Kanat’á - Early Blueberry - Glacier Bay Ethnobotany

Look for rufous hummingbirds attracted to this plant's early blooms each spring.

NPS Photo / S. Tevebaugh

Kanat’á
Early Blueberry

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Kanat’á patches were highly-valued family properties, handed down for generations. Huna Tlingit women picked the berries and carried them in spruce root baskets. The berries were eaten fresh or preserved for winter meals in seal oil or pressed into dry cakes. Blueberries also play an important role in Tlingit memorial parties.