The Domestication of Annatto (Bixa orellana) from Bixa urucurana in Amazonia

Economic Botany June 2015, Volume 69, Issue 2, pp 127–135 | Cite as Authors and affiliations Priscila Ambrósio MoreiraEmail authorJuliana LinsGabriel DequigiovanniElizabeth Ann VeaseyCharles R. Clement 1. 2. 3. Article First Online: 05 May 2015 8 Citations The Domestication of Annatto (Bixa orellana) from Bixa urucurana in Amazonia. Annatto (Bixa orellana) is an important colorant domesticated in the Neotropics, although it is not clear where or from which wild populations. We reviewed the available biological, archaeological, and ethnographic information about annatto, and integrated this with our recent ethnobotanical observations of cultivated and non–cultivated populations in order to evaluate the hypothesis that what is classified as Bixa urucurana is the wild ancestor of cultivated annatto, Bixa orellana. Most B. urucurana populations we found in Amazonia occurred in open forests or anthropogenic landscapes, although never cultivated, and always associated with riparian environments. While cultivated annatto always produces abundant pigment, B. urucurana populations that we observed contained variable amounts of pigment, from very little to nearly the amount of cultivated annatto, suggesting gene flow from cultivated to non–cultivated. Bixa urucurana has indehiscent fruits, which indicate changes in dehiscence during annatto domestication, a notable feature rarely found in other tree species. Local residents identified the non–cultivated populations as wild annatto (urucum bravo), and they emphasized their smaller fruits with less pigment, their spontaneous regeneration, their non–use, and that they hybridize with cultivated annatto. Ethnography identified the symbolic importance of annatto, but an explicit mention of origin only comes from southern Amazonia. Although the oldest annatto archaeological record came from the Caribbean, domestication occurred in northern South America, since B. urucurana does not occur in the Caribbean. Traditional ecological knowledge and morphology identified the close relationship between B. urucurana (never cultivated) and B. orellana (always cultivated). Evidence reported here strongly supports Kuntze’s (1925) suggestion that Bixa urucurana Willd. is a variety of B. orellana L., thus identifying the wild ancestor of cultivated annatto. Key words Ethnobotany taxonomy archaeology domestication syndrome. A domesticação do urucum (Bixa orellana) a partir de Bixa urucurana na Amazônia. Urucum (Bixa orellana) é um importante corante domesticado na região Neotropical, mas não é claro onde ou a partir de quais populações silvestres. Nós revisamos as informações biológicas, arqueológicas e etnográficas disponíveis sobre urucum, e integramos com nossas recentes observações etnobotânicas de populações cultivadas e não cultivadas com o objetivo de avaliar a hipótese de que o que é classificado como Bixa urucurana seja o ancestral silvestre do urucum cultivado, Bixa orellana. A maioria das populações de Bixa urucurana que encontramos na Amazônia foi encontrada em florestas abertas, ambientes antropogênicos, embora nunca cultivadas, e sempre associadas com ambientes ripários. Enquanto o urucum cultivado sempre produz pigmento em abundância, as populações de B. urucurana que observamos continham quantidades variáveis de pigmento, desde muito pouco até quantidade próxima à produzida pelo urucum cultivado, sugerindo fluxo gênico de populações cultivadas para não cultivadas. Bixa urucurana possui frutos indeiscentes, o que indica mudanças na deiscência ao longo do processo de domesticação do urucum, uma característica notável e raramente encontrada em outras espécies arbóreas. Populações locais identificaram as populações não cultivadas como “urucum bravo”, e enfatizaram seus frutos menores e com menos pigmentação, sua regeneração espontânea, seu não uso e a possibilidade de hibridizar com o urucum cultivado. Registros etnográficos identificaram a importância simbólica do urucum, mas uma menção explícita de origem vem somente do sul da Amazônia. Embora o registro arqueológico mais antigo do urucum esteja no Caribe, a domesticação ocorreu no Norte da América do Sul, uma vez que B. urucurana não ocorre no Caribe. Conhecimento ecológico tradicional e as informações biológicas disponíveis apoiam a proximidade entre B. urucurana (nunca cultivado) e B. orellana (sempre cultivado). As evidências aqui relatadas apoiam fortemente a sugestão de Kuntze (1925), de que Bixa urucurana Willd. seja uma variedade de B. orellana L., identificando, portanto, o ancestral silvestre do urucum cultivado. This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access. Notes Acknowledgements We thank numerous families along the main rivers of Amazonia for information and field support; CT–Amazonia, proc. no. 575588/2008–0, and FAPESP, proc. no. 2012/08307–5, for primary financial support; the Instituto de Desenvolvimento Agropecuário e Florestal Sustentável do Amazonas (IDAM) in Amazonas and the Empresa de Assistência Técnica e Rural (EMATER) in Pará and Rondônia for field support; PAM thanks CNPq for a doctoral scholarship, JL thanks CNPq for a masters scholarship, GD thanks FAPESP for a doctoral scholarship, and EAV and CRC thank CNPq for research fellowships. 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Econ Bot (2015) 69: 127. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12231-015-9304-0 DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/s12231-015-9304-0 Publisher Name Springer US Print ISSN 0013-0001 Online ISSN 1874-9364