You may ask: what is ethnobiology?
"Ethnobiology is the scientific study of dynamic relationships among peoples, biota, and environments."
definition from the Society of Ethnobotany, <http://ethnobiology.org/about-ethnobiology/what-is-ethnobiology>
Why am I interested in ethnobiology?
I am interested in the intersections between peoples and places and how people adapt to belong in certain environments. I think this is directly linked both bio-diversity and cultural diversity, both which are at risk in our modern times. I am inspired by cultural revitalization and indigenous food movements that have been happening within First Nations within the state and throughout the world.
My current experience
I have been leading natural history/ethnobiology tours at the Medicinal Herb Garden for a few quarters, as well as occasionally at the Burke Museum. I have also been teaching ethnobiology workshops in public elementary classrooms around Seattle. In my tours and workshops, I focus on how plants can be used for traditional arts, materials, foods and medicines. I want to encourage people to creatively engage with the environment as well as gain awareness of the rich cultural practices in our region.
I have also facilitated a seminar at the University of Washington through the UW Pipeline Program which focused on teaching elementary students about ethnobotany and traditional arts of Coast Salish Peoples. I am excited to pull this independent work into what I have been doing in my natural history class to design this walk- which integrates natural history and ethnobiology.
Here is a map of the tour so that you can self guide; each number correlates with the station number.
- Station 1: Land Use History
- Station 2: Geology/Geomorphology
- Station 3: Changing Waterlines
- Station 4: An Early Successional Wetland
- Station 5: Prairie Ecosystems
- Station 6: Indigenous Foods
- Station 7: Plant Material Uses
- Station 8: Ethnobotanical Uses of Fungi
- Station 9: Plant Medicines
- Station 10: Native Pollinators
Station #1
Land Use History
Land Use History
(UW Library Digital Collection)
We are starting in a spot that gives us a good visage of most of the Union Bay Natural Area. We are by the entryway sign, which provides a map, as well as a white board where birders have recorded recent species they have found. Take the time to check out these resources before we begin. Look out on the UBNA, take note of the waterline, vegetation, geography, and any animals you see in the distance. I will be discussing all of these aspects in this self-guided tour.
The Union Bay Natural Area has a long and interesting history. Since time immemorial, Native peoples have lived in the area now known as Seattle, but was long before known as "Little Crossing Place" or sdZéédZul7aleecH (according to orthographic land maps of the area, compiled by Coll Thrush in "Native Seattle"). "Little Crossing Place" was a small portage with up to eight longhouses. Up until WWII, Lushootseed speakers used this name to refer to the modern city of Seattle. There is a lot more here I could tell, but lets focus on the history of the particular grounds of the Union Bay Natural Area. If I walked to what we know as the Union Bay Natural Area about 150 years ago, I would of seen why it was called sHab7altxW or "Drying House." Similar to today, the winds off the bay and the undeterred sunlight hit this area so well that it was an ideal spot for drying salmon. Native peoples probably erected large, open frame structures which would suspend and spread the salmon.
The Union Bay Natural Area's land formation and shoreline was once completely different. We don't quite know what this site once looked like- it could have been completely submerged in the waters of what we now call Lake Union, or it could have been a swamp similar to the Yesler swamp. But this is just the beginning of the recent history of the UBNA. We have not cared for this site as its fore-bearers did. Here's a photo (Kern Ewing, 2014) of the UBNA from the 1950's, when it was known as the Montlake Landfill:
This is pretty bleak. But trust me, it gets better. Around 1998, large scale restoration efforts began:
Trees!
This is from 2007:
And now it is its modern-day self. This seems to me like a very effective restoration project. Its important to remember than this ecosystem is less than two decades old, and that most of the older species here were hand-planted by people.
Station # 2
Geomorphology/Geology of the UBNA:
Topics Discussed: Glaciation, Geomorphology, Soils
Lets begin by watching this Animation by Ralph A. Haugerud (USGS) of the last (Vashon) glaciation of the Puget Lowland.
What the soils at the UBNA can tell you about its geo-history
The UBNA is covered in over 1 meter of peat deposits, settled in the Holocene. This peat consists of mainly organic matter, such as plant materials and woody debris. This peat is one of the factors that make this site a natural wetland. These peat deposits are mixed in with clay that was deposited in 1971 in order to regrade the area following the landfill.
If you were to continue to dig down past these clay and peat deposits under the Union Bay Natural Area, you would encounter the sand and gravel outwash from Ravenna Creek, which was once a much larger waterway and would have deposited a lot of sand and gravel as it emptied into Lake Union. Dig deeper, and you would encounter the Vashon till deposits, which settled in the outwash plains of the Vashon Glacier. Then, you would encounter the Esperance sand and Lawton clay, the last layers of the Vashon Stade (13,000-20,000 yrs ago). These lie below the till because in outwash plains such as the UBNA, the till is deposited at the toe of the glacier, followed by the finest particles in the still waters, the sand and clay. Below this, you would be digging into the older glacial and non-glacial deposits of the earlier part of the Pleistocene.
For more information on Seattle soils, follow this link: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2005/1252/
So what does this tell us about recent geologic history of the Union Bay Natural Area as well as ancient glaciation history? Well, many of the accumulations of peat are where there is exposed extensive lake-floor deposits. Lake Union is now much lower than it once was, since the Montlake Cut caused a major draining of the lake, along with the diverting of Greenlake from the Ravenna waterway. The Union Bay Natural Area could have been completely covered in the water from Lake Union, or it could have been a more flooded wetlands similar to the Yesler Swamp.
Lake Union was dug out 12,000 years ago by the Vashon Glacier. The last glaciation of the Puget Sound region was 17,500 years ago, when the Puget Sound Basin was covered by 3,000 ft of ice (a glacier called the Vashon Lobe) . This glaciation period lasted less than 2,000 years. You can watch an animation by Ralph Haugerud (USGS) of the Vashon Lobe glaciation below.
Topics Discussed: Glaciation, Geomorphology, Soils
Lets begin by watching this Animation by Ralph A. Haugerud (USGS) of the last (Vashon) glaciation of the Puget Lowland.
What the soils at the UBNA can tell you about its geo-history
The UBNA is covered in over 1 meter of peat deposits, settled in the Holocene. This peat consists of mainly organic matter, such as plant materials and woody debris. This peat is one of the factors that make this site a natural wetland. These peat deposits are mixed in with clay that was deposited in 1971 in order to regrade the area following the landfill.
If you were to continue to dig down past these clay and peat deposits under the Union Bay Natural Area, you would encounter the sand and gravel outwash from Ravenna Creek, which was once a much larger waterway and would have deposited a lot of sand and gravel as it emptied into Lake Union. Dig deeper, and you would encounter the Vashon till deposits, which settled in the outwash plains of the Vashon Glacier. Then, you would encounter the Esperance sand and Lawton clay, the last layers of the Vashon Stade (13,000-20,000 yrs ago). These lie below the till because in outwash plains such as the UBNA, the till is deposited at the toe of the glacier, followed by the finest particles in the still waters, the sand and clay. Below this, you would be digging into the older glacial and non-glacial deposits of the earlier part of the Pleistocene.
For more information on Seattle soils, follow this link: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2005/1252/
So what does this tell us about recent geologic history of the Union Bay Natural Area as well as ancient glaciation history? Well, many of the accumulations of peat are where there is exposed extensive lake-floor deposits. Lake Union is now much lower than it once was, since the Montlake Cut caused a major draining of the lake, along with the diverting of Greenlake from the Ravenna waterway. The Union Bay Natural Area could have been completely covered in the water from Lake Union, or it could have been a more flooded wetlands similar to the Yesler Swamp.
Lake Union was dug out 12,000 years ago by the Vashon Glacier. The last glaciation of the Puget Sound region was 17,500 years ago, when the Puget Sound Basin was covered by 3,000 ft of ice (a glacier called the Vashon Lobe) . This glaciation period lasted less than 2,000 years. You can watch an animation by Ralph Haugerud (USGS) of the Vashon Lobe glaciation below.
(you can watch this larger on the site as well, http://www.burkemuseum.org/waterlines/glaciation.html)
Coloration Key:
glacier
fresh water
salt water
From this station, you will see a pond to your right- this is Shoveler's pond. In this pond, you should see Black Cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa) and Red Alder (Alnus rubra). Black Cottonwood has diamond shaped leaves with silvery backs, sticky buds, and rough, mottled white-black bark. Black Cottonwoods grow well in marshy poor soils, and can deal with a lot of moisture without rotting. They grow fast but are short lived and are shade intolerant, and thus are easily succeeded by cedar.
Source: Burke Museum's Digital Waterlines Exhibit
Coloration Key:
glacier
fresh water
salt water
Station #4
Changing Waterlines:
Duwamish Bay in 1875
Photo Credit: Burke Museum "Waterlines" Digital Exhibit
Topics: Ecological Disturbance, Lake Washington Watershed, Wapato
From where you are standing, you should clearly see Lake Union and the shoreline of the UBNA. The area of Seattle was once an estuary, which has been filled in, rerouted, dammed and straightened to become what it is today. The construction of the Hiram M Chittenden Locks in Ballard in 1917 vastly changed the Lake Washington Watershed; rather than flowing South out of the Black River as it always had, the water began to flow North through the locks, and Lake Washington subsequently became 10-20 feet lower.
The Black river in its earlier state (1899)
MOHAI Digital Collection:
<a href="http://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/cdm/ref/collection/imls>
If you look east towards the Montlake cut before 1909, you would have seen just a trail over land. This spot was called sxWátSadweehL "Carry a Canoe" by the Duwamish people. Before the Montlake Cut, Lake Union was a separate body of water from Lake Washington, and only emptied into the Puget Sound through a small waterway called Ross Creek. Ross Creek used to be a passageway for several runs of salmon; chum, pink, chinook and coho. Now, Ross Creek has been enveloped by the vast Salmon Bay. Lake Union was named by Thomas Mercer, who owned the land and envisioned that someday the lake would connect Lake Washington and the Sound. The original Lushootseed name for Lake Union was XáXu7cHoo which roughly means "small great amount of water."
Here is a photo of the beginning of the construction of the Montlake Cut:
Photo Credit UW Digital Collections
The photo is of Cheshiahud John, also called Lake Union John and Chudups John (and is the origin of the Cheshiahud Loop trail name), in his canoe on Lake Union in 1885. Cheshiahud John was a Duwamish man who managed to remain in Seattle after the forced relocation of Duwamish people to the Port Madison Reservation. Cheshiahud John lived in a house in Portage Bay across from what is now the University of Washington with his wife, Tleboletsa. I wonder what Cheshiahud John thought about the changes to the XáXu7cHoo that he knew and loved. His connection to this waterway kept him on his ancestral grounds until very old age, when he finally moved to the reservation.
Photo Credit UW Digital Collections
Cheshiahud John and Tleboletsa
photo credit UW Digital Collections
To learn more about this area's altered landscape and waterways, a great resource is the Burke Museum's digital exhibition "Waterlines" which investigates these changes and provides great interactive visuals.
http://www.burkemuseum.org/waterlines/
Duwamish Bay in 1875
Photo Credit: Burke Museum "Waterlines" Digital Exhibit
Topics: Ecological Disturbance, Lake Washington Watershed, Wapato
The Black river in its earlier state (1899)
MOHAI Digital Collection:
<a href="http://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/cdm/ref/collection/imls>
Here is a photo of the beginning of the construction of the Montlake Cut:
Photo Credit UW Digital Collections
The photo is of Cheshiahud John, also called Lake Union John and Chudups John (and is the origin of the Cheshiahud Loop trail name), in his canoe on Lake Union in 1885. Cheshiahud John was a Duwamish man who managed to remain in Seattle after the forced relocation of Duwamish people to the Port Madison Reservation. Cheshiahud John lived in a house in Portage Bay across from what is now the University of Washington with his wife, Tleboletsa. I wonder what Cheshiahud John thought about the changes to the XáXu7cHoo that he knew and loved. His connection to this waterway kept him on his ancestral grounds until very old age, when he finally moved to the reservation.
Photo Credit UW Digital Collections
Cheshiahud John and Tleboletsa
photo credit UW Digital Collections
To learn more about this area's altered landscape and waterways, a great resource is the Burke Museum's digital exhibition "Waterlines" which investigates these changes and provides great interactive visuals.
http://www.burkemuseum.org/waterlines/Station #4
The UBNA: An Early Successional Wetland Forest
A View of Shoveler's Pond
Species Highlights: Red Alder, Quaking Aspen, Cedar, Horsetail and Black Cottonwood, Lepidoptera sps.
From this station, you will see a pond to your right- this is Shoveler's pond. In this pond, you should see Black Cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa) and Red Alder (Alnus rubra). Black Cottonwood has diamond shaped leaves with silvery backs, sticky buds, and rough, mottled white-black bark. Black Cottonwoods grow well in marshy poor soils, and can deal with a lot of moisture without rotting. They grow fast but are short lived and are shade intolerant, and thus are easily succeeded by cedar.
Black Cottonwood Phenological Sketches
Shoveler's Pond
Red Alder has bright green serrated leaves with straight venation, smooth grey bark with white spots. Alders have female cone-like catkins and male yellow string-like catkins which hang from the branch ends. Alders are great early successional species because they fix nitrogen in the soil through bacteria which grow symbiotically on the roots of the alder. Alders are also shade-intolerant, and thus are often found on the exposed banks of rivers or in open wetland environments.
Red Alder leaves
All of these trees and shrubs are "pioneer" species, meaning that they are the first to colonize land that has been burned or disturbed by human use. These types of trees and shrubs make up what is called an early successional forests. Common pioneer species also include grasses, shrubs such as the Red Osier Dogwood (Cornus sericea), and trees such as the Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides).
Red Osier Dogwood sketches
Quaking Aspen is an early successional species but not a wetland species, as they do best in areas of frequent wildfires. The aspen roots are very fire tolerant and remain intact after wild fires, which allows for quick resprouting. Fire suppression forestry practices have caused major diebacks in American West, due to the impeding coniferous forests- as the fire resistance is their only natural advantage against conifers. Have you seen any cedar saplings under the cottonwoods, aspens, and alders? Later successional forests are primarily coniferous, as conifers outlive deciduous trees and thrive in our climate. The UBNA is primarily pioneer species, as the restoration ecologists in charge of the site knew that these species would do that best to recolonize the land. The UBNA is also a wetland ecosystem, with diverse habitats for many animals. The grassland, young forest, and marsh habitats host different bird species- such as the Redwing Blackbird, Great Blue Heron, a variety of waterfowl, and the Marsh Wren. We will talk about these birds more in depth in the coming stations.
Foraging Redwing blackbird female gesture sketches
Great Blue Heron in the marshy habitat
Station #5
Prairie Ecosystems:
Species Highlighted: Garry Oak, Lewis's Woodpecker, liverwort sps, Duskywing butterfly
Here we are at the restored "prairie plots"- you can see a few plants here that I want to talk about. To the right of the trail are mounds with a blue-flowered plant (in Spring) growing on them, and a little farther forward you can see an young oak tree. Find these plants and make some general observations on them before you precede.
A few centuries ago, the vegetation patterns of Western Washington were very different. Controlled burning was practiced extensively around this region by Coast Salish tribes. These controlled burns maintained prairie habitats, which were beneficial for promoting species diversity, cultivating indigenous foods, and providing good hunting grounds (forage attracted prey, hunters took advantage of high visibility of grasslands). Two of the culturally important species that were cultivated by Coast Salish tribes are Garry Oak (Quercus garryana var. garryana), and Camas (Camissia sps). The sketches to the below are of Garry Oak.
A few centuries ago, the vegetation patterns of Western Washington were very different. Controlled burning was practiced extensively around this region by Coast Salish tribes. These controlled burns maintained prairie habitats, which were beneficial for promoting species diversity, cultivating indigenous foods, and providing good hunting grounds (forage attracted prey, hunters took advantage of high visibility of grasslands). Two of the culturally important species that were cultivated by Coast Salish tribes are Garry Oak (Quercus garryana var. garryana), and Camas (Camissia sps). The sketches to the below are of Garry Oak.
a few facts on Garry Oak:
Some of the ways you can distinguish this tree is by the opposite and alternate branching, the simple leaves with 3-7 lobes on each side, the catkin flowers and acorn fruiting. scaly gray brown bark. Although the Garry Oak is deciduous, it keeps most of its dead leaves on it until the new growth, thus it is possible to spot the dead leaves up until as early spring. Garry Oak is also an indigenous food; many communities in the region used and still use acorns (after leaching out the tannins in water) to make acorn flour, an acorn "coffee," and even roast them whole.
Source: "Traditional Plant Foods of Canadian Indigenous Peoples: Nutrition, Botany ..". By Harriet V. Kuhnlein, Nancy J. Turner
Although Garry Oak was planted here, it doesn't thrive in this environment because there are no natural fires- Garry oak acorns sprouts best after a fire. Mature Garry Oaks are fire-resistant, thus they are able to survive these fires, which gives these oaks a competitive edge in colonizing disturbed land. Garry Oak forests are critical habitats for many native species and the disappearance of these forests (by fire suppression forestry policies and banning of Native American controlled burning practices) causes a decline in local bio-diversity. Today, it is very hard to find Garry oak in Washington outside of cities where it is cultivated. Sequim is one of the few places where Garry Oak priairies still exist, due to the rainshadow from the Olympics that keep Sequim drier than the rest of Western Washington. Here is a photo of Garry Oak to help in your identification:
Image © 2005, Shaun Hubbard
Burke Herbarium http://biology.burke.washington.edu/
For example, the Lewis woodpecker (Melanerpes lewis), Propertius duskywing butterfly (Erynnis propertius), and a liverwort called Riccia ciliata are three different types of species that rely on these trees. For example, the Duskywing larvae only feeds on Oak sps. and thus is becoming more and more rare in the Pacific Northwest, and is a focus species in many conservation efforts. Hopefully someday we will see these buggers at the UBNA. Here is a photo of the Duskywing, Lewis woodpecker, and ciliata:
Duskywing- Photo Credit
Lewis's Woodpecker http://www.nationalgeographic.com/
Information on Garry Oak Ecosystems here: http://www.geog.ubc.ca/biodiversity/GarryOakEcosystems.html
Station # 6
Indigenous Foods:
Species Highlighted: Common Camas, Broadleaf Cattail
Their are many indigenous foods of Western Washington. Native, edible species such as Broadleaf Cattail (Typha latifolia) and Camas (Camassia leichtlinii and quamash) have been sustaining indigenous communities since time immemorial. I'll begin with Cattail- here are some photographs so you can ID it from where you are:
Sketches of Broadleaf Cattail at my site
Mature Cattails, Photo Credit http://www.wildflower.org/
Broadleaf Cattail is an obligate wetlands species. Some ways to identify cattail are by its sword shaped blades and brown flowering spike. All parts of Cattail are edible when gathered at the correct phenological stage. The young shoots can be eaten fresh or pickled and apparently taste like cucumber. Peeled stems and leaf bases can be eaten raw or cooked. Pollen used as flour, collected by placing a bag over the spike and shaking it. Cattail rhizomes (which look like large leeks) can be roasted or eaten fresh and racemes (top sausage shaped spike) pollen can be used as flour.
Typha latifolia distribution-
native to PNW, invasive to the greater US
Here is a plant profile on Typha latifolia: http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/cs_tyla.pdf
As for material uses, the fluff from the raceme can be used to stuff pillows, and the broad leaf blades can be used for weaving cattail mats or flexible baskets. Broadleaf Cattail also has an important ecological role. Cattail is a bioremediator, and provides habitat and food for birds such as the Redwing Blackbird, Marsh Wren, and waterfowl. These birds, along with others, make nests out of the fluff of the raceme. The Marsh Wren makes nests above ground, supported by the stalks of the cattail. You may see some of the Redwing blackbirds and Marsh Wren at the UBNA. Here are some photographs to help you ID them. You can see in the Redwing Blackbird photo that these birds use the high cattails went asserting their territory.
Male Redwing Blackbird in cattails
Marsh Wren and her nest, in cattails
Photo credit: http://www.fodm.org/
You can see in the Marsh Wren photograph how these birds use the cattail stalks and fluff for nesting.
If you don't see them, you might here them, so here are their calls:
Redwing Blackbird:
http://www.xeno-canto.org/172797
Marsh Wren:
http://www.xeno-canto.org/172798
Common Camas is in the genus Camassia (within the Liliaceae family) which is made up of six species of bulbous perennials with a variation of white, blue, and violet flowers. The genus name comes from the Nez Perce name for the bulb, Qém’es, which means sweet. The Camas in front of you in Camassia quamash, known as common Camas or blue camas. Camassia quamash is smaller than another endemic species, leichtlinii, and has blue flowers. Camas is endemic to the Garry Oak ecosystems we discussed earlier. Similarly to Garry Oak, Camas benefits from fire, growing more robustly after a fire with less competition.
Distribution of Camassia Quamash
map source: https://plants.usda.gov
Camas is one of the most important indigenous foods for Native communities across the American West. Camas bulbs, which are highly prized for their sweetness, were extensively traded. Camas were grown in large plots of land owned by families and then in the early spring, selectively harvested with a digging stick. In order to sustainably maintain the camas beds, some of the bulbs harvested would be broken up and replanted. Death camas (several species in the Melanthieae family), a white-flowered poisonous plant that looks similar to blue camas, would be weeded out.
The traditional way of cooking camas is to pit cook them for about 24 hours. They can be eaten alone or used as a sweetening agent for other foods. Lewis and Clark were kept alive by eating camas provided by the Nez Perce- when Lewis first saw meadows of camas he wrote in his journal “the colour of its bloom…resembles lakes of clear water” (Lewis journal, June 12, 1806). Camas also has an important ecological role as a forage for black-tailed deer and elk.
Common Camas Plant Profile: http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/cs_caqub2.pdf
Camassia quamash at my site
Station #7
Plant Medicines
Species Highlighted: Yarrow, Yellow Pond Lily, Black Cottonwood and Salix sps
Plants possess biochemical defenses to protect themselves from herbivores. These biochemical defenses are usually toxic for small creatures like insects, but for people, if taken in the right dosage, they can have healing effects. People have been using plant-based medicines for centuries. Many synthetic drugs that we use today are based off of chemical compounds originally found in plants. One great example of this is populin, a glucoside that is found in the bark, buds, and leaves of many Populus species, such as Scouler's Willow, Pacific Willow, and Black Cottonwood. The active ingredient of aspirin, salicylic acid, was first found in the bark of a willow tree in 1763, then synthesized by Bayer in 1897. Before this, it had been used for thousands of years by Northwest Coast Indians. For example, the Nuu-chah-nulth of Vancouver Island would pick the buds in early spring and boil them in deer fat to make a salve, which they would store in the bulbous float of a bull kelp. I've done something similar this year by collecting a bunch of buds and simmering them in oil, then infusing them with beeswax to make a salve. I also made a cottonwood bud infused honey for sore throats.
Species Highlighted: Yarrow, Yellow Pond Lily, Black Cottonwood and Salix sps
Plants possess biochemical defenses to protect themselves from herbivores. These biochemical defenses are usually toxic for small creatures like insects, but for people, if taken in the right dosage, they can have healing effects. People have been using plant-based medicines for centuries. Many synthetic drugs that we use today are based off of chemical compounds originally found in plants. One great example of this is populin, a glucoside that is found in the bark, buds, and leaves of many Populus species, such as Scouler's Willow, Pacific Willow, and Black Cottonwood. The active ingredient of aspirin, salicylic acid, was first found in the bark of a willow tree in 1763, then synthesized by Bayer in 1897. Before this, it had been used for thousands of years by Northwest Coast Indians. For example, the Nuu-chah-nulth of Vancouver Island would pick the buds in early spring and boil them in deer fat to make a salve, which they would store in the bulbous float of a bull kelp. I've done something similar this year by collecting a bunch of buds and simmering them in oil, then infusing them with beeswax to make a salve. I also made a cottonwood bud infused honey for sore throats.
Yarrow or Achillea millefolium is also a medicine; it can be used topically for cuts and bruises, and can be made into a tincture to lessen menstrual cramping, for high blood pressure, etc. Yarrow has been used by PNW tribes for anything from sore throats, bronchitis, and childbirth pains. In the Middle Ages, this herb was used before hops to make a libation called "gruit." Ecologically, yarrow is important was it attracts beneficial insects such as honeybees.
Yarrow at my site
Yellow Pond Lily- Nuphar polysepalum
Here are a few of the medicinal uses of yellow pond lily:
"The Tsimshian drank an infusion from scraping of the toasted rootstock or ate the boiled heart of the rootstock for bleedings of the lungs and as a contraceptive.
Nuphar polysepalum distribution
Here is some information from the field guide "Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast" about on some of the vast medicinal uses of yellow pond lily:"The Haida still use water-lily-root medicine for numerous illnesses, including colds, tuberculosis, internal pains, ulcers, rheumatism, chest pains, heart conditions and cancer...The Nuxalk also used the rhizomes for a tuberculosis medicine and preparations for rheumatism, heart disease and
Yellow Pond Lily at the UBNA
gonorrhea...The Quinault heated the roots and applied them to the seat of the pain, especially for rheumatism. The seeds were an important food source to the Klamath and other coastal indigenous groups of California and Oregon..." (Pojar and MacKinnon, 349).
The seeds apparently can be popped like popcorn!
For more information on Yelow Pond Lily: http://www.plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=NULUP
If you're lucky, you'll see some Female redwing blackbird peeking underneath yellow pond lily for insects. These females at the UBNA have learned that they can walk across the lake on pond lilies! Redwing blackbirds feed primarily on Odonata larvae- but also eat a lot of insects from the water. Their main foraging grounds are the cattails and the pond water.
Station # 8
Plant Material Uses:
Species Highlighted: Hardstem Bulrush, Cedar, Horsetail (Equistem sps.) , Willow (Salix sps.)
Hardstem Bulrush or Tule, Schoenoplectus acutus
Characteristics: a rhizomatic sedge, sometimes forming large colonies. The reeds are round, sturdy and about 1-3 m long. Brown spikelet inflorescence at top of reed.
Material Uses: Can be woven into mats used as floor and sitting mats, and to separate living spaces in longhouses. Tule mats were also used to make portable summer houses. Tule mats were especially lightweight and flexible due to hollow, pliable stems of the plant.
Western Redcedar, Thuja plicata
Characteristics:
Scaly flat needles, drooping "J" shaped branches, bark reddish brown in color and strips easily. Very large tree, they can grow up to 60 m tall
Material Uses: the "Tree of Life" by the Kwakwaka'wakw. Roots and inner bark used for making baskets, clothing, cooking pots, ropes, nets, etc. Wood used for canoes, paddles, berry drying racks, totem poles, longhouses, bentwood boxes, etc.
Ceremonial Uses: burned as incense, inner bark used for ceremonial clothing
For more information on Western Redcedar, check out Hilary Stewart's book called "Cedar: Tree of Life" (in my bibliography)
Giant Horsetail, Equisetum arvense
Characteristics: See the two different appearances of the horsetails? One is the fertile shoot and the other the infertile shoot- they reproduce through spores (very ancient plants).
Food Uses: shoots eaten like asparagus, rhizomes can be roasted and eaten
Material Uses: The leaves yield a dye, the roots can be used for basketry imbrication (patterning like embroidery on the outside of the baskets)
Hardstem Bulrush or Tule, Schoenoplectus acutus
Characteristics: a rhizomatic sedge, sometimes forming large colonies. The reeds are round, sturdy and about 1-3 m long. Brown spikelet inflorescence at top of reed.
Material Uses: Can be woven into mats used as floor and sitting mats, and to separate living spaces in longhouses. Tule mats were also used to make portable summer houses. Tule mats were especially lightweight and flexible due to hollow, pliable stems of the plant.
Schoenoplectus acutus at the UBNA
The Tule Gatherer (Cowichan)
Edward Curtis North American Indian Vol. 9 plate no. 315
Characteristics:
Scaly flat needles, drooping "J" shaped branches, bark reddish brown in color and strips easily. Very large tree, they can grow up to 60 m tall
Material Uses: the "Tree of Life" by the Kwakwaka'wakw. Roots and inner bark used for making baskets, clothing, cooking pots, ropes, nets, etc. Wood used for canoes, paddles, berry drying racks, totem poles, longhouses, bentwood boxes, etc.
Ceremonial Uses: burned as incense, inner bark used for ceremonial clothing
For more information on Western Redcedar, check out Hilary Stewart's book called "Cedar: Tree of Life" (in my bibliography)
Woman making cedar basket in Neah Bay, ca. 1905
UW Digital Collections http://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/
Skokomish woman wearing a cedar bark shawl
Edward Curtis North American Indian Vol. 9 plate no. 298,
Giant Horsetail, Equisetum arvenseCharacteristics: See the two different appearances of the horsetails? One is the fertile shoot and the other the infertile shoot- they reproduce through spores (very ancient plants).
Food Uses: shoots eaten like asparagus, rhizomes can be roasted and eaten
Material Uses: The leaves yield a dye, the roots can be used for basketry imbrication (patterning like embroidery on the outside of the baskets)
Station # 9
Native Pollinators
Topics: Buzz Pollination, Native Pollinators
To the sides of the trail, you should see a few shrubs- such as the Twinberry Honeysuckle (Lonicera involucrata), Saskatoon berry or Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia), Nootka Rose (Rosa nutkana) and Red-flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum). Twinberry has waxy, elliptical leaves, paired yellow tubular flowers in springtime, and paired black red-fringed berries in summer. These flowers are pollinated by Hummingbirds and Lepidoptera species. I've seen hummingbirds such as the Anna's hummingbird frequent this bush. These non-native hummingbirds have recently become resident birds in Seattle, and they often build their pixie-cup sized nests on invasive species such as laurels. Resident Anna's stay in parks close to the cities warmer core and rely on neighborhood hummingbird feeders during cold snaps.
Saskatoon berry has delicate, broad elliptical leaves, white showy blooms in summer and tasty purple berries in summer.
A few facts on native Bombus species
Pollinators such as the native bumblebees (genus Bombus) are responsible for the majority of the pollination in Washington. These bumblebees are adapted to thermoregulate, so that they can pollinate on even wet and cold days, making them are very efficient pollinators. The queens are able to overwinter because they have an "antifreeze" chemical in their bodies. Bumblebees, unlike honeybees, make cavity nests and don't operate in hives, although they are social. A few native Bombus species include Bombus vosnesenskii, Bombus occidentalis, and Bombus sitkensis. Bumblebees, unlike honeybees, have a pollination adaptation called buzz pollination or floral sonication, which allows them to pollinate flowers that are tubular and cannot be reached by honeybees. The bees vibrate at a high-frequency buzz, which causes the pollen to flow out of small, tubular enclosure of the flower.
To see the mechanics of bee sonication check this out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=427HRgfMsMY#action=share
To see and hear a bee sonicate, follow this link:
http://youtu.be/l_Vi7culAxw
For more information, here's a great scientific article to check out about Buzz Pollination:
To the sides of the trail, you should see a few shrubs- such as the Twinberry Honeysuckle (Lonicera involucrata), Saskatoon berry or Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia), Nootka Rose (Rosa nutkana) and Red-flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum). Twinberry has waxy, elliptical leaves, paired yellow tubular flowers in springtime, and paired black red-fringed berries in summer. These flowers are pollinated by Hummingbirds and Lepidoptera species. I've seen hummingbirds such as the Anna's hummingbird frequent this bush. These non-native hummingbirds have recently become resident birds in Seattle, and they often build their pixie-cup sized nests on invasive species such as laurels. Resident Anna's stay in parks close to the cities warmer core and rely on neighborhood hummingbird feeders during cold snaps.
Twinberry Honeysuckle berries
Male Anna's Hummingbird with tongue extended slightly
Saskatoon Berry flowers
Nootka rose has bright red stems, large thorns and showy pink roses about 1-2 inches wide. These shrubs provide little nectar to pollinators so are usually pollinated by the pollen-seekers (bumblebees) rather than the nectar-seekers (honeybees). Bumblebees such as the Bombus occidentalis frequent this bush.
Nootka rose with bee
Bombus occidentalis on a leaf
Red Flowering Currant is a small shrub with palmate-lobed (3-5 lobes) small leaves, racemes with multiple red, tubular flowers, and fruiting currants. This shrub has small tubular flowers that are only accessible by hummingbirds and butterflies, and provide important hosts for early-season lepidoptera species.
Ribes sanguineum at my site
A few facts on native Bombus species
Pollinators such as the native bumblebees (genus Bombus) are responsible for the majority of the pollination in Washington. These bumblebees are adapted to thermoregulate, so that they can pollinate on even wet and cold days, making them are very efficient pollinators. The queens are able to overwinter because they have an "antifreeze" chemical in their bodies. Bumblebees, unlike honeybees, make cavity nests and don't operate in hives, although they are social. A few native Bombus species include Bombus vosnesenskii, Bombus occidentalis, and Bombus sitkensis. Bumblebees, unlike honeybees, have a pollination adaptation called buzz pollination or floral sonication, which allows them to pollinate flowers that are tubular and cannot be reached by honeybees. The bees vibrate at a high-frequency buzz, which causes the pollen to flow out of small, tubular enclosure of the flower.
To see the mechanics of bee sonication check this out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=427HRgfMsMY#action=share
To see and hear a bee sonicate, follow this link:
http://youtu.be/l_Vi7culAxw
For more information, here's a great scientific article to check out about Buzz Pollination:
Paul A De Luca, Mario Vallejo-Marín, What's the ‘buzz’ about? The ecology and evolutionary significance of buzz-pollination, Current Opinion in Plant Biology, Volume 16, Issue 4, August 2013, Pages 429-435, ISSN 1369-5266, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2013.05.002.
(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369526613000630)
Station #10
Ethnobotanical Uses of Fungi:
Species Highlighted: Wolf Lichen, Xanthoria parietina, Pixie Cups
Xanthoria parietina at my site, growing on an apple tree
Western Pixie Cups that I found at my site on a dead log on some mosses
You may have to hunt a bit to see the species at this site. We are a fork in the road, and if you look down to the side of the trail you may see some Pixie Cup lichen growing on a dead log next to the trail. Also, on the willow sps. near the trail there is small, orange crustose epiphyte growing called Xanthoria parietina or Common Orange lichen.
You might also spot some Turkey Tail shelf fungus closer to the forest edge later on if you keep your eye out for them.
Lichen and Mushrooms: The Basics
Lichen and mushrooms are both within the fungal kingdom, but they have some distinct differences. Lichen is a symbiotic relationship between a fungus and an algae (or cyanobacteria). Mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of mycelium, a network of hyphae. There are two divisions of fungus- Basidiomycota and Ascomycota. Basidiomycota is made up of gilled mushrooms and a small subsect of lichen. Basidiomycota fungus reproduces by spore-releasing gills. Ascomycota is composed of most lichens and many mushrooms and reproduce through spore-releasing pores.
Due to their symbiotic relationship with algae, Lichen can live in some of the harshest environments in the world. Yet, some lichens are vulnerable to environmental toxins, and cannot succeed in urban or polluted environments. Lichen are bio-monitors, meaning that the presence or absence of different lichens can help scientists keep track of the air quality and toxicity of an area. The lichens you see in the UBNA are more pollution tolerant since they are in the city. The Common Orange Lichen or Xanthoria parietina is a very pollution tolerant species. If you go out to the Olympic Rainforest, you will see more diversity in lichen due to the cleaner air and because it is a more suitable habitat.
Lichen and Mushrooms: Ethnobotanical Uses
Unlike some of the plants we talked about previously, lichens were not often food sources for Native communities in our region. Since lichen are slow-growing (some lichen take 10-15 years to establish) they are not the best food source, beside a few exceptions. Lichens are more useful as dyes and medicines, and have been used extensively around the world for these purposes.
I’ve done a bit of research with natural dyes and have found a lot of native species make amazing colors- lichens and mushrooms are especially potent. For example, wolf lichen (Letharia vulpina) which grows on the east side of the state makes a highlighter yellow- tribes such as the Chilkat Tlingit would use this lichen to dye ceremonial blankets woven from Mountain goat wool. I have experimented with Usnea, and Dyer’s Polypore, both which are around Seattle (one is a lichen and one a mushroom). This Xanthoria (I haven’t dyed with this yet) makes a brilliant blue!
The Chilkat Tlingit: Wolf Lichen- dyed ceremonial blankets
Turkey Tail shelf fungus from my site
For more information on Native American dye plants, here's a great guide created by the USDA Forest Service:
Anderson, Kat. Tending the Wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of
California's Natural Resources. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2005. Print.
Bohan, Heidi. The People of Cascadia: Pacific Northwest Native American History. Seattle: 4Culture, 2009.
Gunther, Erna. "Ethnobotany of Western Washington: The Knowledge and Use of Indigenous Plants by Native Americans. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1973.
Keeping it Living: Traditions of Plant Use and Cultivation on the Northwest Coast of North America. Edited by Nancy J Turner, Douglas Deur. Seattle: Vancouver: University of Washington Press; UBC Press , 2005.
Stewart, Omer C, Henry T. Lewis, and Kat Anderson. Forgotten Fires: Native Americans and
the Transient Wilderness. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2002. Print.
Turner, Nancy J. Plant Technology of First Peoples in British Columbia. Victoria: Royal BC Museum, 2007.
California's Natural Resources. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2005. Print.
Bohan, Heidi. The People of Cascadia: Pacific Northwest Native American History. Seattle: 4Culture, 2009.
Gunther, Erna. "Ethnobotany of Western Washington: The Knowledge and Use of Indigenous Plants by Native Americans. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1973.
Keeping it Living: Traditions of Plant Use and Cultivation on the Northwest Coast of North America. Edited by Nancy J Turner, Douglas Deur. Seattle: Vancouver: University of Washington Press; UBC Press , 2005.
Stewart, Hilary. Cedar: Tree of Life to the Northwest Coast Indians. Seattle: Vancouver: University of Washington Press; Douglas and McIntyre, 1984.
Stewart, Omer C, Henry T. Lewis, and Kat Anderson. Forgotten Fires: Native Americans and
the Transient Wilderness. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2002. Print.
Turner, Nancy J. Plant Technology of First Peoples in British Columbia. Victoria: Royal BC Museum, 2007.
Ethnobotanical gardens on the UW campus:
Medicinal Herb Garden
(You can also schedule free tours with me in the Medicinal Herb Garden through this website!)
http://www.biology.washington.edu/mhg/
Keith Possee's Medicinal Herb Garden Blog:
http://www.uwmedicinalherbgarden.org/
Erna Gunther Ethnobotanical Garden
http://www.burkemuseum.org/exhibits/browse/ethnobotanical_garden
Feel free to contact me at hallsc@uw.edu if you have any questions.
Medicinal Herb Garden
(You can also schedule free tours with me in the Medicinal Herb Garden through this website!)
http://www.biology.washington.edu/mhg/
Keith Possee's Medicinal Herb Garden Blog:
http://www.uwmedicinalherbgarden.org/
Erna Gunther Ethnobotanical Garden
http://www.burkemuseum.org/exhibits/browse/ethnobotanical_garden
Feel free to contact me at hallsc@uw.edu if you have any questions.
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