Figure 4 - uploaded by Brit Asmussen
Content may be subject to copyright.
Macrozamia moorei seed with sarcotesta and section through seed showing sarcotesta (outer flesh), sclerotesta (woody seed coat) and inner kernel. Collected 2004. Photograph: Brit Asmussen.
Source publication
Much is known concerning the various techniques Aboriginal peoples used to remove toxins from Cycas seeds prior to consumption. However, comparatively little is known about the methods used to process different Macrozamia species, as recorded in Aboriginal and historical accounts throughout the eastern, central and southwestern parts of Australia....
Context in source publication
Context 1
... and Macrozamia, female plants produce edible seeds on large cones called strobili (Fig. 3), while Cycas seeds are not arranged in cones but hang in a ring below the leaves. Seeds are comprised of three main components: the outer layer of brightly coloured, fleshy sarcotesta; an inner woody sclerotesta; and the internal edible kernel (Jones, 1998) (Fig. 4). Due to taxonomic confusion in some accounts, and changes to taxonomy since the accounts were made, the species named in historic documents have been checked against Jones (1998) and Whitelock (2002) (Appendix ...
Similar publications
Climatic oscillations in the Pleistocene have had profound effects on the demography and genetic diversity of many extant species. Cycas guizhouensis Lan & R.F. Zou is an endemic and endangered species in Southwest China that is primarily distributed along the valleys of the Nanpan River. In this study, we used four chloroplast DNAs (cpDNA), three...
Zebrafish CXCL8 gene structure and similarity with carp CXCL8. A Schematic representation of intron/exon organization of zebrafish CXCL8 genes on chromosome 1, 7 and 17. Location on the genome of first and last nucleotides for each exon are indicated on top of each gene, intron and exon sizes are indicated under each gene structure. B Similarity in...
Cycas sphaerica Roxb., an Eastern Ghats endemic, known from different localities of Odisha and Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh is located in Pinjarikonda Reserve Forest of East Godavari District, Andhra Pradesh. Nearly 700 individuals were observed in the study area. Present report extends the distribution range of the species in Andhra Prade...
To improve the micropropagation of Dendrobium ‘Gradita 31’, coconut water (CW) and fertilizer media were used to enhance growth, proliferation, and germination of protocorm-like bodies (PLBs). PLBs formed when shoots approximately 0.4 cm long were cultured on semi-solid half-strength Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium containing 1 mg L−1 thidiaz...
Background
Adventitious root development is a complex process regulated through a variety of signaling molecules. Hydrogen gas (H2) and nitric oxide (NO), two new signaling molecules are both involved in plant development and stress tolerance.
Results
To investigate the mechanism of adventitious root development induced by hydrogen-rich water (HRW...
Citations
... Eight experiments were performed with seven anvils and six hammerstones to crack seeds or nuts from two species of plant used by Australian Aboriginal peoples as a food resource: Macrozamia communis and Macrozamia moorei seeds and Macadamia spp. nuts (e.g., Asmussen, 2011;Beck et al., 1988;Ferrier and Cosgrove, 2012;Field et al., 2009). The following variables were recorded for each experiment: (1) species of processed seeds/nuts; (2) number and weight of seeds/nuts; (3) artefact raw material; (4) weight and dimensions of tools; (5) actions and duration of use (Tables 1, 2). ...
The presence of small depressions on stone tools found in various parts of Australia has frequently been assumed to be the consequence of bipolar knapping. In contrast, Pardoe et al. (2019) and Attenbrow and Kononenko (2019) proposed that these attributes derive from their use for nut cracking. To test this hypothesis, we conducted experiments using the hammer and anvil technique to crack Macrozamia seeds and macadamia nuts for prolonged periods. The use-wear traces that developed on the experimental tools were found to compare favourably with those on a sample of 11 ground-edged hatchets from the Central Coast, New South Wales. Our results suggest that the consumption of seeds and nuts in pre-contact Aboriginal diets in south eastern Australia might have been more significant than currently recognised and should be investigated further.
... Thieret (1958) notes that Cycas media seeds, after drying in the sun for three or four hours, are placed in small, woven bags that are suspended in streams or pools for four to five days; once removed from the water, the seeds are left to sit for another three or four days, and then ground into a fine powder, from which various baked foods are derived. Asmussen (2011) reviewed Aboriginal uses of all cycads in Australia, as recorded in historical literature, and distinguished three main types of seed detoxification, as previously defined by Beck (1992): brief leaching in water, prolonged leaching in water, and aging. Beck (1992) asserted that detoxification methods differed in terms of time and energy inputs and in terms of types of food products that could be produced. ...
... Beck (1992) asserted that detoxification methods differed in terms of time and energy inputs and in terms of types of food products that could be produced. According to Asmussen (2011), the diversity of methods could be explained by differing taste preferences, storage capacity, and availability of water. ...
We documented harvesting, food preparation, and toxic risks of the poisonous chamal cycad, Dioon edule, in San Luis Potosi state, Mexico—one of a handful of places in Latin America where cycad eating persists. In Xi'iuy ethnic communities of the Pamería region, cycad consumption has long been intimately associated with cultural identity. The chamal food preparation process is protracted and difficult. Cooks seek to fully eliminate deadly toxins while achieving a pleasing taste and satisfying appearance in their cycad food products. Correct preparation is tested by a variety of methods difficult for amateur cooks to master. The complexity of the chamal culinary process, along with the ease of procuring foods more agreeable to the palate and less dangerous, out-migration of younger people, and preference for processed foods are some of the key factors that contribute to erosion of knowledge and use of this ancient wild food resource.
... Nuts, often called hard-shelled seeds (Asmussen, 2011;Bril et al., 2012;Goren-Inbar et al., 2002), are widely used by Aboriginal peoples in Australia as a food resource (e.g., Asmussen, 2011;Beck et al., 1988). Common methods of processing nuts include cracking the outer shell between two stones, separating the shell and kernels and then crushing the kernels by pounding (Asmussen, 2010(Asmussen, : 21202011: 148;Beck et al., 1988: 141-143). ...
... Nuts, often called hard-shelled seeds (Asmussen, 2011;Bril et al., 2012;Goren-Inbar et al., 2002), are widely used by Aboriginal peoples in Australia as a food resource (e.g., Asmussen, 2011;Beck et al., 1988). Common methods of processing nuts include cracking the outer shell between two stones, separating the shell and kernels and then crushing the kernels by pounding (Asmussen, 2010(Asmussen, : 21202011: 148;Beck et al., 1988: 141-143). ...
... Toxic starchy plants, like Nardoo (Marsilea spp.) and Cycads were prepared by complex processing: baking, pounding/grinding and leaching with water to remove toxins (e.g. Cribb andCribb, 1974:72 Pedley, 1993;Asmussen, 2011). ...
... Known methods of processing include roasating, leaching in water and combinations of the two methods. Seeds were leached for between two days to a number of weeks, with the longer periods of leaching functioning as short-term food storage (Asmussen, 2010a). Available data indicate that the seeds have comparatively low energy value (362 kJ per 100 g, and 7.3 g of protein for Macrozamia communis (L.A.S. Johnson, 1959), Miller et al., 1993). ...
... 2. Processing the seeds for consumption requires non-trivial amounts of effort. Ethnohistoric data indicate that seeds were extracted from their hard woody shells, often pounded, and then leached for between two days to a number of weeks (Asmussen, 2010a). Well-aged Cycas seeds can be eaten without processing (Beck, 1985;Beck et al., 1988) and the same may have been true of Macrozamia. ...
Palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic data indicate that during the mid-to-late Holocene eastern Australia became significantly drier and experienced more intense and more frequent droughts. These changes, driven by the re-emergence and intensification of the ENSO climate phenomena, have been argued to have had considerable impact on Aboriginal societies, although there is uncertainty as to the exact nature, timing and magnitude of this impact. This paper analyses changes in the utilisation of toxic Macrozamia (cycad) seeds at seven archaeological sites in eastern Australia, identifying an extremely close correlation between the intensity of seed use and two proxy ENSO datasets, and a weaker correlation with a third ENSO dataset. Given the ecological attributes and resource potential of these plants, it is argued that these correlations are best explained as an intensified exploitation of a lower-ranked resource in direct response to the increased subsistence risks and lower productivity created by ENSO-driven climatic conditions. It also suggests that by 3000 BP the intensification of the ENSO system was driving changes in human subsistence behaviour on a sufficient scale to have considerable impact on other aspects of the wider cultural systems.
... Aboriginal vernacular names of Australian cycads: A response with arguments that they may have underwritten large-scale gatherings associated with the intensiication of socio-political complexity in the past 5000 years (Lourandos 1997; see also Asmussen 2008). Relecting this interest, and 'using all available cycad literature', Bonta and Osborne (2007:1) published a worldwide review, 'Cycads in the vernacular: A compendium of local names', in which they 'compiled a table of scientiic names, localities, languages, vernacular names and where known, translations into English'. ...
In 2007 Bonta and Osborne published 'Cycads in the vernacular: A compendium of local names', in which they concluded that, in contrast to other cycads around the world, very few names and meanings had been documented for Australian Macrozamia species. This paper aims to better document the cycad species utilised by Aboriginal people for the benefit of researchers in diverse disciplines. It draws on information contained in primary sources and many early historic documents to present Aboriginal names and meanings for various species of Bowenia, Lcpidozamia and Macrozamia in Australia, to clarify the names of some Australian species, and to provide additional names for species and plant components not included in the compendium. In addition, it compares patterns in the meanings of names in Australia to those used overseas, finding similarities and differences. By providing a more comprehensive synthesis of information on Indigenous names and meanings of these three genera, the paper demonstrates that the gap identified by Bonta and Osborne is more apparent than real, and highlights the value of cross-disciplinary collaboration in ethnohistorical, ethnobotanical, linguistic, anthropological and archaeological research.
Although use-wear and residue analysis on flaked stone tools has shed some light on plant processing, it has been argued that specific patterns of use-wear are difficult to identify on the coarse grained raw materials typically used for stone artefact production in Australia. This experimental study evaluates whether processing raw tubers creates an identifiable, characteristic wear on silcrete, chert, chalcedony and indurated mudstone. The results indicate that use-wear is indeed formed after prolonged tool use, though further studies are required to determine if such wear is diagnostic and, in turn, whether it can be identified archaeologically. These preliminary findings have important implications for studies of tuber use, landscape management and subsistence in prehistoric Australia and elsewhere.
