scholarly journals Ritual consumption of psychoactive fungi and plants in ancestral Costa Rica

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-197 ◽  
Author(s):  
José M. Rodríguez Arce ◽  
Marco A. Arce cerdas
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Central America ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Psychoactive Drug ◽  
Morning Glory ◽  
Cultural Significance ◽  
Psychoactive Substances ◽  
The Past ◽  
Southern Central ◽  
Ancient Times

Not much is known from an ethnohistorical perspective about the use of psychoactive substances in southern Central America; it is mainly through the archeological record that their presence in the past has been inferred. This article reviews evidence for the use of mind-altering plants and mushrooms in the societies that inhabited the current Costa Rican territory during pre-Columbian times, and explores the cultural significance of this activity. Historical, ethnographic, archeological, and paleobotanical information was examined and integrated with the data obtained from the analysis of 46 artifacts with a presumed linkage to psychoactive drug use that were selected from an exhaustive search in the collections of the Museums of the Central Bank of Costa Rica and the National Museum of Costa Rica. Preliminary results suggest the consumption of tobacco (Nicotianaspp. L.), morning glory (Ipomoeaspp. L.),cohoba[Anadenanthera peregrina(L.) Speg.], psychedelic fungi [Amanita muscaria(L.) Lam. andPsilocybe(Fr.) P. Kumm. species], as well as various alcoholic and invigorating beverages was present in ancient times. This use was likely connected to shamanistic healing practices, social–ceremonial events, and the ritual activities of people who held positions of religious and political importance within society.

scholarly journals First record of Clay-colored Sparrow (Spizella pallida Swainson, 1832) (Aves: Emberizidae) in Costa Rica

Check List ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1592
Author(s):  
Steven Aguilar ◽  
Julio E. Sánchez ◽  
Daniel Martínez
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Central America ◽  
First Record ◽  
Adult Bird ◽  
Southern Central ◽  
Wintering Range

We present the first record of the Clay-colored Sparrow (Spizella pallida) in Costa Rica. An adult bird was recorded ca. 900 Km south of its common wintering range. This represents the first record of the species for the country and for southern Central America.

Twenty-five new species of Costa Rican Limacodidae (Lepidoptera: Zygaenoidea)

Zootaxa ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 701 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARC E. EPSTEIN ◽  
JORGE F. CORRALES
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
South America ◽  
Central America ◽  
New Taxa ◽  
Abdominal Segment ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Mexican Species

Twenty-five new species of neotropical Limacodidae, primarily from Central America, are described. The majority of these species (n=15) are from Parasa and Natada generic complexes, both presently known to contain only spiny caterpillars. In the Parasa complex, they include: Parasa figueresi, new species, Parasa joanae, new species, Parasa sandrae, new species, Parasa shirleyae, new species, Euclea mesoamericana, new species, Euclea zurquicola, new species, Euclea microcippus, new species, Euclea costaricana, new species, Euclea gajentaani, new species, Euclea josepsi, new species, Talima beckeri, new species, Talima weissi, new species, and Talima erojasi, new species. In the Natada complex, two new taxa are Natada delgadoi, new species, and Natada varablancana, new species. In a generic complex with hairy caterpillars, the Phobetron complex, six new taxa are: Phobetron guzmanae, new species, Isochaetes dwagsi, new species, Isochaetes kenjii, new species, Isochaetes heevansi, new species, Isochaetes tapantiensis, new species, and Vipsophobetron davisi, new species. In the Prolimacodes and Perola complexes, caterpillars are known to be smooth. New species in the Prolimacodes complex are Prolimacodes montanus, new species, and Dichromapteryx saborioi, new species, while the Perola complex includes Perola aenea, new species, and Epiperola browni, new species. Euclea microcippus, Parasa sandrae and Vipsophobetron davisi are the smallest species known to occur in their genera. Euclea mesoamericana and Parasa figueresi are relatively common in collections but have been mistakenly grouped with Euclea cippus (Cramer) and Parasa schausi Dyar, respectively. Each was reported from both Central and South America, but is now considered to be limited to South America. Talima weissi is closely related to the Mexican species T. assimilis (Dyar), sharing both a detachable clump of hairs on 8 th abdominal segment in males and large ductus seminalis, which hold the hairs, in females. Larval descriptions or hostplants are presented for P. sandrae, P. joanae, E. mesoamericana, E. gajentaani, T. beckeri, T. weissi, I. dwagsi, I. kenjii, I. heevansi, and V. davisi. Euclea zurquicola, E. josepsi, T. erojasi, N. delgadoi, N. varablancana, P. guzmanae, I. tapantiensis, and E. browni are known from only one locality, each in Costa Rica, while the last four are known only from unique specimens.

scholarly journals A Trionychidae (Reptilia: Testudines, Cryptodira) from the Pliocene of Costa Rica, Southern Central America

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
César Laurito ◽  
Ana Lucía Valerio Z. ◽  
Luis Diego Gómez P. ◽  
Jim I. Mead ◽  
Eduardo Antonio Pérez G. ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Central America ◽  
Southern Central

Conspicuous Consumption in Ancient Costa Rica and Panama

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Palumbo
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Central America ◽  
Conspicuous Consumption ◽  
Political Landscape ◽  
Political Consolidation ◽  
Southern Central ◽  
Mortuary Art

This chapter considers the mechanisms by which sumptuary art was deposited in mortuary contexts across southern Central America. Rather than indicating elite dominance, it is argued that the production and procurement of mortuary art promoted a factionalized political landscape. The burial of staggering quantities of goods may be interpreted as deflationary attempts to limit the capital available to rivals. Such practices may have promoted a zeitgeist of conspicuous consumption that frustrated attempts at further political consolidation in the Isthmus.

Child Health and the 1987 Nobel Peace Prize

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1988 ◽  
Vol 81 (5) ◽  
pp. 729-730
Author(s):  
LARS Å. HANSON
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Child Health ◽  
Central America ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Nobel Peace Prize ◽  
Nobel Committee ◽  
Almost All

The Nobel Peace Prize for 1987 was awarded to Dr Oscar Arias, President of Costa Rica. Almost all of the comments referring to this have related to Dr Arias' peace plan for Central America. This important peace plan was probably a significant factor for the Nobel Committee but not the only argument for awarding the prize to the foremost representative of the remarkable country of Costa Rica. I proposed the nomination of Dr Arias for the last 5 years and a major reason was his accomplishments in Costa Rican child health. Costa Rica is located between Panama and Nicaragua.

scholarly journals A new species of Eurystyles (Orchidaceae: Spiranthinae) from Costa Rica

2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-68
Author(s):  
D. Bogarín
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
Central America ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Habitat Ecology ◽  
A New Species

Eurystyles comprises about 23 species ranging from Mexico to northern Argentina. Six species are recognized in Mexico and Central America and three in Costa Rica. A new species, named E. uxoris, is here described and illustrated based on Costa Rican material. The species is similar to Eurystyles auriculata and E. standleyi, however, it differs by the smaller plants up to 3 cm tall, smaller leaves of less than 1.6 cm long, flowers with brown dorsal sepal and brown lip apex, petals callose or thickened at apex, and a pandurate lip. Information about distribution, habitat, ecology, etymology and phenology of the newspecies is provided. An updated key to the Costa Rican species of Eurystyles is presented.

scholarly journals Efectos de aptitud combinatoria general e identificación de híbridos triples de maíz (Zea mays L.) grano blanco. Programa regional de maís (PRM), 1991

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 71
Author(s):  
Mario Fuentes ◽  
José Luis Quemé ◽  
Carlos Pérez
Keyword(s):  
Zea Mays ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
El Salvador ◽  
Central America ◽  
Combining Ability ◽  
Zea Mays L ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
White Grain

The breeding of triple crosses with the combination of 24 white grain lines and four elite simple crosses, used as females in the breeding of the hybrids HB-83M, H-5, H-27 and DC-43 in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Costa Rica, respectively, were evaluated in ten localities in Central America to determine the overall combining ability OCA of the germplasm developed by the Regional Corn Project. The results show an out standing superiority in the perfomance of the new hybrids bred, compared to the controls HB-83, H-5, H-27, HC-43, and the testers used. The highest yields were obtained at the Costa Rican localities with the hybrid 1188 x 1178 with 8.6 t/ha, and overyielded the control HC-43 by 35%. The OCA estimated identified 9 superior lines, among which the 1178, 1107, and 1150 stand out with values of 6,2, 6,1 and 6,0 t/ha, derived from the Pool 24 and the Population 25 from CYMMYT.

scholarly journals First Costa Rican record of Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva, Gmelin, 1789) (Aves: Charadriidae)

Check List ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 166
Author(s):  
Julio E. Sánchez ◽  
Johan Fernández Ramírez ◽  
César Sánchez
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Central America ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Golden Plover

Here we report on the first observation of Pacific Golden Plover in Central America, from Costa Rica. An individual in winter plumage was observed on salts ponds along with several other roosting waders

The Costa Rican Initiative in Central America

1987 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 457-464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence Whitehead
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Central America ◽  
Private Property ◽  
Prima Facie ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Limited Capacity ◽  
San Jose ◽  
Illegal Activity ◽  
The Will ◽  
The Government

COSTA RICA SHAKES TWO HUNDRED MILES OF underpopulated border with Nicaragua. It has only the most limited capacity to regulate the flow of either weapons into, or refugees out of, the adjacent territory. The absence of a professional army is noteworthy (although it should not be overstated — there are some well armed, but unprofessionally led, defence forces, and the police are quite militarized). What requires emphasis is less the scarcity of soldiers than the abundance of lawyers, and the power of their profession. Last year, for example, tension built up between Managua and San José, because it was revealed that an airstrip in northern Costa Rica had been used to resupply the 'contras' in violation of Costa Rica's proclaimed policy of neutrality. The Sandinistas interpreted this as yet another proof of Costa Rican duplicity and of San José's subordination to the will of the paymasters in Washington. Nicaraguans (of all ideological persuasions) find it almost impossible to accept the Costa Rican version of this episode, which points out that the government has no power to interfere with the use of private property unless a prima facie case exists of illegal activity.

scholarly journals Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios of surface food residues in pre-Columbian ceramics from the southern Pacific of Costa Rica as evidence of prehistoric human diets

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 89-97
Author(s):  
Maureen Sánchez P. ◽  
Sally P. Horn ◽  
Chad Steven Lane
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Pollen Grains ◽  
Isotopic Analysis ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Cultivated Plants ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Pacific Region ◽  
The Past ◽  
Food Residues

Introduction: to understand and interpret the consumption of plants and animals by humans in the past requires the investigation of different lines of evidence. Identifiable macroscopic remains of plants and animals, for example seeds and bones, are frequently found at archaeological sites and provide key data on food resources. Their analysis is complemented by the study of pollen grains or phytoliths of cultivated plants within archaeological horizons or in sediment cores recovered from lakes and wetlands near archaeological sites. Another important source of information on human diets in the past consists of food residues preserved in or on artefacts excavated from archaeological sites. Objective: to examine food residues in archaeological pottery from coastal and interior sites in the southern Pacific region of Costa Rica. Methods: we focus on isotopic analysis of carbonized food residues preserved on the inner surfaces of ceramic pots, plates, and other ceramic pieces from archaeological excavations in the intermediate zone (elevations 500-1500m) and coastal zone of the southern Pacific region of Costa Rica. Isotopic analysis of surface food residues on pottery relies on the fact that stable isotopes of carbon (12C and 13C) and nitrogen (14N and 15N) in foods differ based on the photosynthetic pathway of plants and on trophic level. Results: in our analysis of material from twelve sites we found evidence of diets with high amounts of C4 plants (likely maize), legumes, herbivores, and mixtures, but we did not find robust evidence of food residues with isotopic signatures characteristic of reef animals and mollusks, even though some sites are shell mounds. Conclusion: our research represents one of the first studies of surface food residues from Costa Rican pottery, and indicates the potential for studies of this type to strengthen understanding of indigenous subsistence patterns through time and across Costa Rican archaeological regions.

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