Abstract

CASTILLO, Lucía  and  LADIO, Ana. Las aves en el patrimonio biocultural de los crianceros rurales del centro-norte de la Patagonia, Argentina. Hornero [online]. 2017, vol.32, n.1, pp.123-138. ISSN 0073-3407.

The inhabitants of the Patagonia plateau (Chubut Province, Argentina) have based their survival on multiple strategies generating different vital and reciprocal links with wildlife. Over time, many of these mapuche, tehuelche and creole families have built a “criancera” identity that remains vivid until the present. They live in small scale livestock farms and have small numbers of sheep and goats. Manifestations of their biocultural heritage may be visible as local etnozoological heritage which are the multiple knowledge and cultural expressions about birds. We conducted open and in-depth interviews with 20 stockbreeders of Sierra Colorada, Sierra Ventana and El Escorial. The local ornithological biocultural heritage refers to 15 wild bird species and 1 domesticated, distinguishing different uses of material-symbolic nature, including the procurement of various parts of the body for food, medicine, domestics items and ornaments, being the Darwin’s Rhea (Rhea pennata) the most versatile. In addition, 11 species announcing climatic changes or social events in pastoral life are highlighted. In the local ornithological heritage are evident ethical imperatives of high-value bio-cultural conservation, therefore their assessment and diffusion is essential in the face of the drastic environmental and socio-cultural changes experienced by the region.

Keywords : Darwin’s Rhea; Ethno-ornithology; Food; Omens; Rhea pennata; Traditional ornithological knowledge; Utilitarian versatility; Zootherapy.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )