raditionally,the Sliammon
 people   used    the    full
 seasonal and  spatial  range
 of    resources    available
 within   their   territories
 through   fishing,  hunting,
 and  gathering  activities .
 The Sliammon  people's  diet
 included   berries , roots ,
 bulbs, rhizomes  along  with
 the  sprouts  and  leaves of
 young  plants. Large numbers
 of the  five Pacific  Salmon
 were  taken   annually  from
 spawning  streams  all  over
 the  coast  ;  salmon  being
 their   main   food  source.
 Other     favorites     were
 rockfish ,  herring ,  cod ,
 eulachons,  sea urchin   and
 smelt. They also made use of
 ducks, geese, and swans. The  
 Sliammon people made  efficient
 use  of the abundant   food
 resources available  to them
 and utilized many  different
 ways    to    prepare    and
 preserve  foods .

  
 ost  of  the  Sliammon
 people's  food came  from the
 sea. Like other native people
 living  along  the  Coast  of
 British    Columbia  ,    the
 Sliammon caught large numbers
 of salmon using  methods  and
 implements designed  to  suit
 specific        environmental
 conditions . They built tidal
 weirs  and  traps  near   the
 mouths of spawning rivers, in
 order  to  take  advantage of 
 the rising and falling of the
 tide. In  streams and rivers,
 they used  harpoons, dip nets
 and gaff hooks.

  
 liammon   people   would
 gather all the  beach  foods
 accessible  at  low  tide  .
 Horse  Clams, Little  Necks,
 Butter   Clams  and  Cockles
 are  all   important   foods
 because  they  are available
 most   of   the  year ,  but
 mussels  are  believed to be
 especially good  during  the
 month   of   May   when  the
 flowering  dogwood  blooms .
 No  shellfish  were  or  are
 harvested during  the  times
 of 'red - tide  poisoning .'
 Seals , porpoises   and  sea
 lions were hunted  for food.
 All were killed  with a one-
 pronged   harpoon    .   The

  
 Sliammon people supplemented
 their diet of fish and other
 land mammals  such as deer ,
 mountain  goat  ,  bear  and
 various    other     smaller
 animals .
 igratory birds are
 abundant  in season  in  the
 northern    Georgia   Strait
 region    and   they   added
 variety to the Sliammon diet.
 Birds   that    were   eaten
 included   Mallard  , Canada
 Goose  ,  Brant ,  Widgeon ,
 various species  of Grebes ,
 common  Golden - Eye  duck ,
 Oldsquaw  duck, Swan, Loon ,
 and several types of grouse.

  
 egetable foods provided
 the vitamins , minerals  and
 carbohydrates  necessary  to
 complement the fish and  the
 meat diet of  the  Sliammon .
 Food  from plants   included
 fruits , (berries  &  seeds)
 green vegetables,(shoots &
 leaves) underground parts,
 (roots, bulbs, tubers and
 rhizomes ) and cambium. The
 search for vegetable foods
 began in the early  Spring 
 and continued until late fall,
 by which time the women had
 preserved   enough   to last
 through  the  winter .