Specimen, ethnobotanical; seeds (Madia sativa), flat, brown. The main component of the specimen consists of achenes of Madia elegans D. Don ex Lindl., common madia, Asteraceae. Note: According to the treatment in Hickman, J. C., 1993, The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California, University of California Press, M. elegans is highly variable and intermediates blur distinction among extremes. Other items found and placed in gelatin capsules: 37 achenes of Ranunculus californicus Benth., California buttercup, Ranunculaceae 16 seeds of Trifolium obtusiflorum Hook. f., clammy clover, Fabaceae 13 florets of Vulpia microstachys (Nutt.) Munro, small fescue, Poaceae 4 achenes of Rigiopappus leptocladus A. Gray, wireweed, Asteraceae 6 seeds of Gilia spp., gilia, Polemoniaceae 3 achenes of Agoseris sp., agoseris, Asteraceae 2 florets of Poa secunda J. Presl, Sandberg bluegrass, Poaceae 2 seeds of Collinsia heterophylla G. Buist ex Graham, Chinese-houses, Plantaginaceae 1 seed of Phlox sp., phlox, Polemoniaceae 1 nutlet of Cryptantha spp., cryptantha, Boraginaceae 1 floret of Vulpia myuros (L.) C.C. Gmel., rat-tail fescue, Poaceae 1 seed of Trifolium ciliolatum Benth., foothill clover, Fabaceae 1 caryopsis of Melica sp., melicgrass, Poaceae 1 unknown
Donor:
Phoebe Apperson Hearst and Samuel A. Barrett
Collection place:
Colorado, Mariposa County, California
Verbatim coll. place:
California; Mariposa; Colorado
Culture or time period:
Eastern Miwok
Collector:
Samuel A. Barrett
Collection date:
1906
Taxon:
Ranunculus californicus
Object type:
ethnography
Object class:
Botanical samples
Function:
8.1 Foods
Accession date:
1906
Context of use:
Foodstuff.
Department:
Native California (archaeology and ethnology)
Comment:
These seeds were sampled and sent to the Department of Food and Agriculture for identification by Kat Anderson and others in her lab. She is the ethnoecologist at the National Plant Data Center, Natural Resources Conservation Service at the University of California. The seeds were returned in December of 2009.
Loans:
S1964-1965 #31: Science Center (Diablo Valley College) (1960–July 21, 1967), S1967-1968 #97: Junior Center of Art and Science (February 27, 1968–May 1, 1968), S1969-1970 #3: University of California, Berkeley (July 7, 1969–December 14, 1970), S1975-1976 #39: Department of Nutritional Sciences (UC Berkeley) (December 2, 1975–December 18, 1975), S1981-1982 #43: Department of Anthropology (UC Berkeley)/Glynn Llywelyn Isaac (February 19, 1982–April 13, 1982), S1987-1988 #41: University of North Carolina/Geirge R. Holcomb (March 29, 1988–July 6, 1990), and S2008-2009 #11: Seed Lab, Plant Pest Diagnostics Center (CA Dept. of Food and Agriculture)/Department of Agriculture, UC Davis (April 6, 2009–December 1, 2009)