Landscape management among the Guarani of the Atlantic Forest of Misiones, Argentina: the case of the Syagrus romanzoffiana (Cham.) Glassman (Arecaceae) palm tree

Abstract

The study of the management practices that different Guarani settlements have carried out in the environment over time constitutes one of the objectives of ethnoecology and historical ecology as the way through which these communities obtain forest resources affects landscape settings. In this work, based on a local classification system of the ontogenic stages of the pindo palm tree Syagrus romanzoffiana (Cham.) Glassman (Arecaceae), we study the effects of traditional management practices on the unity of the pindoty landscape -plant communities with a high concentration of this species. We evaluated the degree to which two morphometric variables used in the measurements of woody tree species, diameter at chest height (DBH) and total height (H), explain the local classification. As a result, in the environment of four Guarani settlements (Ita Piru, Kurupayty, Pindo Poty, and Yvyra Pepe Poty), the production of edible larvae favors temporary changes in the pindoty landscape unit since it produces changes in pindo population's structure -(abundances by class size). In addition, we discuss some aspects of the pindoty units and their anthropogenic nature concluding that their evolution results from the Guarani cyclical cosmological conception.

Landscape, agrobiodiversity, and local knowledge in the protected area “Quebrada de los Cuervos y Sierras del Yerbal,” Uruguay

“…The power of local knowledge relies not only on keen observation but also on experiential learning (Morris, 2006;Eden, 2012). Many practical knowledge systems employed by local communities regulate species diversity, create habitat heterogeneity at the landscape scale, and adjust the intensity of use, thus increasing the diversity of available biological resources (Berkes et al, 2000;Assis et al, 2013;Reis et al, 2018;Araujo et al, 2021). The resource management practices of communities reflect a knowledge system based on cultural practices aligned with their objectives and the need for future conservation (Jackson et al, 2007), forming authentic "communities of practice" (Dabezies and Taks, 2021) that safeguard biocultural landscapes (Rivas et al, 2023).…”

Las palmeras en las fuentes documentales: diversidad, usos, prácticas y valoraciones en el Noreste de la Argentina

“…Glassman constituye una especie importante en la reproducción material y social del modo de vida de los M´bya del sur de la provincia de Misiones, ya que presenta una gran diversidad de usos (Araujo et al, 2020), además de ser una palmera importante en lo que respecta a las creencias de los guaraníes (Keller, 2010(Keller, , 2013Furlan et al, 2015). Debido a las prácticas de manejo, algunos autores como Araujo et al (2021), evalúan incluso el origen antropogénico de diversos palmares de S. romanzoffiana (denominados localmente "pindoty"). Por este motivo, es común encontrar descripciones, usos y nombres locales en las fuentes documentales y que, sin embargo, no han sido estudiadas en profundidad.…”