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Gastón Guzmán Huerta (August 26, 1932 – January 12, 2016), a Mexican
mycologist Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their taxonomy, genetics, biochemical properties, and use by humans. Fungi can be a source of tinder, food, traditional medicine, as well as entheogens, poison, and ...
and
anthropologist An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...
, was an authority on the genus ''
Psilocybe ''Psilocybe'' ( ) is a genus of gilled mushrooms, growing worldwide, in the family Hymenogastraceae. Many species contain the Psychedelic drug, psychedelic compounds psilocybin and psilocin. Taxonomy Taxonomic history A 2002 study of the ...
''.


Career

He was born in
Xalapa Xalapa or Jalapa (, ), officially Xalapa-Enríquez (), is the capital city of the Mexico, Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Veracruz and the name of the surrounding municipality. In 2020 census the city reported a population of 443,063 ...
,
Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...
, in 1932. His interest in
mycology Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungus, fungi, including their Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, genetics, biochemistry, biochemical properties, and ethnomycology, use by humans. Fungi can be a source of tinder, Edible ...
began in 1955 when as a graduate student he decided to update his school's (
National Polytechnic Institute National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
) poorly kept collection of fungi. During his early field work he found a large assortment of species about which little was known at the time. This inspired him to choose fungi as the topic of his professional thesis. In 1957 Guzmán was invited by the University of Mexico to assist
Rolf Singer Rolf Singer (June 23, 1906 – January 18, 1994) was a German mycologist and Taxonomy (biology), taxonomist of gilled mushrooms (agarics). He wrote the book "The Agaricales in Modern Taxonomy (biology), Taxonomy". He fled to various countries d ...
, who would arrive to Mexico the following year to study the hallucinogenic mushroom genus ''Psilocybe''. Guzmán accepted and assisted Singer through his explorations in Mexico. While they were in the Huautla de Jiménez region, in their last day of the expeditions, they met R. Gordon Wasson. For Guzmán it was a "fructiferous meeting." In 1958, he published his first paper on a blue-staining ''Psilocybe'' species and the first paper on the ecology of neurotropic fungi. In 1971, he received a grant from the Guggenheim Foundation of
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, on the recommendation of
Richard Evans Schultes Richard Evans Schultes (''SHULL-tees'';Jonathan Kandell ''The New York Times'', April 13, 2001, Accessed April 26, 2020. January 12, 1915 – April 10, 2001) was an American biologist, considered to be the father of modern ethnobotany. He is kno ...
to study the genus ''Psilocybe'', which resulted in a comprehensive
monograph A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...
on the subject in 1983, titled ''The Genus Psilocybe: A Systematic Revision of the Known Species Including the History, Distribution and Chemistry of the Hallucinogenic Species''. He also authored eight other books and over 350 papers on Mexican mushrooms and has described more than 200 new
taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...
of fungi worldwide. More than half of the known psilocybin mushroom species were first described by Guzmán and his collaborators. A co-founder and former president of the Mexican Mycological Society (1965), he was also president of the Latin American Mycological Association (2000–2002), founded by him in La Habana, Cuba, in 1990. Guzmán held an emeritus research chair at the Ecological Institute of Xalapa where he founded the Department and Herbarium of Fungi which now has more than 50,000 specimens. In 1955 he founded the Mycological Herbarium at the National School of Biological Sciences (ENCB) in Mexico City. ENCB now has more than 100,000 specimens, the most sizable collection in Mexico.


Personal life

Guzmán's daughter,
Laura Guzmán Dávalos Laura Guzmán Dávalos (born 1961) is a Mexican mycologist, biologist and lichenologist. She has been the head of the botany and zoology departments at the University of Guadalajara (UdeG) from 1994 to 1998. From 2007 to 2014, she served as the ...
, is also a prominent mycologist. She founded the Mycology Department at the
University of Guadalajara The University of Guadalajara () is a public university, public research university located in Guadalajara, Mexico. It was originally established in 1586 and officially founded on 12 February 1791 as the Royal and Pontifical University of Gu ...
. Guzmán died of a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
in
Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...
, Mexico on January 12, 2016, at the age of 83.


Eponymy

Several fungus species have been named in Guzmán's honor: *''Crepidotus guzmanii'' Singer 1973 *''Fistulina guzmanii'' Brusis 1973 *''Marasmiellus guzmanii'' Singer 1973 *''Pseudohiatula guzmaniana'' Singer 1973 *''Marasmius guzmanianus'' Singer 1976 *'' Neotremella guzmanii'' Lowy 1979 *''Psilocybe guzmanii'' Natarajan & Raman 1983 *''Amanita guzmanii'' Cifuentes, Villegas & G.Santiago 1984 *''Entoloma guzmanii'' Courtec. 1986 *'' Antromycopsis guzmanii'' Stalpers, Seifert & Samson 1991 *''Phylloporus guzmanii'' Montoya & Bandala 1991 *''Pseudocyphellaria guzmanii'' D.J.Galloway 1992 *''Rhizopogon guzmanii'' Trappe & Cázares 1992 *''Camillea guzmanii'' F.San Martín & J.D.Rogers 1993 *''Coralloderma guzmanii'' A.L.Welden 1993 *''Phaeocollybia guzmanii'' Bandala & Montoya 1994 *''Suillus guzmanii'' G.Moreno, Bandala & Montoya 1997 *''Tuber guzmanii'' Trappe & Cázares 2006 *''Calvatia guzmanii'' C.R.Alves & Cortez 2012 *'' Cora guzmaniana'' Moncada, R.-E.Pérez & Lücking 2019


Selected publications

*Guzmán, G. "El hábitat de Psilocybe muliercula Singer & Smith (=Ps. wassonii Heim), agaricáceo alucinógeno mexicano." Revista de la Sociedad Mexicana de Historia Natural 19: 215-229 (1958). *Guzmán, G. The Genus Psilocybe: A Systematic Revision of the Known Species Including the History, Distribution and Chemistry of the Hallucinogenic Species. Beihefte zur Nova Hedwigia Heft 74. J. Cramer, Vaduz, Germany (1983) ow out of print *Guzmán, G. "Les champignons sacrés du Mexique." In: Riedlinger, T.J. (Ed.) The Sacred Mushroom Seeker: Essays for R. Gordon Wasson. Ethnomycological Studies No. 11, pp. 83–110. Dioscorides Press, Portland, OR (1990). *Guzmán, G. "The Sacred Mushroom in Mesoamerica." In: Miyanishi, T. (Ed.) The Ancient Maya and Hallucinogens, pp. 75–95. Wakayama University, Wakayama, Japan (1992). *Guzmán, G. "Supplement to the genus Psilocybe." Bibliotheca Mycologica 159: 91-141 (1995). *Guzmán, G. “Los Nombres de los Hongos y lo Relacionado con Ellos en America Latina.” Instituto de Ecología, Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico (1997). *Guzman, G. "Inventorying the fungi of Mexico." Biodiversity and Conservation 7: 365-384 (1997). *Guzmán, G. and J. Ott. "Description and chemical analysis of a new species of hallucinogenic Psilocybe from the Pacific Northwest." Mycologia 68: 1261-1267 (1976). *Guzman, G. and S.H. Pollock. "A new bluing species of Psilocybe from Florida." Mycotaxon 7: 373-376 (1978). *Guzmán, G. and S.H. Pollock. "Tres nuevas especies y dos nuevos registros de los hongos alucinógenos en México y datos sobre su cultivo en el laboratorio." Bol Soc Mex Mic 13: 261-270 (1979). *Guzmán, G., C. King, and V.M. Bandala. "A new species of Psilocybe of section Zapotecorum from New Zealand." Mycological Research 95(4): 507-508 (1991). *Guzmán, G., L. Montoya Bello, and V.M. Bandala. "Nuevos registros de los hongos alucinógenos del género Psilocybe en México y análisis de la distribución de las especies conocidas." Revista Mexicana de Micología 4: 255-265 (1988). *Guzmán, G., V.M. Bandala, and C. King. "Further observations on the genus Psilocybe from New Zealand." Mycotaxon 46: 161-170 (1993). *Guzman, G., V.M. Bandala, and J.W. Allen. "A new bluing Psilocybe from Thailand." Mycotaxon 46: 155-160 (1993). *Guzman, G. et al. "A new bluing Psilocybe from U.S.A." Mycotaxon 65: 191-196 (1997). *Guzmán, G. "Identificación de los hongos comestibles, venenosos, alucinantes y destructores de la madera", Ed. Limusa, Mexico City (with several reprints) (1977). *Guzmán, G. et al. “Psilocybe s.s. in Thailand: four new species and a review of previously recorded species.” Mycotaxon 119: pp. 65–81 (January–March 2012). *Guzmán, G. ”New Taxonomical And Ethnomycological Observations On Psilocybe s.s. (fungi, Basidiomycota, Agaricomycetidae, Agaricales, Strophariaceae) From Mexico, Africa And Spain.” Acta Botanica Mexicana 100: 79-106 (2012). *Guzmán, G. “Hallucinogenic Mushrooms in Mexico: An Overview.” Economic Botany, Volume 62, Issue 3, pages 404-412 (2008). *Guzmán G. “Sinopsis de los Conocimientos Sobre los Hongos Alucinógenos Mexicanos.” Boletín de la Sociedad Botánica de México 24:14–34 (1959). *Guzmán, G. “Nueva Localidad de Importancia Etnomicológica de los Hongos Neurotrópicos Mexicanos.” Ciencia, México, 20:85–88 (1960). *Guzmán, G. “Variation, Distribution, Ethnomycological Data and Relationships of Psilocybe aztecorum, a Mexican Hallucinogenic Mushroom.” Mycologia 70:385–396 (1978). *Guzmán G. “Traditional Uses and Abuses of Hallucinogenic Fungi: Problems and Solutions.” International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms 5:57–59 (2003). *Guzmán, G. “Species Diversity of the Genus Psilocybe in the World Mycobiota, with Special Attention to Hallucinogenic Properties.” International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms 7:305–331 (2005). *Guzmán, G. and A. López-González. Nuevo Hábitat y Datos Etnomicológicos de Psilocybe muliercula.” Boletín de la Sociedad Mexicana de Micología 4:44–48 (1970). *Guzmán, G. et al. “The Taxonomy of Psilocybe fagicola–Complex.” Journal of Microbiology (Korea) 43:158–165 (2005). *Guzmán, G. et al. “The Hallucinogenic Species of Psilocybe in Colombia, Their Indian Use, New Records, and New Species.” International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms 6:83–93 (2004). *Guzmán, G. et al. “Una Iglesia Dedicada al Culto de un Hongo, “Nuestro Señor del Honguito,” en Chignahuapan, Puebla. Boletín de la Sociedad Mexicana de Micología 9:137–147 (1975). *Guzmán, G. “Aportaciones sobre los hongos alucinógenos mexicanos y descripción de un nuevo Psilocybe.” Ciencia (Méx.) 26: 25-28 (1968). *Guzmán, G. “Further investigations of the Mexican hallucinogenic mushrooms with descriptions of new taxa and critical observations on additional taxa.” Nova Hedw. 29: 625-644 (1978a). *Guzmán, G. “Nuevos datos sobre el género Psilocybe y descripción de una nueva especie en México.” Bol. Soc. Mex. Mic. 17: 89-94 (1982). *Guzmán, G. “Las especies del género Psilocybe conocidas de Veracruz (México).” Acta Bot. Mex. 49: 35-46 (1999). *Guzmán, G. “New species and new records of Psilocybe from Spain, the U.S.A. and Mexico, and a new case of poisoning by P. barrerae.” Doc. Mycol. 29(116): 41-52 (2000). *Guzmán, G. “The hallucinogenic mushrooms: Diversity, traditions, use and abuse with special reference to the genus Psilocybe.” In: Misra, J. K. and S. K. Deshhmukh (eds.). Fungi from different environments. Science Pubs., Enfield, UK. (2009). *Guzmán, G. et al. “New species, new varieties and a new record of Psilocybe from Brazil. Mycotaxon 19: 343-350 (1984). *Guzmán, G. and M. L. Castro. “Observations on some known species of Psilocybe from Spain and description of a new species.” Bol. Soc. Micol. Madrid 27: 181-187 (2003). *Guzmán, G. et al. “New hallucinogenic mushrooms in Mexico belonging to the genus Psilocybe. Int. J. Med. Mushrooms 6: 275-286 (2004). *Guzmán, G. “Halluciongenic, Medicinal, and Edible Mushrooms in Mexico and Guatemala: Traditions, Myths, and Knowledge.” International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms, 3: 399-408 (2001). *Guzmán, G. “Supplement to the monograph of the genus Psilocybe.” Taxonomic Monograph of Agaricales. O. Petrini and E. Horak (eds.), Biblioth. Mycol. 159, Cramer, Berlin. 1995. *Guzmán, G. "Los Hongos de El Edén, Quintana Roo: Introducción a la Micobiota Tropical de México". Instituto de Ecología, Xalapa, México. 316p. 2003. *Guzmán, G., M. Piepenbring, "Los Hongos de Panamá. Introducción a la identificación de los macroscópicos". Instituto de Ecología, A.C., Xalapa, 372 pp. 2011.


See also

* List of mycologists * :Taxa named by Gastón Guzmán


References


Cited texts

*


External links


The Ones That Stain Blue
Studies in ethnomycology: Dr. Gaston Guzman {{DEFAULTSORT:Guzman, Gaston 1932 births Mexican mycologists Mexican anthropologists People from Xalapa 2016 deaths Instituto Politécnico Nacional alumni