Parkinsonia praecox  ( ) (Palo Brea) Cercidium praecox Fabaceae This low, spreading tree has nearly horizontal branches, pale pea-green bark, and bright yellow flowers in spring. It is wide ranging in Latin America, and extends northward along the coast to Tastiota and Siete Cerros. Medicine: the bark, ground with sea turtle oil and salt, was used as a lotion for bruises and sprains. Tea made from the bark was taken to aid in the expulsion of a torn placenta. "People of the Desert and Sea, Ethnobotany of the Seri Indians".

    Mariosousa willardiana  ( ) (palo blanco) Acacia willardiana Fabaceae This thin, wispy tree is spineless and has paperlike, peeling, white bark. The trunk and limbs are usually straight, slender, and flexible, and the wood is hard. It is very common on rocky slopes, cliffs, bajadas, and arroyos near mountains. Palo blanco occurs in coastal mountains from the Sierra Seri to Guaymas and on Tiburon Island. It is endemic to western Sonora. Food Gathering: the wood was used to make the chisel pry bar ant the digging stick. Hunting: the detachable foreshaft of a sea turtle harpoon was often made from palo blanco wood. Shelter:  the trunks commonly were used in the framework of brush houses and as posts in wattle and daub houses. Other Uses: uses of the wood included: the club for killing fish and sea turtles, a pole on which a deer skin was scraped, a carrying yoke. This was often made in the spot after killing a deer, in order to transport the meat back to camp. "Peop...

   Senegalia greggii  (Catclaw acacia) (uña de gato) Acacia greggii Fabaceae Catclaw is a shrub or small tree with irregular branches and trunk, and small, sharp. recurved spines. The wood is strong and hard, and the heartwood reddish. It ranges nearly throughout the Seri region, including Tiburon Island, and is common along arroyos and other drainageways. It does not occur on San Esteban Island. Food Gathering: the wood was used as the chisel-prybar for the various century plants and for the digging stick for saiya, etc. Hunting and Fishing: before metal was available the preferred material for fish and turtle harpoon points was catclaw wood. Music: this plant was one of several kinds of wood used to make the violin bow. The musical rasp was occasionally made from catclaw instead of ironwood. Weapons:   the wood was used to make the bow. Other Uses: the wood was used for the carrying yoke and for spikes to hold cargo on the balsa.. "People of the Desert and Sea...

  Krameria bicolor  (White Ratany) (Cosahui) Krameria grayi  Krameriaceae Low-spreading shrub, spine-like branch tips, and small drought-deciduous leaves. The deep magenta flowers, ca i cm in diameter, are crowded in small clusters and may appeal at various times of the year. The bur-like fruit, ca i cm in diameter, resembles a miniature sea urchin. The thick roots radiate from a point about 15 cm below the soil surface. It is a common desert plant, found on the mainland and Tiburon Island. South of Kino Bay it is replaced by a similar, although distinct species, K. sonorae , which develops into a shrub 1.5 to 2 m in height. Dye: the most common basket dye color and, according to Seri oral history, the only color traditionally used was a reddish brown dye. It was generally made from cosahui root. Johnson (1959:12) described it as a "rich burnt sienna color. With considerable effort the lateral roots (not the main root) were dug up with a stick, seashell, knife, or metal s...

             Koeberlinia spinosa  (Crucifixion Thorn) ( ) Koenerliniaceae Shrub or small tree, mainland coast south nearly to Tastiota and on Tiburon Island. The wood is exceedingly hard and produces copious oily black smoke when burned. The plant was said to be poisonous or toxic and to cause the flesh to swell when one was pricked by the thorny branches. Medicine: tea made from the flowers was taken as a remedy for dizziness and a certain intestinal disorder, or diarrhea. The twigs were combined with hierba del manso as a remedy for rheumatism. The wood was burned in a hut to drive away disease during epidemics, probably measels. During the nineteenth century, after excursions to Hermosillo to sell and trade, the Seri came home and burned this plant's wood to disinfect their houses against diseases they had encountered in the city. "People of the Desert and Sea, Ethnobotany of the Seri Indians".  

            Aristida californica  ( ) ( ) Poaceae Perennial grass, forming small, dense clumps in sandy soils, generally near the shore. Relatively thick, tough, almost wiry roots. It is common from Kino Bay northward and on the east and north coasts of Tiburon Island. Boats: men used pads of this grass to cushion their knees when paddling a balsa. Hair Care: the hairbrush was usually made from roots of this grass. Several plants were pulled out and several close to the rootcrown. The roots were tied into a bundle and evened off by burning. Firemaking: pieces of this grass mixed with rabbit dung were used as tinder. The Supernatural: of one used the brush at night his spirit would wander off toward the place of the dead. If one dared to use it a second time at night, his hand would swell A discarded hairbrush used by one who had died was considered dangerous. Tanning: the grass was mixed with animal brains and made into patties which were dried for sto...