Flora & Fauna of Mesoamerica
FLORA OF MIDDLE AMERICA
The significance of agriculture to
civilization is that with the benefits of agriculture (you can feed
more people, and they don't have to go as far to get
fed), new problems are created which often
lead in their solutions, to civilization. In
Mesoamerica agricultural problems arose between
25OO and l5OO B.C.
Problems: a) land ownership and
land use problems (the distribution of
the people on the land).
b) population
increase: problems of social
organization
maintenance of social organization.
c) sedentary life: necessitates new behavioral patterns
d) problem of economic distribution
e)
harvest problems: a storage system needed
l. what to store it in
2. how to protect it from insects, rodents and
spoilage
3. managerial: how much to store? how much to use?
how to use it--ritual vs. food--and saving seed to plant.
f) continuity of systems for solving the problems.
Agriculture
is apparently a prerequisite for civilization.
Is New World agriculture borrowed from
the
Old World? (Old World agriculture arose around 9,000 BCE; New World agriculture
arose about
5,000
BCE.)
If
agriculture develops naturally as a result of a certain combination of
conditions
that
lead unavoidably to it, then it probably arose independently in the Old and the
New Worlds.
There
are some common conditions in Old and New World agricultural centers:
l) both are areas of great diversity
2)
the first developments took place in the hilly flanks areas
3)
both have sufficient rainfall for crops (without need for irrigation)
4)
seed crops existed wild in both areas
Agriculture
differences:
Old world New World
wheat, barley maize, amaranth
plow agriculture digging stick (dibble, coa)
powerful beasts of burden (oxen) no
powerful beast of burden
Plants found early in Old and New
Worlds:
Maize (corn-Zea mays)
native to New World: probably domesticated in Mesoamerica first; maize
is
either
a cross between tripsacum and a now extinct pod-popcorn as is teocinte
/ teocentli
(per
Mangelsdorf), or (as now thought to be more likely) was derived from teosinte
through selection
by
humans.
Maize is dependant on human intervention
for its propagation, and the varieties of maize
developed
by the Indians of Middle America include several different colors and fall into
five main
classes;
flint corn, dent corn, flour corn, popcorn, and sweet corn.
Maize dates to 6,000 to 7,000 years ago
near Mitla,
Oaxaca, and 4000 to 6000 years ago in the basin
of
Mexico. Maize cobs dated at 5050 years
ago have been found in Tehuacan Valley caves (Puebla,
Mexico).
A
date of 3650 BCE (later revised towards the present) is associated with a find
of a primitive pod
popcorn
in Bat Cave (New Mexico). In Assam, the
Naga hills people cultivate a very primitive variety
of
maize, and in China, maize was apparently used to pay taxes within 60 years of
the “discovery” of
America
by Columbus. It appears that maize was
already established in the Philippines when Magellan
landed
there [1521 CE].
It is in Middle America that maize, as
the basis for the diet of most Indian groups, provides by its life
cycle,
the rhythm for Indian life and religion.
More than once an Indian revolt has fizzled on the brink
of
success because planting time arrived.
Peanut (Arachis hypogaea)
A new world
plant, perhaps first used by humans in South America, but,
like
the pineapple, it spread from there to Mesoamerica very early. The peanut, now cultivated so
extensively
in Africa (our word goober comes from a Bantu language of Africa [from the word
guba]),
is
reported by usually reliable authorities to have been present in China about
2000 BCE. Regardless,
there
is little doubt about its status as a New World plant. Interestingly, the individual little yellow
peanut
flower
lasts for only one day.
Bottle
Gourd -
Lagenaria Native to the Old
World, with a dispersion center most probably in Africa,
the
bottle gourd is found in the New World very early (e.g. at the Huaca Prieta
site in Peru it is dated by
C-l4
to 23OO BC. It has been dated to 7000
CE in Guila Naquitz, Oaxaca).
Cotton There are wild cottons in both Old and New World. Domesticated cotton is found by at least
3OOO
BC in the New World (Tehuacan valley) and by 2500 BCE in the Old World, but New
World
cultivated
cotton is apparently a hybrid between Old World domesticate and New World wild.
Sweet
Potato
(Ipomoea batatas) Mexican
name camote (from Nahuatl). Native American domesticate,
but
cultivated in Polynesia for a long time.
Compare these terms for the sweet potato: Ecuadorian Quichua
(Chinchasuyu
dialect of Quechua– Brand in Riley et
al 1971:360) kumar; Cañari of Ecuador komal;
Nahuatl kamotli . Polynesian dialects kumala, kumala and cognate forms in
the Pacific;
Add
to this Malagasy (Madagascar) kambar 'yam'; Bengali kamalu 'yam';
Telegu (S. India) kumara 'yam';
Malay
kemahang 'wild yam'; Korean koguma
'sweet potato'.
The
above plants are some of the problem plants that have been used as evidence in
the
controversy
surrounding the question of possible Old World - New World contacts in
pre-Columbian times.
The following food plants are native to the New World,
and many to Mesoamerica:
Beans - (mostly Phaseolus
vulgaris, but also other types, including jack beans, runner beans,
kidney
beans [habichuelas], lima
beans [habas] ). Extremely
important source of vegetable protein in
Mesoamerica. Called frijoles in Mesoamerica,
generically beans are known as habichuelas in the Caribbean.
Squash – (Cucurbita
spp.) several types including pumpkin
squash (calabaza),
summer
squash
(calabazita),
and melon squash (chilacayote).
Avocado –
(Persea spp.) many different varieties, from
smooth to stringy, large to tiny, tasty to
bland. First domesticated in the Chiapas-Guatemala
highlands. Tree
gets large. Sp. aguacate .
For
more information.
Sapotes / Zapotes- (from Nahuatl zapotl
'fleshy sweet fruit') These are the fruits of several
different
plant genera. There are red sapotes,
black zapotes, white zapotes, and yellow zapotes; all are
sweet.
Black zapote (Diospyros
digyna), named zapote negro or zapote prieto in Spanish, is a
species
of persimmon, named "turkey excrement" in some Mayan languages, due
to the color and texture of
the
fruit, which is eaten by people out of hand when ripe. When unripe the fruit is astringent,
caustic, and
bitter,
and is ground up and used as a temporary fish poison. The fruit looks a little like the Texas persimmon
only
larger, and has about twice the vitamin C of an orange. The fruit and when ripe has been used as a
dye.
The leaves are made into a decotion to treat ringworm and itching skin
conditions.
White zapote
(Casimiroa edulis, C. sapota), zapote blanco or matazano
or matasano in Spanish,
its seeds and to a lesser extent the flesh of the fruit are known to have sedative and other medicinal
properties.
Red zapote ( Pouteria sapota, pouteria mammosa), mamey colorado,
zapote colorado, mamey
zapote,
or just zapote, this delicious fruit is eaten as picked or made into marmalade.
Yellow zapote (Mammea Americana),
known as mamey, mamey amarillo, or zapote de niño,
the
juicy yellow fruit is eaten while the juice and seeds are used as an insecticide.
Green zapote (Pouteria viridis), zapote injerto or injerto verde,
and raxtul in Guatemala
(from
the Quiché Maya). Found mostly in
Guatemala. Sweet and juicy.
Chicozapote (Manilkara zapota) (Sp. sapodilla)- fruit of the tall
hardwood tree from which the
chicle
in our chewing gum comes (cf. the Nahuatl word tziktli 'chewing gum'),
very sweet.
Caoba (Swietenia macrophylla) This is the tree that we know as mahogany. Also called
chakalte’,
this giant hardwood tree is rapidly disappearing. In the late 1800s began the cutting of these trees
in
Tabasco and then Chiapas. Slow to rot,
the wood is used for boats and drums.
Papaya
- this fruit is used as
a meat tenderizer as well as to eat.
Perhaps originally from
Colombia
or Central America. It is a cauliflorous tree. It will bear clusters of 30 or more
fruits
(of up to 25 pounds each) directly from the trunk of the l0 to l5 foot tall
"tree". Papaya plants
develop
to their full size in less than a year.
The papaya seeds (as well as the milky juice in the stalks,
leaves,
and unripe fruits) are used as a worm remedy.
A piece of papaya leaf placed on a sore will promote
rapid
healing, through the action of its "meat tenderizing" enzymes; and
mashed papaya fruit is used to
treat
skin blemishes.
Granadilla
(fruit
of the passion flower vine, Passiflora
ligularis, P.
quadrangularis and other
species). Flower supposed to
have religious significance (lO petals for the lO apostles, 5 anthers for
5
wounds, 3 stigmas for 3 nails). Fruit
is delicious.
Giant Splitleaf
"philodendron" (Monstera deliciosa)
a house plant here, which is actually a
jungle/rainforest
plant of Middle America, that bears a large, tasty, sweet, pineapple-like
edible fruit.
Annona
- tropical rainforest trees (Annona cherimola and related
species) give fruits called
custard
apple, anona, guanabana,
cherimoya, sweetsop, atemoya, sugar apple
(see J. Morton's
Annonaceae
on the index page of Fruits of Warm
Climates for more detail on the different species of
Annona).
Guava - widely
cultivated tree; fruit is often full of worms, which add protein to them. Several
medicinal
uses for the plant. (Sp. guayabo 'guava tree', guayaba 'guava fruit')
Cocoa
/ cacao
beans –
(Theobroma
cacao) come from the large fruits of
the Cacao tree, hanging
directly
from the trunk (ie. it is cauliflorous)
brown beans taken from the pulp of the fruit and sun dried.
Cacao
beans were used for money in Mesoamerica from the earliest times, and also by
the Aztecs.
Also
used for a refreshing beverage (by 600 BC) to which other vegetable products
were added
(e.g.
corn meal, vanilla). Recent
discoveries of theobromine in ceramic vessels dating to 1100 BC
suggest
the use of cacao beer (fermented cacao pulp) later leading to discovery of the
chocolate taste
from
the beans (because of the fermentation required in the process. The name 'chocolate' is said to
derive
from the Maya term for hot water (chocol
+ ha'), or from the Aztec term for 'water beaten with
a
stick' or 'beater drink' (chikol-atl).
Cacao was also used medicinally.
Cacao
flowers
sprouting from the trunk are of some interest for their delicate beauty.
Pineapple-
a terrestrial bromeliad (Ananas comosus), related to our ball
moss and to Spanish
moss,
the pineapple probably originated in lowland South America, but was brought to
Middle America
very
early.
Chayote-
(Sechium
edule) a useful vine, related to squash and gourd--gives edible root (cueza)
and
edible fruit (chayote), as well as edible flowers. Comes in both spiny and non-spiny
varieties.
Fruit
is boiled like potatoes, and tastes something like the potato.
Chile
/ chili pepper-
(Capsicum species) many different varieties, with many different
degrees
of
"hot". Known as chile
in Mesoamerica, and aji in the Caribbean.
Husk tomato – (Physalis
ixocarpa , Sp. tomatillo ) a little green tomato
(or can have purple, or
yellow
colored skin); strong taste, good for making sauces (salsa verde), or
eaten raw when ripe.
Yam
(Dioscorea) most true yams in Mexico and Guatemala are famine
foods only. They
contain
saponins (hemolytic proteins) and need to be thoroughly cooked before eating in
order to
prevent
the skin from getting huge bruises (or worse).
Sweet manioc
(Manihot esculenta) root is eaten. Tastes sort of like potatoes.
Called yuca
in
many parts of Latin America, and should not be confused with the yucca plant.
lactation, and to harden the fingernails
Elephant
ears (Xanthosoma spp.) Leaves
look like elephant ears; root
is eaten, tasting sort of
like
potatoes. Spanish, malanga, tarabundí,
mafafa, or yautía
Potato
- native to Peru, came relatively late to Middle America; Never very important
in the Middle
American
indigenous diet.
Amaranth-
"sacred grain of the Aztecs", it was almost eradicated by the
Spaniards (who called
it bledos). Small tasty grains, made into cakes for
bloodletting and other rituals (in the past).
Now
sometimes called ajonjolí (literally 'sesame') the grains are often
toasted and popped (like popcorn)
and
mixed with honey to make a tasty candy.
In Indigenous communities the leaves of this plant are eaten
like
spinach.
Ramon
tree – [Brosimum alicastrum] The fruit of the Ramon is ground up and
used as a
maize
substitute in the making of
tortillas. This tree grows well where
maize grows, so Lacandon
maize farmers plant their
maize where the Ramon tree is found to be growing. Either of these
facts might account for the
Huastecs calling the Ramon "maize of the ancestors", and for the
Tzeltal
name "ixim te' (corn
tree) for the Ramon. Yucatecs built huge
bottle-shaped underground chambers
(called
chultun) in the lime-stone bedrock that may have been used to store
Ramon nuts. Currently in
the
US it is sold as a nutritious coffee substitute made from the ground and
roasted seeds, and is called mojo
[you
can buy it at Wheatsville coop].
Tomato- (Lycopersicum lycopersicum) native to Peru, but reached Middle America
quite
early,
and used in many foods, particularly in tasty sauces.
Tree
tomato - (Cyphomandra
betacea) native to Peru; arrived early in Mesoamerica. Grown at
medium
altitudes. Known as tomate de arbol
or kaxlan
pix
Hog
Plum (Spondias
mombin, S. purpurea).
One of several kinds of Mesoamerican plums, has
plentiful
fruit, avidly sought by humans and animals alike. The purple mombin is preferable to the
yellow. Resin from S. mombin is used as glue, bark
used for tanning and dyeing (because of tannin
content),
and young leaves cooked as greens.
Prickly pear-
(Opuntia sp.) tasty fleshy fruits called tuna, the leaves
(nopal) are sliced and
eaten
(sold as nopalitos), often scrambled in eggs.
Pitahaya - Several
species of cactus with delicious, edible fruit (e.g. Stenocereus
thurberi,
Hylocereus
polyhizus, Stenocereus
gummosus, Stenocereus eruca). The Seri of Sonora make much
use
of several pitahaya species. One
species is marketed in the U.S. as 'dragon fruit'.
Vanilla
– (Vanilla planifolia ) the bean of an tropical orchid vine native to
Veracruz, Mexico.
In
1520 one of Cortes' men, Bernal Diaz del Castillo ,noticed that Montezuma drank
his hot chocolate
(made
with cacao beans and ground maize and honey) flavored with tlilxochitl
(ground black vanilla
pods;
literally 'black flower' in Nahuatl – though the flower itself is actually
greenish yellow).
Achiote
- seeds from the Bixa orellana tree- red dye used as food
coloring and for skin coloring
and
also as flavoring for beans and some other foods (it has also been called bija,
bijol, annatto, urucu
and
roucou elsewhere in Latin America).
(the big
picture)
Indigo - (Indigofera
suffruticosa ) source for the
beautiful color known as "Maya Blue" in
decorated
ceramics of the Maya. Became a major
commercial crop (for the dye) during colonial period.
Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum is the cigarette
and cigar tobacco) – native tobaccos (N. rusticum,
N.
glauca)
mixed with lime from ashes and used for chewing; called piciete or pilico
in Spanish.
Datura
(jimson weed). Datura strammonium, D. inoxia used
in California and N.W. Mexico for
puberty
ceremonies.
Peyote (Lophophora
williamsi) a spineless cactus, causes visions, allays hunger and
thirst, assists
sense
of balance and puts off tiredness. Used
today by Huichols and Tarahumara.
Here's a recent Huichol
yarn painting depicting
peyote.
Psilocybe
- one of several genera of hallucinogenic mushrooms. Most often associated with
Mazatecs,
but also known to be used among Zapotecs, Mixe, Nahuatl speakers and others.
Ololiuhqui
- recently identified as (Ipomoea tricolor), relative of the
morning glory whose
hallucinogenic
seeds were important to the Aztecs (long thought to be Rivea corymbosa).
Ska Maria (Salvia divinorum) - a
sage (in the Mint family), propogated vegetatively
(i.e.
apparently domesticated), employed by Mazatec healers to ascertain the cause of
an illness.
Coral
Bean - Erythrina
sps. - red seeds used in divination and for protective necklaces.
Its
flowers are used to make whistles, accounting for the Spanish term pito
as a name for the tree.
Mountain
Laurel - Sophora secundiflora
- called the mescal bean, one of the oldest hallucinogens
whose
use is documented. Dangerous to eat
(one bean can cause death of a child), its presumed use by
North
American Indians supposedly gave way to the safer peyote.
Agave
(of the Amaryllis family): the century plant is of the genus Agave.
Agaves
include the true maguey,
so important in Mesoamerica, particularly for pre-Columbian alcohol
production. Large fields of the
plant can be seen in many parts of Mexico.
Maguey (Agave americana), from which we get pulque,
tequila, needles and thread
(after about l0 years a maguey plant sends up a thick flower stalk--reaching about 20 feet high.
Before
the flower stalk forms, however, the thick center bud can be cut from the
plant, leaving a cavity
that
receives great quantities of saps meant for the stalk. This sap is sucked out
daily for a couple of months
(several
quarts a day), and is called aguamiel.
Then it is fermented into pulque.
Distilled, this becomes
mezcal; and redistilled it becomes
tequila). The young stalks are
sweet and can also be cut and roasted
for
food.
Henequen
(another species of agave) is planted in dry tropical areas by the acre (e.g. in
Quintana
Roo, Yucatan), and from it comes sisal fiber.
It is important, both economically and
because
many Indians were displaced from their home areas and brought to the henequen plantations
to
work and live.
Lechuguilla is the common agave of the northern
deserts. It is a source of ixtle
fiber.
Guamuchil (Pithecellobium dulce)
Also called pinsón. Mimosaceae family – In May and June
it produces edible
fruit/seedpods. Found in deciduous
tropical forest region, near water. A
medicinal tea
can be made from its leaves.
Spineless
Yucca - (Yucca elephantipes)
- houseplant sold in local
nurseries. Also called "giant
yucca". Takes dry conditions and can stand low
light.
Ceiba
(Ceiba pentandra and other species) - the kapok tree, or
silk-cotton tree. This is the
sacred
tree of the Mayans, often depicted as a
tree having hundreds of breasts. It
grows to more
than
lOO feet. When young its green trunk
has many large and sharp spines. The
green trunk accounts
for
the Maya name yax-te' ('green
tree') for the ceiba. The greenish-red
flowers develop into large seed
pods
full of white fibers (kapok) once used to fill sleeping bags. Some ancient Maya
jade earflares
were
carved to resemble the ceiba flower.
Ahuehuete - (Taxodium
mucronatum) this is the Montezuma Baldcypress, relative of the
baldcypress
found in Austin along Town Lake and elsewhere along rivers and creeks. The one at
El Tule
in the valley of Oaxaca is Mexico's most famous tree. It is supposed to be more than 2,000 years
old,
with a girth of 178 feet.
Copal - the trees (from several
different genera and species) from which the incense widely
used
In Mesoamerica comes (i.e. from the sap of the trees). Bursera, Protium,
Pinus, etc.
Marigold- (Tagetes
erecta) flor de muerto, the
"flower of the dead" used at funerals and during
Todos Santos in
Mesoamerica. It has yellow flowers and
exudes material with insecticidal properties.
A
close relative of this flower (Tagetes lucida) has a strong anise scent
and is used as a substitute for
tarragon. Both species have a chemical component,
tagetone, that is mildly biotoxic.
Flor de Mayo
- Frangipani, the sacred flower of the
Maya, the red and the white species of
Plumeria (rubra and alba)
represent the sun and the moon respectively in Maya thought and imagery.
The
flowers are strongly and beautifully scented.
Jagua (Genipa americana), also
called genipa or tapaculo. Tree to 60' tall, gives
edible fruits.
Fruit pulp eaten fresh or made into deserts,
syrups, wine and jam. When green the
fruit gives a yellow
or white juice that gradually turns very dark
blue and is used to dye hair or clothes, or for body painting
(especially in South America). Fruit extracts used to treat rheumatism,
liver ailments, and asthma.
Fruit pulp also used as a dental
anesthetic. Green fruit, scraped,
treats itching.
Algarrobo
(Prosopis spp.; Hymenaea courbaril) This tree is a relative
of the mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) that we have here
in Austin. In northern Mexico and
the US southwest the name algarrobo refers usually to the
mesquite (or to a close relative
that may attain 60' in height).
Elsewhere in Mexico and farther south the term is more
likely
to refer to the Hymenaea (also called guapinol or
jatoba,
or stinking
toe), a tree that can
attain 130' in height. The Hymenaea
courbaril has large
seed pods with edible pulp surrounding
the seeds, that smells bad but tastes good. The resin is used for incense and the wood for tool
handles. Bark, resin and leaves
are all used medicinally. In Spain the
name refers to the
carob tree, which also has large seed pods with edible material
surrounding the seeds. The
name comes from the Arabic term for the carob (becoming clear when one
breaks it up into
its component forms al +
garrob + o ).
Dahlia
- the national flower of Mexico and a common garden flower in the U.S.
Zinnia
- also native to Mesoamerica, a common garden flower in the U.S. now.
Poinsettia
- native to Mesoamerica, this is a member of the Euphorbia (spurge) family, many
members
of which have a milky juice that is biotoxic.
Shellflower
(a kind of iris) - Tigridia pavonia – The flower is beautiful,
and the bulb, roasted
and
eaten by Aztecs and Mayans tastes kind of like sweet potato.
Sensitive-plant
- Mimosa pudica - the touch-me-not plant, native to tropical
areas of the
world,
this plant responds to touch by rapidly closing up its leaves. Its movement is much more rapid than
that
of our own Neptunia
lutea or our Schrankia
uncinata. It is a relative of
the mesquite (i.e. in the bean
family
(Fabaceae).
Iron Cross Plant - (Oxalis
deppei) tasteless but edible
bulblike root, and the leaves are also edible
too,
though the oxalic acid makes it risky to eat a lot. It is a famine food in Mesoamerica.
Introduced food plants, from the Old World, include:
apple,
peach, mango
(India), pomegranate (Eastern
Mediterranean), coffee (Africa),
wheat,
rice, barley, sorghum,
oats, sugarcane (Africa), onions,
beets, garlic,
turnips,
carrots, cabbage, eggplant, lettuce, mulberry, orange,
lemon,
lime,
sweet lime, tamarind
(India), banana (some
varieties may be prehispanic, but
not native to New World – origin in Indo-Malaysian region extending to
northern
Australia).
(see Julia Morton's Fruits of Warm
Climates)
(see Purdue's crop index
)
(see Economic
Botany writeups)
Introduced non-food plants (some come from other parts of
New World):
tree tobacco (Argentina), angels trumpet / tree datura / florapondio [Brugmansia sp.] (Peru),
castor bean,
eucalyptus (Australia),
oleander [Nerium oleander] (Mediterranean),
Bougainvillea (Brazil), Jacaranda (Brazil),
Orchid Tree [Bauhinia purpurea.] (India),
Royal Poinciana (Madagascar), Bamboo (Asia), African tulip tree (Africa),
Noni [Morinda citrifolia]
(Polynesia).
SOME FAUNA OF MIDDLE AMERICA
Harpy eagle
- large, powerful, grey and white eagle; crested. Referenced in Indian folklore
and
also
in art.
Scarlet
Macaw - the largest and most conspicuous parrot of Middle America, from
tropical
lowland
areas; called mo? in several Mayan languages.
Quetzal
- one of 8 species of trogons living in Mexico and Guatemala. The quetzal is famous
for
long green tail and showy plumage.
Curassow – (Crax
rubra) large edible pheasant-like
bird
Chicken - George F Carter considers the evidence in "Pre-Columbian
Chickens in America" (in Man Across the Sea, edited by Riley et al
1971. pp. 178-218), concluding that
chickens in America were more likely present in the New world before Columbus,
and that they were more likely to have been introductions of Asiatic fowl (but
by way of Polynesia, and to South America).
There is some linguistic evidence for Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican
chickens.
Fer-de-lance - 6 to 8 feet long,
aggressive pit viper w/ neurotoxic venom.
Called "four-nose"
or
"twenty-bat"
in indigenous languages.
Boa
Constrictor lO to l2 feet long - often allowed to live in the thatch of
Yucatec Maya houses as
semi-pets,
because they eat rats and mice. Not as
big as the 983 lb., 49' long python
from Indonesia
(however,
see this story)
Raccoon
Family includes the raccoon, but also has the coati or coatimundi
(from a Brazilian word),
known
in Mexico as a tejon or pisote.
The coati has a long nose and long, non-prehensile tail. Makes a good
pet
and is fun to watch. The cacomixtle
is nocturnal and lives in the highlands--also called the ring-tailed cat.
The
kinkajou
or mico de noche
(Potos flavus is a cuddly, small, arboreal, nocturnal, tropical,
almost
monkey-like
animal. Sometimes known in Mexico as marta
or martucha, and in U.S. as honey bear.
Pig
family - includes the collared
peccary (jabali, javelina) - from dry plateaus to
tropical
lowlands--can
become quite aggressive; and the white
lipped peccary (senso), from the jungles of Veracruz,
Chiapas,
Tabasco, and Yucatan.
Cat
family - includes the jaguar (7
feet or more, 250 lbs.), ocelot (4 feet, 35
lbs, looks like
a
jaguar), Jaguarundi
(3-4 feet long, looks like small puma), margay (2-3
feet long, looks like small ocelot).
Dogs
- Native pre-Columbian dogs include the Chihuahua and the Xoloitzcuintli
(or Xolo). The
latter
is hairless and used as food or as a hot water bottle (because no hair, so no
fleas, and also has
a
high temperature). It sweats through
its skin unlike other dogs, and is believed in some regions to
serve
as a guide for human souls in the underworld.
Monkeys
- there are 2 kinds in Middle America: the Spider
monkey is smaller (l8 inches) and
more
slender, with long arms; the Howler
monkey which is larger (33 inches) and more heavy
bodied,
and whose roaring cries echo in rain and cloud forests. The howler is reddish brown to
black
and travels in bands in the treetops.
Males have a long "beard".
Agouti
and Paca - large rodents hunted in tropical areas. The Agouti (called guatusa or cotusa)
is
smaller (2O inches) with solid color, and sometimes feeds during the day. The Paca
(called tepeitzcuintli
or
tepezcuintle)
is larger (26 inches) and spotted w/ bands of white spots.
Tapir (odd toed
ungulate; Spanish danta),
has long snout, is a vegetarian weighing up to 65O
pounds.
It
is tropical, shy, over hunted, and almost extinct.
Brocket deer
(Mazama spp., Spanish cabrito) - very small (dog size) deer, with
pointed
un-branched
horns like those of a goat. Reputed to
stomp poisonous reptiles to death.
Other
mammals include: the coendu
(Mexican tree porcupine), tamandua (Collared
anteater, oso hormiguero, chupamiel),
tayra (cabeza de viejo), and grison.
Crocodile, Cayman - Alligators are not found in
Mesoamerica.
Iguana
- dragonlike vegetarian lizard, serves
as meat for people who hunt them; sold in markets.
as food. Two types: the tree-living and more common
green iguana (Iguana
iguana), and the groun-living
black iguana (Ctenosaura similis.).
The Basilisk lizard (Basiliscus basiliscus) is also a kind of large
iguana,
one
that runs upright, and can walk
on water.
Cane
Toad - (Bufo Marinus) also
called the giant toad, spring chicken
(Belize), marine toad,
sapo grande, sapo gigante, and sapo lechero. Poisonous secretion form
paratoid glands.
Bull Shark (Carcharhinus leucas; Sp. tiburón) Young bull sharks (cazón) are considered
a
delicacy on the Gulf coast in the Veracruz region. They are noted for their tendency and willingness to
enter
fresh water areas, going long distances up rivers. These sharks are said to be very dangerous.
Alligator
Gar (Spanish peje lagarto)
A distinctive and "ancient" fish; large and with an unsual
scale
pattern. Shows up in Olmec
iconography.
Sting Ray (Spanish pastinaca)
- stingray spines were used
by the classic Maya as bloodletting
Implements,
and perhaps also to tip
arrows. There is even a stingray spine
glyph in the Maya script.
Cochineal -
small insects (Coccus cacti, Dactylopius coccus) whose
dried bodies (only the
females)
make a red dye. The insects live on Opuntia
and Nopalea cacti. Aztecs called
the dye nocheztli.
Spaniards
called it cochinilla. Cultivated for
local use and trade in western and south-central Mexico; it
became
very important export from Mexico and Guatemala during colonial period.
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