A Sustainable Future for Use of Notholithocarpus densiflorus Acorns

Frank K. Lake

Published May 2019 in International Oaks No. 30: 283–288

Abstract

Notholithocarpus densiflorus (tanoak) acorns continue to be a cultural food staple of American Indian tribes in the Klamath-Siskiyou bioregion. Tribal traditional knowledge of these trees includes changes with climate, fire regimes, and forest dynamics coupled with cultural adaptive stewardship practices. Recent prolonged drought, wildland fires, and other climatic and non-climatic threats and other stressors are affecting not only acorn production, but also the tribal cultures that depend upon tanoaks across the landscape to provide a range of cultural and ecosystem services. The objective of this research was to synthesize the available traditional and Western scientific data about N. densiflorus stewardship practices to promote acorn-food security. A cross-scaled research framework was developed to investigate which metrics and indicators are important for assessing changes in the condition of: N. densiflorus codominant forests across the landscape, tribal orchards, individual heritage trees, and in the quality of acorn food. Trial field experimental research approaches integrated tribal and Western scientific knowledge to determine the desired ecological conditions for N. densiflorus forests as well as the factors involved in acorn production and the tribal use of orchards, including tree-specific characteristics. This cross-scale, interdisciplinary, multiple-method research approach provides insights about climate and fire effects on acorn production. The range of methods includes aerial LiDAR to characterize forests, acorn gathering-site condition surveys, tribal acorn-foraging trials, and individual acorn-quality assessments. This information is being used to develop current tribal food-security-associated climate-adaptation strategies. Tribal knowledge and stewardship practices of the Karuk and Yurok Tribes of northwestern California are used as case-study examples.

Keywords

agroforestry, Karuk, Yurok, Klamath-Siskiyou, Western Klamath Restoration Partnership

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