Dançando mangues e pescando histórias: uma etnografia sobre os conhecimentos e as práticas em torno da produção de moquecas de aratu

Abstract

This ethnography sought to understand the knowledge and practices involved in the production of moquecas de aratu in three fishing communities on the North Coast of Bahia, Barra do Itariri, Siribinha and Poças, and how such knowledge can serve as a basis for building intercultural dialogues. I followed the processes related to the production of moquecas de aratu to identify which are the relevant entities in this practice; I analyzed the ethnobiological aspects present in the fishing and processing of aratu in the communities; I sought to understand the differences in the production of moquecas throughout the history of the communities; and reflected on how ethnographic narratives could contribute to the dialogue between local and school knowledge and intercultural interactions in local school education. The data were produced between September 2022 and September 2023, in the three communities, through participant observation, open interviews, biographical interviews and interviews focused on ethnobiological and gastronomic aspects. The research path indicated that different modalities of aratu fishing imply different relationships between humans and non-humans and that fishing categories are being reinvented as new technological inventions are emerging. Different ways of relating are also established in aratu processing. The shellfish gatherers' gaze, directed only at the body of the crustacean, when breaking it, pointed out some biological aspects in which we were able to identify convergences and divergences between academic-scientific knowledge and local knowledge about taxonomy, color change, phenotypic plasticity and camouflage of the crabs. With regard to moqueca de aratu, the interviews carried out in the communities showed that the changes that occurred in its production and consumption entailed, in addition to significant changes in food culture, an even more intense relationship of exploitation of the mangroves. Finally, as its content conveys in depth the knowledge and stories that exist in the fishing practices and eating habits of the fishing communities studied, this ethnographic narrative can contribute to the dialogue of knowledge and intercultural education in the context of the local school.