What are totora reeds used for?
The Rapa Nui people of Easter Island used totora reeds – locally known as nga’atu – for thatching and to make pora (swimming aids). These are used for recreation, and were formerly employed by hopu (clan champions) to reach offshore Motu Nui in the tangata manu (bird-man) competition.
What is totora in Peru?
Giant bulrush or totora (Schoenoplectus californicus ssp. tatora) is a plant that grows both in the wild and is cultivated in ponds and wetlands, from sea level to 4000 m of altitude. It is also called chullu in the Uro language. It grows in the area of Puno, southwest of Peru, overlooking Lake Titicaca.
What are totora houses made out of?
They are built by constructing a big floating platform, or mat, out of totora reeds. These reeds, which float in the water and thrive in the lake’s shallows, can be almost 10 meters long. The builders then cover the mat with smaller reeds to make the island bigger and build their homes on top.
Where are totora reed boat used?
Today, fishermen along Peru’s northern coast still build and use these boats, which they call caballitos (little horses). To make them, they take dried totora reeds and tie them tightly together.
Is Totora edible?
Dry totora pollen is very rich in nutrients especially protein (reaching 15% in some cases) and in vitamin C. Young shoots of the stems are also edible.
What is Barco de Totora?
Caballitos de totora are reed watercraft used by fishermen in Peru for the past 3000 years, archaeologically evidenced from pottery shards. Named for the way they are ridden, straddled (‘little reed horses’ in English), fishermen use them to transport their nets and collect fish in their inner cavity.
Why are totora houses built on the lake?
The Uros use totora not only to make their floating islands, but to build their houses and boats. They burn it for warmth and eat its green roots.
What is totora house?
Houses made of “totora” (floating reeds), Uros Islands, Lake Titicaca Uros are a pre-Incan people that live on 42 self-sustained man-made islets in Lake Titicaca, near the border of Peru and Bolivia. The Uros use the totora plant to make boats of bundled dried reeds, and to make the islands themselves.
How long does a reed boat last?
one to two years
It takes two to three weeks to build one reed boat, which lasts one to two years.
What is a Totora reed boat?
Totora reeds grow in South America, particularly around Lake Titicaca, and also on Easter Island. These reeds have been used by various pre-Columbian South American civilizations to build reed boats. The boats, called balsa, vary in size from small fishing canoes to thirty metres long.
Who made Totora?
Totora reeds were first used centuries ago to build these islands on Lake Titicaca by the Uro-Aymara families who made their home on the lake. The local people’s boats are also made from totora reeds, and they use these vessels for fishing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5axST4hGMo