Ethnohistorical descriptions of how and why bayoo fruit was processed



There are numerous accounts of European explorers (e.g. members of Vlamingh’s crew 1697, Lieutenant Commander Milius’s crew 1801 who formed part of the Baudin expedition, Matthew Flinders’ party 1802, Captain Fremantle’s party 1829 and Lieutenant George Grey’s men 1839) all having suffered the ill-effects of cycad nut consumption in southwestern Australia. The accounts are often vague and difficult to interpret, although the nuts were generally found in the vicinity of Aboriginal camp sites, so it was assumed that the local indigenous inhabitants must have eaten them. The chestnut-resembling size and appearance of de-fleshed Macrozamia nuts would have been too great a temptation to the hungry, unsuspecting European explorer. In most cases they were consuming the whole nut (including the kernel) not just the sarcotesta. There was a deeply entrenched colonial belief (promoted by Moore 1835 and Grey 1840, 1841) that the sarcotesta required detoxification through indigenous processing before it was edible. This assumption about ripe Macrozamia sarcotesta being toxic to humans unless having undergone extensive indigenous processing is still held to this day (see Meagher 1974; Smith 1982, 1992, 1999; Bindon 1996:173 and Asmussen 2011, 2012).

In this paper we do not question the toxicity of the de-fleshed Macrozamia seed (or “nut” as it is often called) for this has been scientifically well-established to contain harmful substances in particular cycasin and macrozamin and it is well known that Aboriginal people in Eastern Australia always carefully processed the seeds using methods such as water-leaching, ageing and roasting prior to consuming the starchy kernel or endosperm.

What we question is the view that has been promoted since the early colonial period (e.g. Grey 1840 and Moore 1842) and continues to this day in the archaeological, ethnobotanical and ethnographic literature that Noongar people processed the sarcotesta primarily for detoxification purposes. However, not all the early recorders mention sarcotesta toxicity as the reason for indigenous processing as the following review of the early literature shows.

As early as 1831 George Fletcher Moore writes:

‘The Zamia produces a sort of nut which the natives eat after considerable preparation by steeping in water but without this process it is said to be poisonous….’ (Moore 1831 in Cameron 2006: 14) 

Moore’s original spelling of baio (1835) changes to by-yu (1842) in agreement with George Grey’s spelling:

‘by-yu – The fruit of the zamia tree. This in its natural state is poisonous; but the natives, who are very fond of it, deprive it of its injurious qualities by soaking it in water for a few days, and then burying it in sand, where it is left until it is nearly dry, and is then fit to eat. They usually roast it, when it possesses a flavour not unlike a mealy chestnut; it is in full season in the month of May. It is almost the only thing at all approaching to a fruit which the country produces.’ (Moore 1842:24). 

Grey (1841) in his description of by-yu emphasises that:

Europeans who are not acquainted with this mode of preparing the nut, the stones of which they find lying about the fireplaces of the natives, are frequently tempted to eat it in its natural state, but they invariably pay a severe penalty for the mistake.’ (Grey 1841: 295) 

Salvado (1851 in Stormon 1977: 161) describes the Zamia nut or poio as having “no pulp” and comments:

‘The shell is red, and of fine texture, with no pulp. In order to make them fit for eating, the natives bury the flower [cone] together with the nuts for a certain time a couple of feet deep in the ground. The heat of the earth makes them swell as if to germinate a new plant, and they are then cooked on hot coals to form a substantial food with a pleasant taste.’

Salvado (1851 in Stormon 1977: 213) describes the sarcotesta of Macrozamia fraseri (or what he refers to as Encephalartos spiralis) as becoming “pulpy” after processing:

‘the very thin scarlet shell, which becomes pulpy only when properly treated for eating’ (Salvado 1851 in Stormon 1977: 213).

Our own experiments demonstrated that the sarcotesta increases its pulpiness after processing. 

Drummond (1839) refers to the “red-coloured arillus” as a favourite food of the natives.’ He writes:

‘…the fruit of the female palm is like a large pineapple. It contains many nuts about an inch long, covered with a red coloured arillus, which is a favourite food of the natives. To prepare the nuts and arillus for use, they steep them in water or bury them in the earth for some weeks, where they undergo a sort of fermentation and become wholesome food; when eaten without this preparation, they produce violent vomiting and other dangerous symptoms.’ (June 1839, in his Letter to Sir William Jackson Hooker, see p.18)

In 1842 Drummond observed that the large female “Zamia” cones:

‘contain numerous nuts, larger than a chestnut, and when ripe, they are covered with a beautiful red covering generally about two lines thick; this covering is a favourite food of the natives – they call the nuts “boyas.” Before they use the red covering of the nuts as food, they bury them in the ground for several weeks, or steep them in water, which has the same effect in a shorter time; when eaten without that preparation, they cause violent vomiting, and other distressing symptoms. The nuts, when deprived of their red covering, are not used by the natives as food (Drummond 1842 Letter No. 8, 28th September 1842). 

Moore (1835), Drummond (1839) and Grey (1841, Vol 2: 296-297) all assume that indigenous processing of the Zamia nut took place to detoxify the pulp:

‘The native women collect the nuts from the palms [Macrozamia] in the month of March, and having placed them in some shallow pool of water, they leave them to soak for several days. When they have ascertained that the by-yu has been immersed in water for a sufficient time, they dig, in a dry sandy place, holes which they call mor-dak; these holes are about the depth that a person’s arms can reach, and one foot in diameter; they line them with rushes, and fill them up with the nuts, over which they sprinkle a little sand, and then cover the holes nicely over with the tops of the grass-tree; in about a fortnight the pulp which encases the nut becomes quite dry, and it is then fit to eat, but if eaten before that it produces the effects already described. The natives eat this pulp both raw [that is, processed but not roasted] and roasted; in the latter state they taste quite as well as a chestnut.’ (Grey 1841, Vol 2: 296)

Moore (1835) refers to the ‘fleshy skin’ as poisonous and Grey (1841: 295) states that the Aborigines themselves considered the pulp of the nut as ‘a rank poison.’ However, when Grey tried to inquire as to their reasons for processing it and the origin of this tradition, he could not get an answer that satisfied him. He states:

‘I have taken some trouble to ascertain if any traditional notion exists amongst the natives, which would in any way account for their having first obtained a knowledge of the means by which they could render the deleterious pulp of the Zamia nut a useful article of food; but in this, as in all other similar instances, they are very unwilling to confess their ignorance of a thing, and rather than do so, will often invent a tradition.’

It would seem that Grey did not understand their cultural explanation for why the by-yu was fermented. We would suspect that their explanation involved mythological metaphor rather than a scientific explanation that Grey was seeking. His view about the pulp being highly toxic and injurious to health may have derived from the experience of his own men and earlier explorer accounts combined with the popular colonial hearsay of the time. Perhaps his indigenous informants were not providing him with the information that he wanted to hear. Could we assume that his informants were providing him with an explanation that did not relate in any way to the extraction of toxins? It would seem that Grey (1841) trivialises what they are telling him, by pointing out to his readers ‘Hence many intelligent persons have raised most absurd theories, and have committed lamentable errors.’ In retrospect does Grey’s comment reflect on his own assumptions? We think that Grey’s informants may have been trying to explain to him that by-yu fermentation improved its taste and food value.

Bunbury (1836) and Backhouse (1843) do not mention toxicity at all in their accounts of bayoo processing

We find it surprising that Bunbury (1836) and Backhouse (1843) who would have been well-acquainted with the colonial comment of the time about the toxicity of this indigenous food without proper processing, do not mention detoxification as a reason for processing the sarcotesta prior to its ingestion.

Bunbury (1836) compares the two methods of indigenous processing and states:

‘The quickest method of ripening the Bayoo nuts is to bury them in a hole of water at the edge of a swamp or river when they become fit to eat in a few days but in this way they acquire a very strong bad smell & unpleasant taste, so I recommend all who are willing to wait a month for such delicacies, to bury them in the dry ground rather than in water.’ (Bunbury 1836 in Cameron and Barnes 2014:136)

Backhouse (1843) does not mention detoxification as a reason for processing Macrozamia sarcotesta but states with reference to the Perth area that:

‘…the Natives bury, or macerate, the nuts, till the rinds become half decomposed, in which state they eat the rind, rejecting the kernel; but in N.S.W., they pound and macerate the kernels, and then roast and eat, the rough paste.’ (1843:542).

Is Macrozamia sarcotesta toxic?

There are contradictions in the literature regarding the question of whether the sarcotesta of Macrozamia is toxic or not.9  Ladd (1993) in a one-off obscure study states that the sarcotesta of Macrozamia riedlei is ten times more toxic than the endosperm – a view that totally contradicts a 1938 study by the WA Government Chemical laboratories which showed the endosperm or kernel of Macrozamia fraseri to be highly toxic but the sarcotesta to be non-toxic.

We have long been confounded by Ladd’s (1993) results which not only contradict the WA Government Chemical laboratory findings but also defy cultural logic. Why would Noongar people eat the sarcotesta if it was so highly toxic and then discard the starchy kernel which according to Ladd’s study is less toxic? Asmussen (2011) seems to have accepted Ladd’s findings without question and formulates her discussion of Noongar processing on this premise. In doing this she further endorses the idea promoted by the early colonial writers, such as Grey (1840) and Moore (1842), that the sarcotesta of Macrozamia was processed by Noongar people for detoxification purposes. Asmussen states with reference to Ladd’s study:

‘Ladd et al.’s (1993: 39) research on the poisonous macrozamin content of a range of cycad species indicates that the Noongar people utilized the most toxic part of M. riedlei seeds, and discarded the least toxic part. The sarcotesta of M. riedlei contains a relatively high amount of macrozamin at 3.88% of fresh weight, comparable to that found in the kernels of M. miquelii and M. moorei (F. Muell)….’ (Asmussen 2011: 153).

Asmussen (2011) asks the same question that we have long puzzled over and asked ourselves, ever since reading Ladd’s study results:’

‘Why detoxify and consume the sarcotesta, which is the most toxic part of the resource?’ (Asmussen 2011:153) 

If indeed the sarcotesta of Macrozamia reidlei is ten times more toxic than the endosperm, why has the ChemCentre WA not updated their records?

The ChemCentre was not aware of Macrozamia sarcotesta being toxic when we first asked them about it in 2008. In our own privately funded experiments we fed two white rats a diet of raw Macrozamia sarcotesta mixed with banana over a ten day period. Our results, like those of the Government Chemical Laboratories in 1938 which tested raw sarcotesta on guinea pigs, showed no adverse results. If anything our white rats thrived on this diet and looked very healthy. See our paper detailing the results of tests conducted by the Chem Centre WA on the nutritional value of the sarcotesta before and processing here.

This is the first time that processed Macrozamia sarcotesta has been chemically tested for its food value. Previous testing of Macrozamia sarcotesta that was carried out in 1938 and 1939 by the Chemical Branch of the Mines Department assessed the food value of unprocessed sarcotesta. These tests determined that only the seeds were poisonous.

Cycad seed sarcotesta toxicity has been much debated in the literature.10 A compelling study by Hall and Walter (2014) which chemically tested the sarcotesta of Macrozamia miquelii from Eastern Australia found it to be non-toxic. They found no cycasin present in the “brightly coloured fleshy “fruit” of sarcotesta” and they proposed that the non-toxic Macrozamia sarcotesta was probably an ancient adaptation that served as ‘a reward for cycad seed dispersal fauna’ (2014: 860).

We believe that the bright red sarcotesta of Macrozamia fruit from southwestern Australia when ripe is also non-toxic and similarly functions as a “reward” for bird and animal seed dispersers. Why would a plant poison its own seed dispersal agents on which it relies for survival?

Hall and Walter (2013) write:

Globally, cycads are characterized by large, heavy seeds with an outermost fleshy layer (the sarcotesta) that on ripening develops vibrant colors…. Cycad seeds contain unique toxic compounds such as cycasin and macrozamin … However, the sarcotesta layer appears to be free of these poisonous compounds (Hall, 2011).’ (Walter and Hall 2013: 1127)

Hall and Walter’s (2014) further analysis of the ripe sarcotesta of cycads from Eastern Australia, including Macrozamia miquelii, showed that

“There is Toxic Cycasin in the Seeds of Cycads, but Not Their Sarcotesta “Fruit” ‘(Hall and Walter 2014: 862)

This is consistent with the findings of the Chemical Branch of the Mines Department (1938-1939) which, as already noted above, found that only the seeds of Macrozamia fraseri were poisonous.

Burbidge and Whelan (1982: 66) from animal studies and personal communication with J.R. Cannon support the idea that the sarcotesta of Macrozamia riedlei is non-toxic. They note that:

‘In Macrozamia seeds, the poison is confined to inside the stony layer (J. R. Cannon, pers. comm.)

Ripeness of the bayoo fruit

It is our contention that the sarcotesta of Macrozamia species from southwestern Australian (M. fraseri, M. reidlei and M. dyeri) is non-toxic at the time of full physiological ripeness when the seeds are bright red coloured, dehiscing from the female cone and releasing a distinctive odour. Prior to this stage it is highly possible that the unripe sarcotesta contains toxins as part of the seed’s chemical armoury against herbivore predators, pests and pathogens. When the cone starts to disintegrate and the seeds are exposed to natural elements of the external environment, such as sunlight (and possibly other factors such as moisture and humidity) we maintain that any toxins, if present, are reduced or eliminated. From our own observations sunlight appears to be an essential ingredient in the ripening process.

We cannot emphasise enough the importance of physiological ripeness when it comes to harvesting Noongar plant foods, most especially the bayoo. During the Macrozamia seeding season Noongar people were constantly aware of the different birds and animals that were drawn into the ecological food chain of predation on the ripening fruit. These were viewed as indicators that the fruit was ripe and ready for collecting and processing. The traditional Noongar could easily locate patches of ripening bayoo from a distance by the sight of hovering or circling birds of prey, such as the brown hawk (kargyne) or whistling kite (jandoo). These iconic avian predators were attracted to a rich food chain of smaller birds, reptiles, insects and marsupials that were magnetically attracted to the ripe Macrozamia fruit by its odour and bright red colour. Humans too were part of this complex food chain.

We are writing a paper soon to be uploaded to this website on the use by Noongar people of birds and animals as ecological indicators of Macrozamia fruit ripeness – signifying the readiness of this important seasonal resource for human harvest and processing.

Archaeological Evidence of Macrozamia pits 

The earliest archaeological evidence of indigenous Macrozamia seed sarcotesta pit processing in Australia derives from southwestern Australia where Smith (1982) located ancient Macrozamia kernels in association with Xanthorrhoea leaf bases in a shallow 20cm deep pit that she suggests may have been used for water-leaching or fermentation purposes. This ancient evidence of Macrozamia pit processing at Cheetup Rockshelter in the Esperance region which dates back approximately 13,000 years BP during the late Pleistocene (Smith 1982, 1996, 1999) predates by about 9000 years the earliest archaeological records for cycad seed processing in Northern and Eastern Australia.10

Fermentation or leaching of Macrozamia fruit may have occurred within a shallow lined pit; however, based on our own reconstructive processing experiments, we found that shallow pits attracted predation from insects (such as weevils) and domestic rats. We would suggest that the deeper pits – about an “arm’s length” depth as recorded by Grey (1840, 1841) – would have afforded a number of advantages including a constant anaerobic and thermogenic environment for fermentation to occur as well as affording protection against insect and small burrowing-animal predation. We would suggest that when Grey (1840, 1841) records the depth (mordak) as an “arm’s length,” he is referring to a woman’s arm length (possibly about 50-60cm) for women were responsible for digging using their wannas. Depth of pit was important to protect the fermenting fruit from human and non-human predators. The soil digging habits of the kwenda (short nosed bandicoot) – which according to some Elders we consulted is a sarcotesta eater – may explain why fermentation pits were deep – to prevent the valuable stores of fat-rich food from being raided by digging marsupials.

Ownership rights over by-yu fruit

We are told that Grey’s indigenous guide Kaiber discovered four “holes” of stored Zamia nuts known as by-yu and that he came to request ‘permission’ from Grey ‘to steal them’ (1841, Vol 2: 64). Grey translates Kaiber’s comments as follows:

’14th April – If we take all, this people will be angered greatly; they will say, ‘What thief has stolen here: track his footsteps, spear him through the heart; wherefore has he stolen our hidden food?’ But is we take what is buried in one hole, they will say – ‘Hungry people have been here; they were very empty, and now their bellies are full; they may be sorcerers; now they will not eat us as we sleep’ (Grey 1841, Vol 2: 64-65).

‘Good- it is good Kaiber,” I replied; “come with me, and we will rob one hole;” and accordingly we went and took the contents of one, leaving three others undisturbed. I brought back these nuts to the men, and we shared them amongst us.’ (Grey 1841, Vol 2: 65). 

Grey (1840: 48), referring to the King George Sound area, records gwin-een as ‘the common stock of food.’

The name quinene or quinine was first recorded for this food in 1830 by Captain Collet Barker who was told by his Aboriginal guide and informant Mokare that:

‘the provision of Quinene is made by everyone, but is often stolen. Generally speaking the owners are not sulky at this, it not being considered so sacred a property as Spears, Kangaroo, Wallabi,etc, or even grass trees, but he recollects hearing of one man speared on account of it.’ 

Bunbury (1836 in Cameron 2014:136), when exploring the Perth to Pinjarra region, refers to the bayoo:

‘The Zamia plants are considered private property by the natives who do not consider it right to gather Bayoo belonging to others, though they do not scruple to catch and eat any animals, birds or reptiles, they may meet with in their passage through the lands or buggia [i.e. boodjor, land, country] of other tribes. ‘

What Bunbury did not realise when making these statements was that he was demonstrating the difference between certain carefully managed bio-cultural resources (such as the Zamia, grass tree, kangaroo and wallabi) whereas the others were a composite of common property.

The quinine trade

Ethel Hassell, who was recording her observations of Aboriginal culture in the 1880’s at Jerramongup, refers to the trading of processed Macrozamia sarcotesta known as quinine from the coast to inland areas where the Macrozamia did not grow. She gives little detail on the trading relationship that took place, other than a description of how the quinine was prepared. She comments that:

‘For trading, the natives take the stone out, which are never eaten, as they retain the poison, and string the fruit on rushes. They never lose their red colour or shiny look, and keep good for quite a long time (Hassell 1974: 25).

Stringing the fruit on rushes would have facilitated portability, preservation and storage of this much coveted food. With our own reconstructive experiments we found that the processed and preserved sarcotesta fruit retained its colour, odour and most of its food value after being kept for 12 months in a dry, airtight environment (see photo below). Tests conducted by the ChemCentre WA verified its high food value after 12 months. See forthcoming paper soon to be uploaded to this website.

It is a pity that Hassell does not provide any further details on this unique trade and we wonder if it only occurred in the southern region? Also, what did the inland Wheelman people provide in exchange for this relished comestible from the coast? What were the trading relationships between these groups and how was this surplus of Macrozamia sarcotesta obtained? Was there some form of active cultivation taking place? Did this preserved oily fruit have a ritual value?

The taste of processed bayoo



We could find no agreement in the ethnohistorical literature on the taste of the fermented sarcotesta of Macrozamia. Whether this was due to a reluctance to taste it for fear of its toxicity or its unfamiliar and unappetising appeal to the Western palate is unclear. In 1835 Moore describes the flavour as:

‘something like that of medlar, or the taste of old cheese. Some of our party appeared to relish it but afterwards complained of its effects.’ (Moore 1835 in Schoobert 2005: 424)

At a later date Moore (1842: 23-24) describes the taste after being roasted as having ‘a flavour not unlike a mealy chestnut.’ This somewhat mirrors Grey’s description in his exploration journal (1841, Vol.2: 296) a year earlier where he comments that it tastes after roasting ‘quite as well as a chestnut.’ (Grey 1841, Vol 2: 296). 

Bunbury (1836: 136) does not comment on taste, except to point out that the underground fermented bayoo have a much better taste than those soaked in water for only ‘a few days’ for the latter ‘acquire a very strong bad smell & unpleasant taste.’

Salvado (1851 in Stormon 1977: 161) describes poio as “pleasant” tasting:

‘…they are then cooked on hot coals to form a substantial food with a pleasant taste.’ 

Drummond (1862: 28), on the other hand, states:

‘To me it was disgusting, the taste being rancid, and resembling train oil’ 

Hammond (1933:28) describes boyoo after soaking in salt water as resembling ‘a tomato in colour and taste.’ 

Hassell (1975: 25) describes the taste and texture of quinine after being buried for a prolonged period as

‘soft and resembles a date but tastes very like an olive.’ 

Lyon (1833 in Green 1979: 168) describes a tasty treat in the form of a zamia fruit and frog cake. He states:

‘When the men return to the camp at night they are presented each with a cake by the women, apparently made of the fruit of the zamia and the flesh of frogs.‘

We suspect this cake was an oily mixture of the treated fruit of zamia squeezed together using the tips of the fingers with cooked frog meat.

The processed sarcotesta was either eaten raw or roasted. However, based on our own experience one has to be careful when cooking the sarcotesta not to lose the valuable oil. When one of us (Ken Macintyre) tasted processed (but unroasted) sarcotesta, he said:

It was a very rich and oily taste experience. It had the aroma of over-ripe Macrozamia fruit and the oily taste coated my palate after swallowing. It was not unlike my first experience tasting olive oil. To the Western palate Macrozamia sarcotesta would in my opinion be an acquired taste.’ (Ken Macintyre 2011).

Roasted Macrozamia sarcotesta

 “Oiliness’ best describes the taste and texture of treated Macrozamia sarcotesta (Macintyre 2011)

In an early experiment in 2008 we prepared the sarcotesta, after it had been soaked and buried, by cutting it into strips and cooking it for about seven minutes on a hot barbecue plate. The sarcotesta sizzled and released a considerable quantity of oil. The taste and texture of cooked sarcotesta was difficult to describe. 

It had a mild salty/sweetish taste somewhat resembling rice bran oil. I found it difficult to compare to any other food item that I was familiar with’ (Macintyre 2011). 

We imagine that the early recorders may have encountered similar difficulties in describing this unfamiliar taste experience. Culturally novel taste sensations of fat-rich sarcotesta may possibly be explained by a newly discovered taste – a sixth basic taste – known as the “fat taste” or “oleogustus” (Latin, oleo, oily or fatty +gustus, taste). This new taste was recently identified by a team of American scientists in 2015 ‘to refer specifically to the chemistry of taste rather than a textural connotation’ (Running et al 2015: 515).  Could “oleogustus” convey the range of gustatory sensations associated with processed Macrozamia sarcotesta? 

Foods rich in fat will often absorb pungent esters during the fermentation process which add to their flavour and attractiveness to the human palate, like in the case of a matured stilton cheese. We would suggest that fermented bayoo underwent a similar transformation and that its resultant taste was culturally relished and sought-after as well as being highly nutritious.

Grey (1840:16) refers to April and May as ‘the season for eating by-yu’ or “By-yu ngannoween.” Moore (1842) records the name of the April-May season as geran (nowadays know as “jeran”). This term translates as “fat” (jerang, jerrung, cherung) and corresponds to the time of the year around autumn when it was mandatory for Noongar people to build up their reserves of sub-cutaneous body fat to ensure their survival through the long cold dark wet lean season of makuru (known as mokkar or makur in the Albany region). A wide range of fat-rich foods were consumed at this time including bardi, kuya (frog), yakkan (turtle), kalda (mullet) and salmon.

Summary

It is not uncommon throughout the world for indigenous peoples to process and preserve food in different ways through soaking, salting, drying and fermenting to enhance the taste, texture and nutrient value of the food. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Noongar people of southwestern Australia practised a unique method of pit fermentation that increased the nutrient value of cycad sarcotesta at least 13,000 years ago during the late Pleistocene. This would have to be one of the earliest methods of food fermentation recorded in the world. The Noongar are the only documented group in Australia to have consumed Macrozamia sarcotesta after processing through anaerobic fermentation. In this paper we have questioned the observations and assumptions of Grey (1839), Moore (1842) and Drummond (1842) that the sarcotesta of Macrozamia seed was processed primarily to rid it of its toxic properties.

Grey’s (1842) wordlists and his often-quoted exploration journals profoundly influenced colonial hearsay and even to this day continue to provide a pivotal reference for researchers wishing to gain insights into aspects of traditional Noongar culture. However, we challenge his theory that the by-yu or Macrozamia ‘pulp” (thin fleshy outer layer) was processed by indigenous people primarily for the purpose of detoxification. Instead we argue that the ripe sarcotesta was processed to improve the taste, nutritional content and to facilitate its removal from the seed which was discarded. Soaking and/or anaerobic fermentation may have also played a part in extending the seasonal shelf life of the fruit which in some parts of the country was used as an article of trade.

Throughout this paper we have been frustrated by the lack of scientific analysis and/or updated records at the ChemCentre WA and relevant government departments concerning the question of the toxicity of the sarcotesta of local species of Macrozamia.  As far as we are aware there have been no studies conducted since the Government Chemical Laboratory findings in 1938-1939 which determined the sarcotesta of Macrozamia fraseri to be non-toxic. There has only been one little-known study by Ladd et al (1993) which contradicts the earlier findings of the WA Government Chemical Laboratory.  Ladd’s paper which highlights the toxicity of Macrozamia sarcotesta was prepared as a conference paper and to our knowledge has not been followed up with any replicative studies or further publications which consolidate his initial findings. We do not understand why such a supposedly dangerous and toxic neuro-chemical such as macrozamin has not been thoroughly studied in the sarcotesta of the commonly occurring fruit/seed of local species of Macrozamia found in our urban parklands and bushlands.

We would strongly recommend that further research and chemical analysis be carried out using ripe sarcotesta of local Macrozamia to establish once and for all whether this red outer layer of the seed when fully ripe is harmful to humans. 

We caution readers not to experiment with consuming any part of the Macrozamia seed or sarcotesta for safety purposes. The seed is well known to contain toxins while the toxicity of the sarcotesta when fully ripe is yet to be definitively assessed. 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We would like to acknowledge and thank all the Noongar Elders who have assisted us over the years by providing anecdotal and cultural information on the history, preparation and usage of their traditional foods and medicines.

Our interpretations of the ethnohistorical sources may be inconsistent with the views of some contemporary Noongar people.

ANNOTATIONS

1. We are not questioning here the toxicity of the Macrozamiaseed kernel for this has been well-established in the scientific literature. Noongar people did not eat the kernel even after processing. The kernel is well- known to contain harmful substances, especially macrozamin a toxic glycoside (or MAM glycoside) first isolated from the kernel of Macrozamia spiralis in 1940 and from the kernel of M. riedlei by Lythgoe and Riggs in 1949. It is historically well-established that Macrozamia seeds and leaves contain toxins harmful to cattle and sheep causing “zamia staggers” or “wobbles” (that is, partial paralysis of their hind legs) together with other debilitating symptoms. It is for this reason that Macrozamia plants were extensively “grubbed out” (removed) by pastoralists and farmers to avoid damage to their livestock.

Our question is whether the sarcotesta when fully ripe is toxic or not? If it is chemically analysed and found not to contain toxins, nhen we can conclude that Noongar processing was NOT for detoxification purposes, despite the common view in the literature that it was processed to remove toxins to make it edible. It is our view that the sarcotesta was probably not toxic at the time of indigenous harvest when the seed was fully ripe, when it was emitting a distinctive odour and starting to be dispersed by animal and bird seed vectors. It is our argument in this paper that traditional sarcotesta processing and preparation was to improve its palatability, nutritional value, pulpiness and digestibility as well as providing an effective means of hidden storage and repository of a valued food away from predators.

2. Aboriginal groups in Eastern Australia detoxified the kernel using a variety of means including ageing, water-leaching and roasting but did not use anaerobic pit fermentation.

3. It is probable that unripe Macrozamia sarcotesta may contain toxins as part of the seed’s chemical defence against predators, pests and pathogens.

4. Botanist and naturalist Baron Charles von Huegel first set foot on the sandy soil at the mouth of the Swan River on 27thNovember 1833. He had arrived in the colony aboard the British naval frigate, the Alligator, which was anchored offshore Fremantle 27th Nov until 19th December when it set sail to King George Sound.

5. According to Osborne (2012)

‘Seeds of a local cycad (M. fraseri or M. reidlei) were taken back to Holland and presented to the mayor of Amsterdam, Nicolaas Witsen, but their subsequent fate is unknown (Forster 2004, Osborne 2006).’

6. It is unclear why Brown did not experience any adverse effects from eating such a large number of nuts, supposedly these were aged ones (10-11 months) which had lost much of their toxicity. Could it have been Brown’s daily heavy consumption of alcohol, a pint (568 mls) of port or ‘cherry’ whisky every night that protected him or was he simply exaggerating and boasting the number of nuts that he was able to eat without ill effect, perhaps to impress how strong his constitution was and how weak those of his men who ate fewer nuts than he? Perhaps he didn’t eat as many nuts as he said he did, if he ate any at all.

It is interesting how in these early zamia poisoning accounts the leaders of the expeditions are rarely reported as getting sick (e.g. Vlamingh, Robert Brown and Grey). Accounts of cycad poisoning, including those reported by Vlamingh’s officers (1697), the French Lieutenant Commander Milius’s party at the Swan River in June 1802, and Captain Fremantle at the Swan River in 1829, and Robert Brown 1802 in the Esperance region and Lt. Grey 1839 during an expedition north of Perth involving Macrozamia “nut” consumption generally all portrayed the expedition leaders as being intelligent men who showed a greater awareness and vigilance, and in the case of Brown’s experience a stronger bodily constitution than their weaker underlings who succumbed to often violent and debilitating ill-consequences after consumed the toxic nuts. Robert Brown who accompanied Flinders to the south coast of Western Australia was probably observing M. dyeri (or possibly M. riedlei). He refers to it as Zamia Spiralis based on its resemblance to Zamia spiralis (now called Macrozamia spiralis) found only in Eastern Australia.

According to Charles Moore (1883: 115)

‘In Robert Brown’s Prodromius, one of the first and best works so far as it went on the plants of Australia, only one species is described, and that under the name of Zamia spiralis, giving as habitats for this plant the very distant places of Sydney and King George’s Sound in Western Australia.’

Charles Moore (1883: 115) further points out:

‘It is not at all surprising that these plants found growing so far apart should have been considered to be identical, as both are very similar in every respect, but they are now regarded as perfectly distinct species, the western plant being named Macrozamia Fraseri, Miq., and our eastern or Sydney plant is still called by the original specific designation of spiralis, an absurd specific name it must be confessed now that the remarkably spiral characteristics of other species have become so well known.’

7. It is interesting to note that Robert Brown who had been reading Joseph Banks’ account of Cook’s Voyage and who describes the cycad poisoning of Cook’s men (and hogs) was responsible for naming Cycas media – the very cycad believed to be responsible for poisoning Cook’s hungry men in 1770. Parker (2002: 18-20) states that Cycas media was named by Robert Brown from specimens collected on Calder Island, off Mackay, Queensland.

8. Grey 1840: 34 translates d-yundo as meaning bald, e.g. bald head, dyundo kattige).

9. Spencer (1990: 17) referring to cycads (Cycas) has stated that

‘…the fleshy seed cover is said to lack poisonous properties…’

Others have disputed this view stating that the toxins are most highly concentrated in the outermost layers of the cycad seed.

Some studies of Macrozamia sarcotesta toxicity mention using “fresh” seeds (e.g. Ladd et al 1993). However, whether these seeds were also “fully ripe” and ready for bird and animal dispersal is unclear. Contextual details regarding stage of seed maturity/ripeness, genus or species identification, fire history, geographic locality, soil chemistry or other potentially relevant variables which may help to explain study findings of sarcotesta toxicity – or absence of toxicity – are not always provided.

We would recommend that if future scientific testing of Macrozamia seed sarcotesta takes place to determine conclusively whether it is toxic or not, that these tests take place when the seed is fully ripened – the sarcotesta is bright red, emitting a distinctive odour –when the seeds are dehiscing from the cone ready for bird and animal seed dispersal. If such tests determine the sarcotesta to be toxic, it may then be useful to replicate traditional reconstructive processing to determine whether any residual toxicity remains after processing and it is important that Noongar people be involved.

The Noongar people are the only Aboriginal group in Australia who prepared and consumed processed Macrozamia sarcotesta.

There are documented examples of populations in other parts of the world such as Guam, Mexico, Africa, Madagascar and southern Japan eating the sarcotesta of cycads (e.g. Cycas, Encephalartos and Dioon) but none of these involved anaerobic pit processing which is unique to the traditional Noongar people of southwestern Australia. Harvey (1945: 191) provides the only reference that we could find to an Australian Aboriginal group (the Karawa tribes of the Borroloola district of the Northern Territory) eating the raw husk (sarcotesta) of a cycad nut after drying in the sun. She describes the nut of Cycas media as ’about the size of a quandong, with a husk which is edible raw, and is a good food.’*

And yet this appears to be the same Cycas species that was responsible for the violent sickness which afflicted Captain Cook’s men and killed two of their hogs when the hulls which were found lying around Aboriginal camps in the vicinity of the Endeavour River, north Queensland were consumed. The men had assumed them to be edible but suffered dire consequences.  Cycas, however, is a different genus of cycad to Macrozamia. 

 10. The earliest archaeological records for cycad seed processing in Northern and Eastern Australia date back only to the recent Holocene period, approximately 4,300 years BP (Beaton 1982; Beck 1992).

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