Edible mushrooms of the Northwestern Himalaya, India: a study of indigenous knowledge, distribution and diversity

Abstract

In the present study, the diversity, edibility, indigenous knowledge and distribution of wild edible mushrooms in the Northwestern Himalaya are discussed. The information provided herein was derived from a study carried out in the states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh during the period of 2000-2013. A total of 23 species of mushrooms considered as edible or used for trade were recorded. Twenty-one of these are basidiomycetes and two are ascomycetes. Certain species of Amanita, Agaricus, Astraeus, Hericium, Macrolepiota, Morchella, Pleurotus and Termitomyces are very commonly collected and consumed by the local people, whereas species of Auricularia, Cantharellus, Sparassis, Lactarius, Ramaria and Russula are less commonly collected and consumed. Cordyceps sinensis and several species of Morchella are collected specifically for trade purposes in the spring season in high elevation areas of the Himalaya. Among the edible wild mushrooms collected are a number of species involved in ectomycorrhizal symbiotic relationships with banj (oak), other broadleaf trees and several types of conifers. The results of the present study can be used to promote the domestication of those wild edible mushrooms not yet cultivated in India. These results also indicate the need to avoid over exploitation of these mushrooms and a reason to establish a 'state germplasm bank' to allow studies of tissue culture. The latter could serve as the basis of further scientific study into various ways of enhancing the livelihood of particular areas of northern India through increased mushroom domestication as well as assessing the possible bioactivity of mushrooms against certain human diseases.

Chemical and Bioactive Profiling, and Biological Activities of Coral Fungi from Northwestern Himalayas

“…Moreover, nutrient profiling of presently tested species are very much similar to the composition of several comercially cultivated edible and highly prized medicinal mushroom species analyzed from Himalayan regions viz., Clavaria cinerea, Agaricus bisporus, Boletus edulis, Morchella esculenta, Cordyceps sinensis , and Lentinula edod 2223242526. Results obtained for nutritional composition of presently evaluated species are in confirmity with other species of wild and commercially cultivated mushrooms with high protein and carbohydrate contents and low fat levels which directly making them nutritionally valuable27. Although the nutrional compositions of all the twelve species differed but the values are significantly higher than previously worked out species of related genera viz., Clavaria rosea, Agaricus arvensis, Lepiota leucothites, Amanita caesarea, Gymnopilus junonius, Coprinus atramentarius, Hygrocybe coccinea, Hygrophorus pustulatus , and Lactarius pubescen collected from these regions28.…”

Chemical, Bioactive, and Antioxidant Potential of Twenty Wild Culinary Mushroom Species

“…Further, the knowledge about the edible species is restricted to the old aged people. Documentations studies of these edible species have been done by several workers [ 22 ] but the studies on chemical composition and medicinal importance are still lacking besides the presence of toxic compounds in them. In view of this, under present investigations twenty of such wild culinary mushroom species have been evaluated for their chemical, bioactive, and antioxidant potential.…”

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“…Wild mushrooms are one of the important natural sources of food and income for many indigenous communities across the world 12,13,14 . Traditional or indigenous knowledge systems generally embedded in the cultural practices of regional or local communities based on the accumulation of empirical observations and interactions with the environment.…”