Porphyra Pacific Coast

porphyra abbottiae

Was part of a traditional coastal Southeast Asian, Korean, Japanese, and Chinese diet. It appears in soups, as flavouring for many dishes, and as the nori in sushi in Japan. It is a valuable food, and is grown in 'farms' to meet the demand. The value of the seaweed industry was $1.5 billion in Japan alone by 1998 (Zemke-White and Ohno, 1999). On the Pacific coast of North America, there may be 22 species of ) or other hard, immovable surfaces such as shells (Turner, 2003; Williams, 1979). It mostly grows in the intertidal zone, and is reported to be found from the polar (Alaska) to the South Temperate zones of coastal Pacific waters (Turner, 2003; Madlener, 1977). The location of Porphyra species in the intertidal zone makes it possible for both marine and terrestrial animals to get to it. Early First Nations hunters and gatherers would have encountered laver while they collected coastal species such as clams, octopi, limpets, and snails, and so at some point laver too was harvested and integrated into the traditional diet (Turner, 2003). One important source of information is Boas (1921), who wrote up ethnographic information collected from the Kwakwaka’wakw by George Hunt. Another, less detailed source, also on Kwakwaka’wakw practises, is found in Curtis (1915). Tomorrow I will talk in greater detail about the traditional use of Porphyra by the Kwakwaka’wakw! I simply love to learn. I can't be a superhero or save the world, but I'll try to help preserve traditional ecological knowledge for those who should have inherited it. I strongly believe that there is a lot of scientific wisdom carried in our stories, songs, and mythologies. I'm also interested in caring for the environment, and understanding how the integrity of our natural surroundings affects our health.

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