukštaitija. Species of no economic or other importance were not well recognised in any of the regions. The number of names applied to mushroom species varied from region to region and did not coincide with the popularity of mushrooms among mushroom pickers. The number of mushroom species used for food was also similar between regions, except for Dzūkija, which had the lowest number of species collected. Nine mushroom species were identified by respondents as medicinal mushrooms, the most popular being Amanita muscaria and Inonotus obliquus. When analysing the similarity of mushroom species collected for food and medicine, it was found that ethno-regions clustered into three distinct groups. Two groups depended on the prevailing forest types, while Žemaitija formed a separate cluster defined only by local traditions.
The work represents the largest study of ethnomycological tradition in Lithuania, covering major ethno-regions. We have found that ethnomycological knowledge and tradition are not influenced by any long-term historical events, ethnicity or religion, but rather by the prevailing forest types and regional ethno-culture. Knowledge of edible mushrooms is considered to be inherited from the older generation and is conservative regarding the changes in the set of species consumed and mushroom-related gastronomy. This is also reflected in the safety of mushroom consumption, as mushroom poisoning was very rare among the respondents. Economically insignificant mushrooms are not distinguished and overlooked by traditional mushroom pickers who are not a good source of information on rare or otherwise noteworthy species. However, from a biocultural point of view, mushrooms and mushroom-related traditions remain important for linguistic diversity, traditional knowledge systems and their transmission.
即使在嗜菇国家，蘑菇觅食和使用传统也可能因地区而异，这使其成为文化多样性的一部分，也是传统知识的来源，即使在现代和不断变化的社会也是如此。我们研究的主要目的是调查立陶宛主要民族地区的蘑菇觅食和使用传统，记录和分析生物地理和民族文化特征是否以及如何影响这些传统、它们的生物文化意义是什么，以及它们是否在社会和环境变化面前得以保留。
该研究在立陶宛 11 个行政区的 106 名受访者中进行了调查，代表四个民族地区（Žemaitija、Suvalkija、Dzūkija 和 Aukštaitija，后者分为北和东）。受访者的年龄从 32 岁到 97 岁（平均 70 岁，中位数 68 岁）。每位受访者被问到六个关于蘑菇种类和蘑菇觅食的问题。访谈伴随着 50 张不同蘑菇种类的照片。使用聚类分析测试民族地区蘑菇觅食者偏好与用于食物和药物的蘑菇种类集之间的相似性。聚类使用 Sørensen 距离和聚类均值链接方法进行。
每位受访者识别的蘑菇种类数量相当相似，Žemaitija 地区识别的蘑菇种类最少，而东部 Aukštaitija 地区识别的蘑菇种类最多。任何地区都没有很好地识别出没有经济或其他重要性的物种。蘑菇种类的名称数量因地区而异，与蘑菇采摘者对蘑菇的受欢迎程度不一致。用于食物的蘑菇种类数量在各地区也相似，除了 Dzūkija，该地区采集的物种数量最少。有 9 种蘑菇被受访者鉴定为药用蘑菇，最受欢迎的是鹅膏菌和桦褐孔菌。在分析用于食物和药物的蘑菇种类的相似性时，发现民族地区分为三个不同的组。两个组取决于流行的森林类型，而Žemaitija 形成了一个由当地传统定义的单独集群。
这项工作代表了立陶宛最大规模的民族蘑菇学传统研究，涵盖了主要的民族地区。我们发现，民族蘑菇学知识和传统不受任何长期历史事件、种族或宗教的影响，而是受流行的森林类型和区域民族文化的影响。食用蘑菇的知识被认为是从老一辈那里继承下来的，并且在食用物种的变化和与蘑菇相关的美食方面保持保守。这也反映在蘑菇食用的安全性上，因为受访者中很少有蘑菇中毒的情况。传统的蘑菇采摘者不会区分和忽视经济上不重要的蘑菇，他们不是稀有或其他有价值物种的良好信息来源。然而，从生物文化的角度来看，蘑菇和与蘑菇相关的传统仍然对语言多样性、传统知识体系及其传播很重要。
