Title page
2
Map of lichen use
3
Lichens as dye
Photos by
S. Sharnoff
4
Lichens as medicine
Peltigera canina
• Cure for rabies
Lobaria pulmonaria
• For lung ailments
Usnea longissima
• Antibiotic
Photos by
Stephen Sharnoff
5
Lichens as decoration
Usnea sp.
Cladina stellaris
Sooke
Papua New Guinea
Photo by S. Sharnoff
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Lichens in cosmetics
Evernia prunastri
• Perfumes
• Hair powder
• Embalming mummies
Photo by S. Sharnoff
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Lichens as food
Over 90 species of lichen
traditionally eaten worldwide
Always cooked in specific ways
• Remove lichen acids
• Render lichen digestible?
Photo by S. Sharnoff
Lobaria scrobiculata
• Eaten raw by Yup’ik
Yoshohito Ohmura (Japan):
tasty Lobaria & seaweed soup
Cooking Lobaria pulmonaria
My recipe: Norstictic acid (bitter red dye) removed with baking soda
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9
Usnea sp.
Fuji saruogase
U. trichodeoides
• Tastes good
Yokowa saruogase
Usnea diffracta
• Tastes bad
Chili con Usnea
Prepared by Mr. Sato (Japan)
Rock Tripe (Umbilicaria spp.)
10
Eaten in eastern and northern Canada:
• Boiled several times, eaten
in soup, or with fish roe
Photo by Stephen Sharnoff
Also eaten by early European explorers:
• Minimal preparation and
limited nutrition
Iwa-take
(Umbilicaria esculenta)
• Delicacy in Japan ($100/lb)
• Deep fried, pickled, in soups, etc.
Photos by Y. Ohmura
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Cetraria islandica
• Was important food in Europe
• Soaked in ash water, boiled, rinsed, dried,
ground, mixed with flour, then cooked
• Bread, pudding, desserts
Photo by S. Sharnoff
Sweden, 1868:
• Pamphlet distributed
to teach poor people
to eat lichen
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Bryoria fremontii
Alectoria jubata (out-dated name)
Black moss (English layperson)
Black tree lichen (ethnobotanists)
Edible horsehair lichen (lichenologists)
Wila (Secwepemc)
/wí7e (Nlaka’pmx)
A.wi’.a (Stl’atl’imc)
Photo by S. Sharnoff
Skwelíp (Okanagan)
Wa-kamwa (Tenino)
Sqwelíp (Halkomelem)
/ho.póp/ (Nimi’ipuu)
Sáw"-t-m=qn (Spokane)
Teh-ra (Dakelh)
Sä’tc’Etct (Schitsu’umsh)
Caúmtemkan or st’telu (Flathead) Qa’l (Modoc)
Whyelkine (Tsimshian?)
Ä'ttla or emgo'tlna (Ktunaxa)
Dehtsighu (Inland Dena’ina)
Ik!u'nuc (Ila’xluit)
Nakuraartum nuyii (Sugpiaq)
Kw”u’nch (Sahaptin)
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Bryoria use map 1
Ranges of lichen species
Edible lichen Bryoria fremontii
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Bryoria use map 2
Ranges of lichen species
Edible lichen Bryoria fremontii
Both edible and toxic lichen species
Toxic lichen Bryoria tortuosa
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Bryoria use map 3
Ranges of lichen species
Edible lichen Bryoria fremontii
Both edible and toxic lichen species
Toxic lichen Bryoria tortuosa
Use by people
Important food
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Bryoria use map 4
Ranges of lichen species
Edible lichen Bryoria fremontii
Both edible and toxic lichen species
Toxic lichen Bryoria tortuosa
Use by people
Important food
Minor food
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Bryoria use map 5
Ranges of lichen species
Edible lichen Bryoria fremontii
Both edible and toxic lichen species
Toxic lichen Bryoria tortuosa
Use by people
Important food
Minor food
Unconfirmed food
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Bryoria use map 6
Ranges of lichen species
Edible lichen Bryoria fremontii
Both edible and toxic lichen species
Toxic lichen Bryoria tortuosa
Use by people
Important food
Minor food
Unconfirmed food
Other use
Miscellaneous uses of Bryoria
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Photo by Subiyay
Photo by Nancy Turner
Photo by Dorothy Kennedy
Eating Bryoria fremontii
Photo by Dorothy Kennedy
Avoiding bitter and toxic lichens
1. Collect from areas identified to have
good lichen
2. Thoroughly clean lichen (soak, rinse,
beat, scrub)
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Eating Bryoria fremontii
Pit cook procedure used in:
BC: Dakehl, Ktunaxa, Secwepemc,
St’at’imc, Nlaka’pamux, Okanagan
Washington: Okanagan, Spokane
Idaho: Schitsu’umsh
Montana: Flathead
Oregon: Ila’xluit, Sahaptin
1. Dig a large pit
2. Heat up rocks in fire
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Eating Bryoria fremontii
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Pit Cook Procedure
3. Cover hot rocks with dirt
4. Insert stick into dirt
5. Cover dirt with wet
vegetation
6. Add well cleaned lichen
7. Add layer of root vegetable
(yellow avalanche lily,
wild onion, camas)
Eating Bryoria fremontii
Pit Cook Procedure
8. Cover lichen with wet
vegetation
9. Cover with dirt
10. Pull out stick
11. Pour in water
12. Cover hole
13. Let sit for 12 h to 3 days
23
24
The final product
Two questions:
How are toxic/bitter
Bryoria spp. avoided?
What nutritional value
does the lichen have?
Selecting edible lichen
25
A variety of similar-looking species to avoid
Photo by S. Sharnoff
Photo by S. Sharnoff
Bryoria fremontii
Wila
Edible lichen
Bryoria tortuosa
Toxic vulpinic acid
Photo by S. Sharnoff
B. pseudofuscescens
Tqwesimáka7
Bitter lichen compounds
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Fremontii - tortuosa continuum
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Identifying the right lichen
Start by looking in the
right place:
• Location
• Tree species
Bring samples to grandma,
and she identifies by:
• Taste
• Appearance
28
A simple study on
collecting Bryoria
• Bryoria spp. collected from 80 trees at
8 locations
• Used likely collection sites within
Secwepemc territory
• Bryoria species composition identified
for each sample
• Some samples shown to Mary Thomas
to determine suitability for eating
29
Different sites have characteristic
Bryoria communities
Kruskal-Wallis test
• Variation between
sites greater than
variation within sites
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The abundances of certain Bryoria
morphotypes are correlated with each other
Principal Component
Analysis
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The abundances of certain Bryoria
morphotypes are correlated with each other
Principal Component
Analysis
Kendall’s W
• Several concordant groups
Spearman test
• B. implexae negatively
correlated with B. fremontii
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Asking an expert
Light-coloured or yellowish
lichen is not good for eating
Avoided:
• B. implexae
• Yellow B. tortuosa
Preferred:
• Dark B. fremontii
Dr. Mary Thomas
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Asking an expert
Light-coloured or yellowish
lichen is not good for eating
Avoided:
• B. implexae = less B. fremontii
Dr. Mary Thomas
• Yellow B. tortuosa = more brown B. tortuosa
Preferred:
• Dark B. fremontii = more light B. fremontii
A simple way to select edible lichen!
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The nutritional value of
Bryoria fremontii
Protein: 4–8%
Fat: Minimal
Vitamins: B9, B12, E, and choline
in some lichens, but not Bryoria
Minerals: Ca and Fe in some lichens,
but not Bryoria
Carbohydrate: 20-30%,
but is it useful?
Lichen and Plant Polysaccharides
Amylose (Plant starch)
-(1-4)-D-glucan
n = 250 to 5,000
Isolichenin (Lichen starch)
-(1-3)(1-4)-D-glucan
n = 40 to 50
Cellulose (Plant cell walls)
-(1-4)-D-glucan
n = lots
Lichenin (Lichen starch)
-(1-3)(1-4)-D-glucan
n = 60 to 70
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Eating indigestible carbohydrates
Inulin (in camas)
Indigestible
to humans
Lichenin (in Bryoria)
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Eating indigestible carbohydrates
Heat
Acidity
Time
Inulin (in camas)
Lichenin (in Bryoria)
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Eating indigestible carbohydrates
Digestible simple carbohydrates
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Important aspects of a pitcook
Temperature: ???
A theoretical model for heat flux in a pit cook
xt= s +
[(
r - s
r-d
· erf
2·h·t0.5
2
r-d
a=
2ht0.5
erf = 2-0.5
r-d
b=
2ht0.5

0

e-2d
±1∓x
 = 2ht0.5
)
]
r+d
(e-a2 - e-b2)·2·h·t0.5
+ erf
+
2·h·t0.5
d·0.5
(
)
Variables
t = time
r = initial temperature of hot rock
s = initial temperature of soil
d = distance from hot rock
r = radius of hot rock
h2 = thermal diffusivity
40
Important aspects of a pitcook
Temperature (ΌC)
Temperature: ???
Food
Predicted
100
80
60
40
20
0
10
20
30
40
Time (h)
Peacock’s pitcook
• British Columbia, 1998
• Good fit with the
temperature model
50
41
Important aspects of a pitcook
Food
Predicted
100
80
60
40
20
Temperature (ΌC)
Temperature (ΌC)
Temperature: ???
600
Rocks
Food
Predicted
500
400
300
200
100
0
0
10
20
30
40
Time (h)
Peacock’s pitcook
• British Columbia, 1998
• Good fit with the
temperature model
50
0
12
24
36
Time (h)
Pagoulatos’ pitcook
• Texas, 2005
• Really hot rocks
• Does not match model
48
42
Important aspects of a pitcook
Food
Predicted
100
80
60
40
20
Temperature (ΌC)
Temperature (ΌC)
Temperature: Food maintained at 100ºC, then cools
600
Rocks
Food
Predicted
500
400
300
200
100
0
0
10
20
30
40
Time (h)
Peacock’s pitcook
• British Columbia, 1998
• Good fit with the
temperature model
50
0
12
24
36
Time (h)
Pagoulatos’ pitcook
• Water maintains food at a
stable thermal maximum
• Higher boiling point?
48
43
Important aspects of a pitcook
Temperature: Food maintained at 100ºC, then cools
Acidity: ???
Potential sources of acidity
Soil: As low as pH 5.0
Vegetation: Conifer 4.0,
broad leaf 5.5
Root veggies: Usually 4.9–5.6
Fruit: As low as 3.0
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Important aspects of a pitcook
Temperature: Food maintained at 100ºC, then cools
Acidity: Probably above pH 4, possibly as low as 3
Potential sources of acidity
Soil: As low as pH 5.0
Vegetation: Conifer 4.0,
broad leaf 5.5
Root veggies: Usually 4.9–5.6
Fruit: As low as 3.0
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Important aspects of a pitcook
Temperature: Food maintained at 100ºC, then cools
Acidity: Probably above pH 4, possibly as low as 3
Duration: Left for 12 h to 3 days, time at stable
thermal maximum depends on rock temperature
Testing the effects of pit cooking
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Real vs. artificial
The real thing
• More representative of
reality?
Faster and easier
• More replicates
More control
• Higher consistency
• Better to test specific factors
47
Pitcooking in the kitchen
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A pit cooking experiment
Black tree lichen
Two kinds of food
Camas
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A pit cooking experiment
Black tree lichen
Camas
Three different treatments
Time
• 6 to 34 hours
Acidity
• pH 7, 5, and 3
Synergy
• Cooked together
or separate
50
What happened to the food
when cooked separately
Lichen
Digestible sugar (mg/g)
25
Camas
Glucose
20
15
10
5
0
0
10
20
30
Hours cooked
• Glucose does not increase
with cooking time or acidity
40
0
10
20
Hours cooked
• Not much glucose
30
40
51
What happened to the food
when cooked separately
Lichen
Digestible sugar (mg/g)
25
Camas
Glucose
Fructose
20
15
10
5
0
0
10
20
30
Hours cooked
• Glucose does not increase
with cooking time or acidity
• No fructose
40
0
10
20
30
40
Hours cooked
• Not much glucose
• Lots of fructose when cooked
52
What happened to the food
when cooked separately vs. together
Lichen
Digestible sugar (mg/g)
25
Camas
Glucose
Fructose
Cooked together
20
15
10
5
0
0
10
20
30
Hours cooked
• Captures large amount of
fructose from camas
• Captures some glucose
40
0
10
20
30
40
Hours cooked
• Perhaps retains more fructose
53
Total sugar content
cooked separately
Glucose
Fructose
Lichen
Camas
Cotton (around camas)
0
6
10
18
26
34
0
6
Hours cooked
10
18
26
34
54
Total sugar content
cooked separately vs. together
Glucose
Fructose
Cooked
Lichen
together
Camas
Cotton (around camas)
0
6
10
18
26
34
0
6
Hours cooked
10
18
26
34
55
Total sugar content
as calculated from best fit models
Sugar content when cooked separately
56
Total sugar content
as calculated from best fit models
Sugar content when cooked together
57
Conclusions
Ethnolichenology
• Lichens have a variety of traditional uses
• Food lichens are prepared in specific ways to
make them non-toxic and nutritionally valuable
58
Conclusions
Traditional knowledge of Bryoria
• Bryoria fremontii is an important food lichen
• There is a lot of wisdom about the proper
selection and preparation of this lichen
59
Conclusions
Selecting edible Bryoria
• Identifying the appropriate morphotype for
eating is essential
• Colour-based ID can successfully
differentiate edible lichen at the relevant scale
60
Conclusions
Nutritional value of black tree lichen
• Lichens not digestible even with processing
61
Conclusions
Nutritional value of black tree lichen
• Lichens not digestible even with processing
• Black tree lichen could function as a nutrient
enhancer in traditional pitcooks
Acknowledgements
Dr. Nancy Turner and Dr. Mary Thomas for their
knowledge and advice
Dr. Peter Constabel and his lab
Dr. Barbara Hawkins and her lab
Dr. Nancy Turner, Dorothy Kennedy, Stephen
Sharnoff, and Yoshohito Ohmura for pictures
All of the elders who shared their knowledge