Changes in Mollusk Consumption by the Seris of Sonora, Mexico

Abstract

In the mid-twentieth century, the Seris (Comcaac), a small mobile hunter-gatherer and fishing people of northwestern Mexico, became almost entirely sedentary. They had for centuries survived in the isolated desert and coast along the eastern central Gulf of California, an area of rich biodiversity. The move to permanent settlements facilitated access to non-traditional foods that began to markedly impact their traditional diet of desert and marine resources, including mollusks. Although fish and sea turtles continued to be an important part of that diet, consumption of mollusks declined significantly, accompanied by a gradual loss of knowledge of their names and related ecological information, a loss evident among younger Seris today. This paper explores the role of mollusks in the Seri culture and associated changes that have taken place over the past century. Published accounts, oral tradition, historical records, and current investigation describe how the Seris adopted a sedentary lifestyle, and the impact that the change has had on their traditional diet, ecological knowledge, subsistence practices, and health.

What Happened to Seri Sweets? Dietary Transition through Culinary Acculturation

“…In 1926, Yates Holmes, an American, established the Kino Bay Sportsmen's Club on the shores of what is today Bahía Kino, a winter camp of the Seris, with the objective of developing recreational activities such as fishing, hunting, and exploring. The ensuing arrival of American sportsmen provided a source of clothing, food, and money for the Seris (Rentería-Valencia 2001; Smith 1954), and the Seris began using foods they perceived as having a higher social status, such as wheat flour, lard, coffee, and sugar (Marlett 2019). The contact at coastal Bahía Kino opened the area to commercial fishing, and because of their keen knowledge of the sea, the Seris became an important part of this venture.…”

“…Small, one-room stores established by the commercial fishermen supplied food, such as flour, sugar, lard, canned foods, and carbonated, sugary drinks. Easy access to these foods impacted the Seri diet, health, and culture, with a progressive loss of knowledge and related lexicon of their desert and sea world (Marlett 2019).…”