Background:

Ethnomycological studies carried out in the Mazatec region in the north of the state of Oaxaca, Mexico, have focused mainly on Psilocybe species due to their great ceremonial importance among this ethnic group. In contrast, the knowledge and local perceptions related to the use of other species with biocultural importance and their vocabulary so far have been scarcely studied.

Objective:

To register the vocabulary and local nomenclature related to the fungal species with biocultural importance for the inhabitants of the Mazatec community of Eloxochitlán de Flores Magón, Oaxaca, Mexico.

Methods:

Structured, semi-structured and unstructured interviews, visits and sampling of fungal material in the field were carried out during the rainy seasons from 2017 to 2021.

Results and conclusions:

One hundred and sixteen Mazatec words related to the mycological resource were recorded. This nomenclature was associated with 27 species of wild fungi with biocultural importance in the study community. This study documents for the first time that a rich traditional mycological knowledge survives despite the strong transculturation processes to which the Mazatec culture is currently subjected.

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