Ethnomycology of Western Black Sea macrofungi

Edible macrofungi, which are collected from natural habitats or cultivated in Western Black Sea region are significant products for people from different working groups. These mushrooms are generally consumed and processed in the rural areas and converted to economic, social, and cultural values. The status of edible macrofungi in the Western Black Sea region from identification to marketing was investigated by an ethnomycological approach in this study. Main data were collected between April 2012 and December 2013. It was studied in 6 provinces (Bolu, Düzce, Karabük, Zonguldak, Bartın, and Kastamonu), 6 province centers, 17 counties, and 120 villages where mushroom gathering or production was practiced. A total of 70 field trips were undertaken to different local markets especially during mushroom gathering seasons. The sample of the research was composed of 475 forest villagers who agreed to participate in this research. The total of 2568 from these 475 households participated in the survey questionnaire. Survey questionnaires were prepared by consensus of the project group, and data were collected by a semi structured open-ended questionnaires through face to face interviews. The questionnaires were also applied to 10 randomly selected mushroom producers. Demographic, local, and economic data were evaluated using SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) Program Version 16.0. According to the results of the research, 33 species from 14 families marketed in the study area are the following: Russulaceae (7), Morchellaceae (5), Agaricaceae (4), Cantharellaceae (3), Tricholomataceae (3), Boletaceae (2), Gomphaceae (2), Amanitaceae (1), Gomphidiaceae (1), Hericiaceae (1), Hydnaceae (1), Lyophyllaceae (1), Marasmiaceae (1), and Pleurotaceae (1).