As proficient as adults: Distribution of children's knowledge of wild edible plants in the arid Mahafaly region, Madagascar

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-2500075/v1

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As proficient as adults: Distribution of children's knowledge of wild edible plants in the arid Mahafaly region, Madagascar

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-2500075/v1

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In drylands, where resources are scarce, wild edible plant (WEP) knowledge is crucial to overcome food scarcity. Understanding the distribution pattern of local ecological knowledge (LEK) about WEP and identifying knowledge holders are key steps to assessing the resilience and vulnerability of knowledge systems. However, little is known about how WEP knowledge is distributed across life stages and gender of people living in arid regions. Here, we study the distribution of WEP knowledge within a small-scale society from southwestern Madagascar, a region known for its dry climate and related food crises. We worked with Tanalana male and female children and adults using semi-structured interviews and free listings. Tanalana people display a sophisticated LEK adapted to the extreme environment in which they live, with a distinct distribution pattern regarding theoretical and practical knowledge across life stages and gender. While women and men cited similar WEP, children and adults cited different sets of WEP, suggesting they hold differentiated bodies of theoretical knowledge, however our results suggest similarity in practical knowledge across life-stage and gender. We argue that resource limitation and food scarcity might be so pervasive in the area that extensive sharing of knowledge on WEP could be an adaptation to the extremely dry environment.

Children

cultural learning

dry environment

traditional knowledge

wild food

Drylands are challenging environments characterised by unpredictability and scarcity of resources that directly affect the food system and water access of local people (Coughlan de Perez et al., 2019). Sustaining and relying on agro-pastoral systems in a highly stochastic environment, such as drylands, implies constantly adjust herding and crops irrigation strategies to maintain food security (Randolph et al., 2007; Reynolds et al., 2007). Among the diversity of strategies developed to cope with variability in food availability, such as yearly lean season, human societies worldwide have assembled sophisticated local ecological knowledge (LEK) about wild edible plants (WEPs) (Brand & Cherikoff, 1985, Cruz García, 2006; Golden et al., 2011). Knowledge about WEP is particularly valuable for small-scale societies that rely heavily on nature for their livelihoods and are therefore more vulnerable to abrupt environmental changes (Diaz et al., 2019). Indeed, WEP and their related knowledge constitute a safety net during food crises by providing access to alternative sources of carbohydrates and micronutrients that contribute to enhancing daily diet diversification (Golden et al., 2011) and hydration (Brand & Cherikoff, 1985). For instance, among the Baka, frequently consumed WEP, such as Gnetum africanum Welw. and yams (Dioscorea L.), provide an important source of protein and increase dietary diversity, especially in lean season (Dounias, 1996; Gallois et al., 2020). Although there is little literature on the subject, to our knowledge, many plants with water storage, such as the bamboo and liana in the Amazon or kurrajong and yams roots used by Australian Aboriginals, are known for their thirst-quenching properties (Brand & Cherikoff, 1985). These knowledge results from a longstanding biocultural relationship, where humans have learned to take advantage of the functional plant diversity in the environment for their needs (Cámara-Leret et al., 2017). While plant biodiversity in tropical rainforests, and corresponding local knowledge about them, has been extensively studied, biodiversity in tropical dry forests has received less attention (Quesada et al., 2009). Thus, our understanding of the knowledge systems of these ecological environments is still limited. Considering the multiple threats to biodiversity and cultural heritage increasing the exposure to food risk of local population (Jackson et al., 2020), there is a need to understand LEK about WEP of people from dryland to assess their knowledge system resilience and vulnerability to prevent risk.

An important step to assess people’s exposure to food insecurity and water scarcity is to understand how WEP knowledge is distributed in society and to identify individuals or groups of individuals who hold this knowledge. Knowledge distribution has been discussed as social-risk management strategy, potentially contributing to resilience in local systems: The more distributed is the knowledge within a population, the more likely this population would be able to deal with disturbance (Blanco & Carrière, 2016). Nevertheless, as bodies of knowledge differ across and within social groups, gender, and age (Diaz Reviriego et al., 2016; Porcher et al., 2022), it is also important to explore the knowledge held by different sub-groups of the population, as the diversity of their knowledge can contribute to the resilience of the knowledge system (Diaz Reviriego et al., 2016). For example, Gallois et al., 2017 concluded that children from different small-scale societies hold specific bodies of knowledge, not necessarily shared by adults, and Crittenden (2015) stated that children’s knowledge about WEP contribute to the food system by actively engaging foraging activities. However, little is known about how WEP knowledge is distributed across life stages and gender of people living in arid regions (de Oliveira Campos et al., 2015), particularly what is the knowledge of children in comparison to the knowledge of adults.

Recent work shows that children are a repository of unique knowledge (Gallois et al., 2017). Children are also important agencies in knowledge transfer, between themselves, with adults, and across generations (Gallois et al., 2018; Cruz García, 2006). Childhood is a key period, where most of the cultural learning occurs, including knowledge about wild edible plants (Schniter et al., 2021). However, while many studies have looked at cultural learning from an evolutionary point of view, mainly within hunter-gatherer societies, hypothesizing that human childhood is a long period of training to learn difficult foraging tasks (Kaplan et al., 2000; Lew-levy et al.,2021), hardly any studies had analysed cultural learning as a potential adaptive response to food scarcity.

In this study, we assess (1) the diversity of WEP knowledge of people living in tropical dry forests, and (2) the distribution pattern of WEP knowledge across life stages and gender, with particular attention to children's knowledge and skills. We worked in southwest Madagascar with Tanalana people - a subgroup of Mahafaly people. The region is particularly affected by food insecurity, with above 40% prevalence of insufficient food consumption, and 41.6% of children affected by chronic malnutrition (WFP, 2020). Despite the unique and fragile biodiversity present in the area (Randriamalala et al., 2019), WEP in the area remain understudied, except for a few studies on wild yams consumption (Andriamparany et al., 2014).

Study site

We conducted fieldwork in a Tanalana village located in the district of the Atsimo-Andrefana, at about 60km of Toliara, in the northern Mahafaly region of southwest Madagascar (Fig. 1A). The Mahafaly region is one of the most arid areas of Madagascar, with average 300 mm of precipitation per year and six to seven dry months (from April to October). The landscape is mainly constituted from the east to the west by a limestone plateau (up to 300 m high) and a coastal plain, none of them retaining water on the surface, and both covered by dry and spiny vegetation called the xerophytic thicket. The xerophytic thicket, listed among the most important ecological regions in the world (Elmqvist et al., 2007), counts numerous unique animal and plant species with one of the highest endemism levels of the island. This dry vegetation is distinct from usual tropical dry forests owing to its particularly low canopy and hyper-specialised plant species (Randriamalala et al., 2019). Most plant species from the xerophytic thicket display a diversity of life forms adapted to dry conditions, where organisms have physically evolved to reduce water loss, store moisture efficiently, and prevent herbivory (Rosell, 2022). Water storage organs adapted to low precipitation are also potential water reservoirs for humans and cattle. Plant species distribution in the xerophytic thicket is mainly influenced by soil composition, particularly two main poor soil types: the lixisol and the calcisol (Randriamalala et al., 2019). All along the coast from west to east, these two main soil types induce distinct vegetation and species composition (Fig. 1a).

Despite its constraining climatic conditions, different ethnic groups (e.g., Vezo, Mikea, Mahafaly) have settled and adapted to the region deploying a diversity of livelihood activities (e.g., fishing, foraging, agro-pastoralism). Like most other Mahafaly, Tanalana people (speaking Antanalana dialect) rely on a mixed economy derived from agriculture and pastoralism (Noromiarilanto et al., 2016; Hänke & Barkmann, 2017), complemented by hunting and gathering (Andriamparany et al., 2014). The main diet of the Tanalana is based on the consumption of cassava, as a type of staple food, pastoral products such as goat meat and milk, and fish which they buy or exchange with the Vezo. Apart from watermelons and squashes, very few fruits and vegetables are grown. The supply of vitamins and micronutrients from agriculture is therefore limited and justifies the research and consumption of WEP, especially during the lean season (from November to April), when hunting and the collection of WEP and honey are crucial to cope with agricultural food scarcity (Fig. 1B) and the lack of water (Cirad, 2015; Noromiarilanto et al., 2016). Furthermore, the availability of fresh and drinkable water is deficient and follows a seasonal pattern (Fig. 1B) (Cirad, 2015). From December to late February, people collect water from rain and temporary ponds and puddles. During this period, they also store water in familial baobab water tanks that will be used during the hottest months (June, July, and August). From March to May, people rely on water stored in plants for their needs. Several plants (WEP and crops) are locally known and consumed for the high-water content contained in their tissues and organs as fluids, such as watermelon, baobab spongy flesh or water tuber from yams (Ratsihoarana, 2019). These aqueous sources provided by plants are also used for cooking, especially to boil rice. Prickly pear rackets, usually used for cattle water needs, are also used during severe droughts. During October and November, drinkable water is very restricted, and the risk of dehydration is high. In addition, people use daily seawater or water unsafe to drink for uses such as cooking and showering.

Hunting, trade, pastoralism, and the need to collect WEP and water drive Tanalana mobility, which differs across life stages and gender. During adolescence, women move to their partners’ village (Neudert et al., 2015). Men’s mobility is more temporal and determined by seasonal grazing patterns across the xerophytic thicket landscapes (Feldt & Schlecht, 2016). Men’s mobility is also motivated by exchange of goods, hunting, water collection and plant gathering for food and medicinal purposes. Several times a year, and mainly during the lean season, adult men (sometimes accompanied by children) travel for several weeks to look for WEP and water, while women and girls stay and look after the crops and the schooled children Outside the transhumance period, boys look after the livestock (zebu and goat) around the village. In general, Tanalana children explore the surroundings of the villages during collective games or in search of snacks (WEP) and small animals for entertainment (cricket).

Sample

Fieldwork was conducted in April 2019 in a village in the Atsimo-Andrefana region. We interviewed 35 Tanalana informants. Participant selection was based on a convenient sampling method to obtain balanced and intersectional samples combining life stage (adult vs. child) and gender (male vs. female). Accordingly, our sample includes eight women, 10 men, nine girls, and eight boys. We consider children as people below the age of puberty – below 15 years old, and our sample of children includes girls and boys from seven to 15 years old. The surveys were conducted in Mahafaly-Antanalana Malagasy, and translated to French (the native language of the lead author) by D.C.

Data collection

To document the diversity of locally known WEP and how they are collected and prepared, we conducted interviews following a two-step process. First, we used free listings to document the species known by each informant. Specifically, we asked informants to list the local names of all the WEP they knew, to name the parts consumed, and to explain whether they provided food, water, or both. Then, we asked each informant to tell us the three WEP they considered the most important out of the species reported in their free listing, and to explain why they considered them of particular importance. Finally, we asked the same informants to describe how they collected and prepared the three WEP species considered most important.

For all WEP reported, scientific names were obtained after identification in the field by the first author and D.C with the help of a local botanist from the University of Toliara. Taxonomic verification was made using the last update of World Flora Online (2022).

Data analysis

To document WEP knowledge distribution across life stages and gender, we used the information collected through free listing and semi-structured interviews. To explore WEPs knowledge variation among people in the study site, we build different subsamples based on life stage (i.e., adults vs. children) and gender (i.e., female vs. male), and the combination of both (i.e., women, men, girls, and boys).

Number and WEP’s species known

We counted the number of WEP species reported by each informant during free listing. To check for variability in knowledge distribution across life stage and gender, we used a Poisson generalised linear model (GLM) with the log link function to make the model fit in a linear form.

We also plotted the accumulation curves of the number of known species against the number of informants in each sub-sample and calculated the sample completeness by comparing the estimated richness with the observed richness. We estimated the theoretical number of WEP known – i.e., the estimated richness– using the bootstrap estimator, i.e., the asymptote of the accumulation curve of species cited (Smith & van Belle, 1984). This allowed us to compare the maximum knowledge threshold in WEP species for an optimal sample of children and adults.

We also explored differences in the WEPs composition – the different WEP species reported by informants – between life stages and gender. First, we built a dissimilarity matrix from the informants vs. species matrix, using the Raup-Crick index. Then, we analysed variance using distance matrices testing for differences between life stages and gender using a permutational multivariate analysis of variance (McArdle & Anderson, 2001). Analysis was processed using the R vegan package (Oksanen et al., 2022).

Wild edible plants characteristics

Because the uses of WEP might relate to plant morphology, for each species recorded during the free listing, we obtained information of three characteristics: life form, water-provider type, and nutritional contribution. To classify plants according to ‘life forms’, we considered “trees” as plants erected from the ground with a single trunk, “shrubs” as plants with multiple woody stems, “climbers” as support-dependent plants, “non-woody shrubs” as arborescent monocots (i.e., palms, tree aloes), and “herbaceous” as short-lived plant species without a trunk, usually non-woody. We classified water-providing species into four categories, based on the parts consumed for water: fruits, leaves, tuber and water tuber. We distinguished between “tubers”, which are species usually consumed for carbohydrates, but which also provide aqueous sources, and “water tubers”, which are species mainly consumed for their massive water supply. Finally, the nutritional contribution of each WEP was determined using the FAO food groups (Kennedy et al., 2011) based on the part consumed. Reported WEP species were classified into five categories: VA-rich fruits (VA = Vitamin A); white roots and tubers; VA-rich vegetables; pulses and nuts; and spices and condiments.

In our analysis, for each life form and part consumed providing food and water, we counted the number of species and displayed the proportions reported by children, adults, and both. We used the Chi-squared test to compare the distribution of plants in each subcategory, known by children, adults and by both.

Criteria for important WEP species

To understand why WEP are important, we analysed the terms used by informants to answer the question: “Why is this WEP important?”. We classified the terms used during the interviews to define a WEP as important into five categories: organoleptic, nutritional, food accessibility, economic, and food security. We then calculated the frequency of use of the different categories for our four subsamples. To assess the differences in the distribution of terms used between life stages and gender, we used a Chi-square test.

Comparing collection and preparation practices

We used the information on food collection and preparation methods to assess the plant part consumed, and the processing methods, tools and materials and products or condiments used to prepare them. We categorised the information using the Economic Botany Data Collection Standard (Cook, 1995). This helped us to create a matrix that linked each participant to the WEP species, and their associated preparation method reported. Then, we built bipartite graphs to display the knowledge networks of children and adults.

To test whether there were differences in collection and preparation methods across life stages and gender, we built two indices: 1) the collection skills (CS) and 2) the preparation skills (PS), that captured informant’s skills based on the practices they reported and their level of complexity. For a given practice (i), we established the level of complexity based on three main elements: the number of tools (NT_i), the number of steps (NS_i), and the number of condiments (NC_i) used in the preparation. We calculated the respective level of complexity of each practice by summing the above variables, setting the baseline at one to avoid a zero score – e.g., when WEP is eaten raw. Then, we calculated informants’ CS and PS scores by averaging the complexity level of practices reported per informant. We compared the mean CS and PS score across life stages and gender using a normal generalised linear model (GLM).

Informants listed 59 WEP species, once synonyms were solved (see S1. Tab). Two additional species (‘tabozebozety’ and ‘tavenala’) were listed but not identified, for which we excluded from the analysis. The species reported belong to 26 botanical families and 40 genera with more than 50% of endemism at the species level (S1. Fig). The most represented family was Malvaceae, with seven species distributed in two genera Adansonia L. and Grewia L. The genera Grewia L., (including five species) and Opuntia Mill (including four species) were the most cited, reported 49 and 41 times respectively. Nine WEP species were reported by all subsamples (i.e., women, men, girls, and boys) and by almost all informants. The most represented taxa were Ziziphus spina-christi (L.) Willd. (‘tsinefo’) reported by all informants (n = 35) and Salvadora angustifolia Turill (‘sasavy’) cited by 80% of people interviewed. Six species were cited by 50–70% of the sample: Sclerocarya birrea (A.Rich.) Hochst. (‘sakoa’), Terminalia ulexoides H. Perrier (‘fatra’), Boscia angustifolia A.Rich. (‘lalangy’), Flacourtia indica (Burm. F.) Merr. (‘lamoty’), Grewia leucophylla Capuron. (‘sely’), Dioscorea bemandry Jum. & H.Perrier (‘baboky’) and Dioscorea alatipes Burk. & H.Perr. The remaining 51 species were cited less than ten times (i.e., by less than 30% of informants).

Number and WEP species known

Children and adults listed a similar number of WEP species. Adults cited 49 species while children cited 45 species (Fig. 2a and b); the GLM showing that there is no statistically significant relation between informants’ life stages and the number of species cited (estimate = -0.058, Std. error = 0.153, z value = -0.381, p-value = 0.703). The number of WEP species cited by children and adults was high in relation to the estimated total sampling completeness (respectively 77.5% and 81.2%) and tended to a similar estimated richness (58.05 species for children and 60.34 species for adults, Fig. 2b, S2. Tab). Results for Chao2, bootstrap, first-order and second-order Jackknife estimators are presented in.

Children and adults listed 33 known WEP species in common. But children listed 12 species which were not reported by adults and adults listed 16 species which were not reported by children (Table 1). In other words, although children and adults listed the same number of WEP, they did not list the same species (F = 19.63, R2 = 0.33, p < 0.05), suggesting that children and adults know a distinct body of species.

Regarding gender, male cited more WEP species than females (53 vs. 37; Fig. 2a). Results from the GLM indicate a strong relation between gender and the number of species cited (estimate = 0.334, Std. error = 0.099, z value = 23.358, p-value < 0.001). The number of WEP species cited by females and males in relation to the estimated total sampling completeness was similar (respectively 79.17% and 77.48%), however they tended to a distinct estimated richness (46.73 species for females and 68.40 species for males, Fig. 2c, S2. Tab). Females listed eight species not reported by males and males listed 24 species not reported by females, while 29 species were listed by both females and males. Despite the difference in numbers, both genders reported similar species (F = 6.77, R2 = 0.11, p = 0.183), suggesting that females and males have more known species in common than known species specific to their gender.

Wild edible plants characteristics

Most WEP species reported were trees (22) and shrubs (18), followed by climbers (9), herbs (6) and non-woody shrubs (4) (Fig. 3b & c). Among WEPs, some are not only edible but also “drinkable”, as they are locally known for providing water in quantity (Fig. 3b& c) and used in periods of drought. According to our informants, most of these species receive special care, including non-destructive collection practices to allow for the annual harvesting of the consumed parts and drinking water resources extracted from these plants. Amongst the 59 species listed, 23 were reported as hydrating or used for thirst-quenching. More than half of these species provide water through their tubers (9) and fruits (8). Four species are consumed for water contained in their leaves and two species are known to provide large quantities of water through their tubers (water tubers). Regarding food groups, 34 WEP reported are consumed for their fruit rich in vitamin A (VA-rich fruits); eight WEP are consumed for their white roots and tubers; six species are consumed as VA-rich vegetables and pulses and nuts. Only one WEP is consumed as spices and condiments (Fig. 3b & c). We found no significant differences between life stages or genders in the listing of species belonging to different life form, water-provider type, and nutritional composition. The distribution of species listed in these categories was not significantly different from random expectations (see Table S3.), meaning that children and adults cited approximately the same number of WEPs in each subcategory of WEP characteristics. Results are similar when comparing the lists of females and males in each subcategory of WEP characteristics.

Criteria for important species

Twenty-three of the 59 WEP species were listed as important by at least one informant. Ziziphus spina-christi, Flacourtia indica, Salvadora angustifolia, Grewia leucophylla, and Boscia angustifolia were the species most frequently cited as important (S2. Fig). Regardless of informant’s life stages and gender, the criteria most often used to define a WEP as important related to its organoleptic characteristics, mainly taste. The term ‘mamy’ (sweet) was the most used (45 times), followed by ‘soa’ (good taste) (17 times), and finally ‘masiloka’ (acid) cited only twice. Nutritional aspects were also used to define WEP as important, particularly related to the feeling of fulfilment. The term ‘voky’ (satiating) was used 18 times, followed by ‘menaka’ (fat and oily) cited eight times, ‘sakafo’ (edible) cited four times, ‘salama’ (healthy) cited four times (usually referring to the vitamin), and finally ‘jabobo’ (provide water) cited three times. Terms related to food accessibility were also used, with the term ‘miharamaky’ (abundant), referring both to the species productivity and its ecological abundance, being reported eight times and the term ‘manavanana’ (effortless to collect) being cited twice. Few people used criteria related to economic aspects with the term ‘mahaletake’ (i.e., saleable) being cited three times. Finally, one informant used the term ‘avotsiky’ (preservable) referring to a food security aspect and the need to prevent lean season by storing wild food (S2. Fig).

We find differences in the mention of these criteria between adults and children (Chi-square = 24.256, df = 11, p-value = 0.0117). Children used more times the criteria “good taste” than adults, while adults used more time “satiating” and “abundant” as criteria to define WEP as important (S4 Table). However, we did not find differences between men and women (Chi-square = 15.108, df = 11, p-value = 0.1776).

Comparing collection and preparation practices

During semi-structured interviews, collection and preparation methods were described for 31 of the 59 species listed. Four collection and 16 preparation methods have been described, with multiple variations in the techniques, tools, or condiments used for preparation (S5. Table).

Regardless of life stage or gender, all informants used the same collection methods. Most of the WEP are trees and thorny shrubs collected with the help of a stick to make the fruit fall into a net previously installed on the ground. Tubers are usually collected with a spade (called ‘fangale’) or with the hands when the tuber is not deep. Our GLM did not detect any effect of life stage (estimate = 0.092, Std. error = 0.150, z value = 0.616, p-value = 0.543) or gender (estimate = 0.220, Std. error = 0.151 z value = 1.458, p-value = 0.156) on the use of different collection skills (Fig. 4a).

Regarding preparation methods, many techniques are used to prepare WEP for consumption (e.g., roasted, boiled, leached, ground, squeezed, fermented), which involve a diverse use of condiments and tools. Many techniques are also used to prepare WEP as food additive for the preparation of other foods, as for example to prepare goat milk where WEP is used as fermenting agents (S5. Table). Women described nine different preparation methods, of which three were not reported by men. Men described 14 preparation methods, including eight that women did not mention. Adults described 13 preparation methods, of which seven were not mentioned by children (Fig. 4c) and children described nine preparation methods, of which three were not described by adults. Both children and adults reported one preparation method linked to one species not mentioned by the other group (Fig. 4c). Among the 31 species for which preparation methods were described, 16 WEPs were mentioned by all subsamples, with similar preparation. Regarding preparation skills, GLM indicated that adults were more knowledgeable in terms of WEP preparation (estimate = -1.338, Std. error = 0.383, z value = -3.489, p-value < 0.01). Moreover, while we did not find any gender differences among adults in preparation skills, we found that girls have a lower score compared to boys (estimate = 0.8976, Std. error = 0.4130, z value = 2.173, p-value < 0.05) (Fig. 4b).

Tanalana people hold a great diversity of WEP knowledge in common, although they also display intracultural variation in WEP’s knowledge distribution, as shown by the distinct distribution pattern regarding theoretical and practical knowledge across life stages and gender. Thus, in free listings, children and adults cited different sets of species, suggesting differentiated bodies WEP theoretical knowledge. As for gender, men cited more WEP than women. We found low intracultural variation in WEP collection and preparation methods, suggesting that all Tanalana share them. We discuss such insights in terms of learning opportunities and how these might contribute to the resilience of local knowledge systems constituting a risk-management strategy. We argue that the harsh environmental conditions of the area might shape Tanalana WEP knowledge distribution and the early acquisition of this LEK by children.

Intracultural variation through life stage and gender lenses

An important insight of this work refers to the differences in plants named between children’s and adults’ knowledge, which suggest the existence of a children’s culture. As seen in our results, children know different species and methods of WEP preparation than adults and define important WEPs differently. This finding is not new, as similar findings were observed across small-scale societies and ecological regions including two cases in Madagascar (Gallois et al., 2017; Tucker & Young, 2017; Porcher et al., 2022). Thus, our insights reinforce the idea that children hold specialised ’knowledge and -potentially- what has been called “a children’s culture” (Johanson, 2010; Gallois et al., 2017). Differentiated children’s knowledge might be explained by several mechanisms driven by sociocultural and environmental contexts. One of the currently admitted theories behind children’s specific knowledge is the importance of horizontal transmission among children – from child to child- (Reyes-García et al., 2016), which fosters the acquisition of specific knowledge not shared with adults. While vertical transmission – knowledge transfer from adult to child – is usually the most intuitive process occurring, usually from parents, some studies argue that horizontal transmission might be a predominant mechanism among children in small-scale societies, as shown among the Baka people (Hewlett & Cavalli-Sforza, 1986; Gallois et al., 2018). This transmission process is usually supported by subsistence activities that encourage prosocial behaviour like playing, foraging, and food sharing (Crittenden, 2015). Tanalana children, who regularly experience the effects of the lean season, might rely in food sharing, which supports knowledge transmission between them. This mechanism adds to other, such as the fihavanana – the set of traditional rules and norms, built on values of sharing, trust, social peace and interpersonal solidarity – which structure Tanalana society and condition their cultural learning (Richter, 2001). Here, we hypothesize that environmental conditions and food scarcity might partially explain the diversified body of knowledge held by Tanalana children. Together with the transmission process, children might also create their own knowledge about their environment (Lancy, 2010) through their growing period (Ingold, 2003). Thus, the difference in species cited might also be the result of foraging decisions made by children to collect WEP best adapted to their strength, size, and preferences (Gallois et al, 2017). This might be the case for the tuber of Hydnora esculenta, only cited by children (Andriamisaina, 2019), which usually grow a few centimetres underneath the soil and require less energy to be collected than Dioscorea tubers, buried several metres deep and weighing several kilograms depending on the species.

Regarding gender intracultural variation, in contrast to most previous studies, we found that Tanalana women display a particularly reduced theoretical body of WEP knowledge, reflected in the absence of a set of WEP species specific to women and in the low number of WEP known. We argue that this finding might be explained through the ecological context of this society and women’s mobility pattern. Across cultural groups and ecoregions, women hold extensive plant knowledge (Miara et al., 2018) and particularly knowledge of WEP growing in home gardens (Díaz-Reviriego et al., 2016b) with a high specialisation in herbaceous WEP (Voeks, 2007; Porcher et al., 2022). The reduced presence of herbaceous WEP in Tanalana women's list might be explained by the xerophytic thicket characteristics, too dry for such life forms. Indeed, the only herbaceous WEP found in the region were hyper-specialised to dry conditions with succulent leaves (Fig. 2). For example, the traditional “anana” (in Malagasy), a leafy vegetable herbaceous species, that can grow wild or cultivated, and that is consumed boiled and accompanying the staple food (rice, cassava), an unavoidable dish in Malagasy diet, are absent here. The absence of this group of plants and the almost non-existence of home gardens obliterate an important part of knowledge that Malagasy women usually master in other Malagasy regions. Moreover, women and girls' reduced mobility due to their domestic-sphere-oriented activities might also affect their knowledge of WEP. Recent work in the high plateau of Madagascar shows the importance of mobility in the knowledge differentiation pattern across life stage and gender (Porcher et al., 2022). Pastoralism among the Tanalana, as other Malagasy people, is a predominantly male activity, which promotes men's mobility. In addition, in this region, during the lean season, men travel several weeks away from the village to collect WEP and water. These seasonal trips allow men to cross different types of vegetation and thus to expand their knowledge of WEP. In contrast, women who stay at the village, only have access to the nearby WEP. For example, from our interviews and additional sources (Cirad, 2015) we know that women are actively involved in collecting water when the baobab tanks are full in the dry season. These familial baobab trees (belonging to households) can be found several kilometres away from the village and therefore imply a certain seasonal mobility of women across the xerophytic thicket. Importantly, reduced women’s knowledge about WEP might have a direct effect on their nutritional intake and, by extension, their ability to cope with food crises (Jackson et al., 2020). Further studies involving socio-cultural perspectives are needed to explore gendered knowledge transmission and women’s knowledge acquisition in this region.

It has been shown that many gender-related factors could affect women's acquisition of LEK, such as early marriage, gender inequality - school dropout syndrome, difficulties in agricultural production or migration, which could increase women's vulnerability (Noromiarilanto et al., 2016; Randriamparany & Randrianalijaona, 2022). In this line, we found variation in children's preparation skills, with girls displaying lower skills than boys. Although, it would be necessary to conduct further works to elucidate this gap, we believe that it may be due to the shyness displayed by girls while being interviewed. Therefore, our results may not be representative of girls' actual practical knowledge. Verbalization of complex ideas can be a limitation for the children during interviews - where drawing methods will be more adapted- and induce shyness feeding an existing gender-shame (Gazelle et al., 2014).

Explaining early learning and children’s knowledge

One of the main insights of our study is that Tanalana children know as much as adults, citing a similar number of WEP species than adults, while reporting different species, which has not been, to our knowledge, found in other societies yet. Indeed, regarding the theoretical knowledge (i.e., the number of WEP species known), children almost reach the maximum threshold predicted for WEP species known by adults. In other words, Tanalana children know about the same number of WEP species than adults, and Tanalana adults are not necessarily more knowledgeable than children. Our results also show that useful WEP traits (life forms and resources) are known and widely spread in the community, without variation across life stage and gender. This implies that Tanalana children do not accumulate new WEP species knowledge, or very few, during the rest of their lives and that they already have information about WEP useful traits as part of their knowledge, knowing what to look for (traits). These findings are consistent with previous studies that challenge the assumption that individuals' LEK accumulation is linear all along their lives, resulting in greater expertise or skills in older individuals (Koster et al., 2016). Here we argue that high expertise may be acquired earlier in life for a given knowledge domain. According to Schniter et al. (2021), knowledge related to wild edible or toxic plants might be one of the knowledge domains acquired the earliest during lifespan. It is also true for practical knowledge, as Tanalana children share a similar level of WEP collection skills and know almost half of the preparation method reported by adults. Knowledge about WEP is acquired through children's daily involvement in gathering and preparing WEP and does not require many tools and techniques, where most of the species being are eaten raw and collected without specific tools. These relatively low complexity of techniques might thus foster an early acquisition of skills, in contrast with other subsistence activities such as hunting, for which it has been shown that skills acquisition requires a longer period of time (Demps et al., 2012; Lew-levi et al.,2021; Koster et al., 2016 and 2020). This pattern of “early knowledge acquisition” has been also observed among Mikea children, a neighbouring ethnic group of hunter and gatherers living in similar environmental conditions (Tucker & Young, 2017). The fact that children from different ethnic groups from the same arid ecoregion but with different livelihood activities, i.e., hunter and gatherers and agro-pastoralists, hold complex subsistence skills at an early age suggests an effect of the environment on children’s knowledge and the age of their acquisition. In this region, children’s “dwelt-in world” (Ingold, 2003), or the way the children experience their environment, is particularly constraint by the harsh conditions and might imply a certain engagement vis-à-vis of resources foraging resulting in a contextual specialised and early knowledge acquisition or “enskilment” (Ingold, 2003). Considering the extreme living conditions of xerophytic thicket, quickly learning how to recognize, collect and prepare WEP is definitively crucial to limiting food risk and, by extension, to survival. According to Tucker and Young (2017) this self-learning can be enhanced in a safe environment (e.g., free from predators, venomous animals, or poisonous plants) such as the xerophytic thicket, where wrong plant identification is less risky.

Risk-management strategy as a component of Tanalana’s LEK

We identify tree main aspect of the Tanalana’s LEK prone to contribute to LEK system resilience and thus constituting a risk-management strategy for Tanalana people.

A first aspect is the nature of LEK held by Tanalan people. In the xerophytic thicket, an environment which offers limited water and food resources, Tanalana people have developed sophisticated knowledge to find and prepare them, mostly in tree species and shrubs with fruits rich in vitamin A (57% of the WEP reported) and tubers used as staple food. The Tanalana have taken advantage of the hyper-specialisation and functional diversity of plants growing in the xerophytic thicket for their needs. One of the specificities of their ecological knowledge, and one of our striking results, is the large proportion of WEPs known for providing water resources. This most likely reflects the magnitude of water stress in the region. Despite the human pressure on the xerophytic thicket (Randriamalala et al., 2019), several species particularly important for water receive specific care and are protected by traditional management rules, or ‘fady’. For example, according to our informants, the collection of the water tubers of Dioscorea bermandry, ‘baboky’, is done in a non-destructive manner to ensure sustainable collection, similarly to the yam’s protoculture done by Baka people in Cameron (Dounias, 1996). Adansonia za, ‘za’, appreciated for its fruits, is also used as a water tank (Fig. 3a.6) - being able to contain up to 800 litre- by carving the trunk without killing the tree (Cirad, 2015). In sum, it seems that WEP knowledge held by Tanalana people testifies to a long experience with a limiting environment stressing hunger and thirst which is widely spread among life stages and gender.

A second aspect is the structure of the LEK system and in particular its distribution and the age of knowledge acquisition. Indeed, we showed that while children and adults look for similar plant traits supporting similar services, they both cited different WEP species and used different criteria to define WEP as important. This utilitarian redundancy might enforce adaptive capacity and knowledge system resilience (Diaz-Reviriego et al., 2016). Blanco and Carrière’s work in Morocco (2016) shows that sharing knowledge about WEP might be an adaptation to the harsh conditions of desert life - scarce and unpredictable precipitation directly affecting the food system. In this work, authors argue that the reduced knowledge variation might allow the whole community to collect most of the plant and maximise resource collection. Our results support the argument that, in a dry environment where resources are limited, most of the theoretical and practical knowledge are shared by everyone. Indeed, the observed “shared” distribution of WEP knowledge of Tanalana people (including early knowledge acquisition of children) might also be an adaptation to the difficult and unpredictable environmental conditions. In addition, Tucker and Young (2017) argue that the early skills of children advance the age of “positive net production” and thus reduce the physical and economic burdens of adults. While we did not collect any data on foraging time allocation or foraging productivity, our field observations suggest a certain autonomy of children towards WEP collection and consumption. In this sense, even if we cannot prove that Tanalana children's WEP’s foraging proficiency reduces adults’ burdens, we can suggest that it might at least improve children’s nutritional status, by providing micronutrients through daily snacking habits, as it has been shown elsewhere (Golden et al., 2011).

A third aspect that explains Tanalana’s knowledge resilience is the symbolic values and the behaviour toward WEP. If basic needs might play an important role in the WEP knowledge distribution, other socio-cultural factors are not negligible. The optimal foraging theory states that foraging is driven by the balance between energy obtained and energy spent to collect or prepare the food (Winterhalder & Alden Smith, 1981). Targeting tree species bearing fruits, which do not need specific preparation (for most of them eaten raw, see Fig. 4c P1) and providing a high energy rate due to their sugar and micronutrients, aligns with this theory of effort-gain optimization. However, several studies have shown that the cost of the gathering is not always a limiting factor and that low-energy resources are often collected despite their high cost (Hagino & Yamauchi, 2016; Gallois & Henry, 2021) challenging this neoclassical approach. The act of foraging itself, in some cases, might be perceived locally and culturally as more important than the resource provided, particularly when it relies on a collective activity because it supports socio-cultural interactions, knowledge transfer, cultural learning process and group cohesion (Gallois & Duda, 2016). Indeed, diet behaviour, including food selection and collection, depends on many psycho-cultural factors (Gaoue et al., 2017; Gallois & Henry, 2021). As Trémolière (1962) put it “human is a consumer of symbols as much as of food”. In the Malagasy culture, the symbolic act of sharing is more important when it comes to sharing a sweet dish such as fruits. In Malagasy, the word "mamy" has a double meaning, referring to both sugar/sweet and happiness. By analogy, to share sweetness, it is also to share happiness, but above all, a "sharing" and the expression of the fihavanana, the feeling of solidarity; in sum, to make a group (Ravololomanga, 2006). Thus, considering sweet WEP as important WEP is not only revealing a nutritional need but a more complex food representation -learnt at an early age- involving social behaviour such as solidarity and cooperation, enhancing the group's ability to overcome crises, though a social risk-management strategy (Moritz et al., 2011).

However, if these strategies might enhance knowledge system resilience, it does not mean that it fully protects people from food crises. Indeed, despite the great WEP knowledge held by the Tanalana people, malnutrition is still a critical challenge in this region (WFP 2020), questioning the ability of the local knowledge system to overcome crises. Recent work has stated that indigenous food system vulnerability to disaster might be approached emphasising the socio-ecological system framework while addressing several aspects of this system such as the historical, human, economic, environmental and governance dimensions (Jackson, 2020). Indeed, according to historical sources and local experiences (Ralaingita et al., 2022), despite the current food crisis with a debated climatic origin, the region experienced several episodes of intense drought followed by food crises in the 1920 and 1930. Furthermore, the 200 years of French colonisation ended in 1960 has also deeply affected the local knowledge system's integrity and thus its resilience (Raschke & Cheema, 2008). In addition, migration, poverty, the decrease in WEP abundance due to overexploitation (Schunko et al., 2022) and vegetation loss (Randriamalala et al., 2019) as well as bad governance might deeply affect the current vulnerability of the local food system. Thus, knowledge distribution is an important dimension to understanding indigenous local knowledge and food system vulnerability but to be analysed in a broader context.

Our results show that Tanalana people hold a great diversity of WEP knowledge in common, while displaying a different body of theoretical knowledge between children and adults. The distinct distribution pattern regarding theoretical and practical knowledge across life stages and gender attests to the complexity of understanding knowledge system distribution, which might be deeply linked to the knowledge domain itself. In addition to the social components, such as life stages and gender, our study argues that the environment -and in particular resource limitations- might also shape knowledge distribution patterns and knowledge acquisition. We believe that WEP knowledge widely shared in the community might allow maximising resource collection and more individual autonomy toward WEP proficiency. However, the most noticeable result concerns the children's knowledge acquisition, as it shows that children knew as much as adults, about theoretical and practical WEP knowledge. Thus, the dynamic of learning a knowledge domain or another might vary and not necessarily be cumulative over a lifespan but also being learned and mastered during childhood. This early learning pattern testifies to the amazing plasticity of humans to learn and adapt themselves to their environments. Given our findings, we suggest conducting a comparative study across various local communities and knowledge domains to address cultural learning and to embed more children into ethnoecological studies.

Acknowledgements

We thank the Tanalanas community and all the participants of our fieldwork interviews. We extend our gratitude to Laurence Ramon who helps us with logistic and botanical identification on the field. We are also grateful to our Malagasy partner from the CNRE and French one from IRD-SENS and particularly to Julien Blanco who gave us good advice during the analysis.

Ethical approval and Informed Consent

This research was approved by the ethics committee of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (CEEAH 4902) and was carried out following the ethical charter of Ethical Research Involving Children (Graham et al., 2013). Before starting data collection, we obtained the agreement from the relevant administrative-territorial organisations (Fokontany chefs). Oral free prior and informed consent (FPIC) was obtained from each informant before conducting interviews. For children, we asked for both their own and their parents’ FPIC, always reiterating to the children their right to withdraw from the study at any time.

To illustrate local ecological knowledge and valorise it in the academy, we cite informants, including children, in references, as knowledge repositories using the citation template developed by Lorisia MacLeod (2021). To protect knowledge holders including their village locations, we used pseudonyms while keeping the age and gender of the knowledge owners.

Competing interests

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.

Authors' contributions

V.P., X.L, S.M.-C., S.G., V.R.-G. conceived and designed the study. V.P., X.L and D.C did the ethnobotanical fieldwork, V.P. and S.A.-F. analysed the data and V.P. wrote the first draft of the paper and prepared the figures. All authors: V.P., X.L, D.C, S.A.-F., S.M.-C., S.G., V.R.-G. discussed the results and commented on the manuscript.

Funding

Research leading to this paper has received funding from the European Research Council under an ERC Consolidator Grant (FP7-771056-LICCI). This work contributes to the “María de Maeztu” Programme for Units of Excellence in R&D (MdM-2019-0940).

Availability of data and materials

The data presented in this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. They are not available online as they contain sensitive data that should not be released to protect local knowledge holders.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

Vincent Porcher, Xiaoyue Li, Santiago Alvarew-Fernandez, Victoria Reyes-García & Sandrine Gallois

SENS, IRD, CIRAD, Université Paul Valéry de Montpellier, Université de Montpelier, Montpellier, France

Vincent Porcher & Stéphanie M. Carrière

Université de Toliara, Toliara, Madagascar

Didie Cresson

Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avanç ats (ICREA), Barcelona, Spain, Department of Anthropology, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

Victoria Reyes-García

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Vincent Porcher [email protected]

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No competing interests reported.

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As proficient as adults: Distribution of children's knowledge of wild edible plants in the arid Mahafaly region, Madagascar

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Version 1

Abstract

Figures

Introduction

Method

Study site

Sample

Data collection

Data analysis

Number and WEP’s species known

Wild edible plants characteristics

Criteria for important WEP species

Comparing collection and preparation practices

Results

Number and WEP species known

Wild edible plants characteristics

Criteria for important species

Comparing collection and preparation practices

Discussion

Intracultural variation through life stage and gender lenses

Explaining early learning and children’s knowledge

Risk-management strategy as a component of Tanalana’s LEK

Conclusion

Declarations

Corresponding author

References

Additional Declarations

Supplementary Files

Status:

Version 1