Monographs Details:
Authority:
Prance, Ghillean T. & Mori, S. A. 1979. Lecythidaceae - Part I. The actinomorphic-flowered New World Lecythidaceae (Asteranthos, Gustavia, Grias, Allantoma & Cariniana). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 21: 1-270. (Published by NYBG Press)
Prance, Ghillean T. & Mori, S. A. 1979. Lecythidaceae - Part I. The actinomorphic-flowered New World Lecythidaceae (Asteranthos, Gustavia, Grias, Allantoma & Cariniana). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 21: 1-270. (Published by NYBG Press)
Family:
Lecythidaceae
Lecythidaceae
Synonyms:
Couratari lineata Mart. ex O.Berg, Couratari macrocarpa Mart. ex O.Berg, Allantoma macrocarpa (Mart. ex O.Berg) Miers, Couratari aulacocarpa Mart. ex O.Berg, Allantoma aulacocarpa (Mart. ex O.Berg) Miers, Couratari dictyocarpa Mart. ex O.Berg, Allantoma dictyocarpa (Mart. ex O.Berg) Miers, Allantoma torulosa Miers, Allantoma cylindrica Miers, Allantoma burchelliana Miers, Allantoma scutellata Miers, Allantoma corbula Miers, Goeldinia ovatifolia Huber, Goeldinia riparia Huber, Allantoma dilatata R.Knuth, Allantoma caudata R.Knuth
Couratari lineata Mart. ex O.Berg, Couratari macrocarpa Mart. ex O.Berg, Allantoma macrocarpa (Mart. ex O.Berg) Miers, Couratari aulacocarpa Mart. ex O.Berg, Allantoma aulacocarpa (Mart. ex O.Berg) Miers, Couratari dictyocarpa Mart. ex O.Berg, Allantoma dictyocarpa (Mart. ex O.Berg) Miers, Allantoma torulosa Miers, Allantoma cylindrica Miers, Allantoma burchelliana Miers, Allantoma scutellata Miers, Allantoma corbula Miers, Goeldinia ovatifolia Huber, Goeldinia riparia Huber, Allantoma dilatata R.Knuth, Allantoma caudata R.Knuth
Description:
Description - Small to medium sized tree, usually about 10 m tall, rarely larger, the young branches glabrous. Leaves with laminas usually oblong, but from ovate to oblong-lanceolate, coriaceous, 10.0-29.0 cm long (usually 12.0-20.0 cm long), 5.0-11.5 cm broad, the margins entire or slightly revolute to undulate, long-acuminate to caudate at apex, with acumen 10.0-20.0(-30.0) mm long, rounded to subcuneate at base, glabrous on both surfaces, midrib prominent beneath, prominulous above; primary veins 18-25 pairs, prominulous above, prominent beneath, the secondary venation plane; petioles 12.0-20.0 mm long, canaliculate, glabrous, not winged. Inflorescences terminal or subterminal racemes or little-branched panicles of racemes, the rachis and branches glabrous, conspicuously lenticellate; bracts lanceolate, ca 2.0 mm long, membraneous, early caducous; pedicels 1.0-3.0 mm long, glabrous. Hypanthium campanulate, 7.0 mm long, the lobes 5-6 rather indistinct and little divided, triangular, glabrous on exterior. Petals 5, oblong, fleshy, white, lenticellate. Androecium glabrous, to 10.0 mm long, the apex divided into 8-10 inward-reflexed lacinae with anthers at the apex of most of them, the stamens also borne on short reflexed filaments scattered over the interior surface of the androecium. Ovary 4-5 locular (3 locular in one collection) with numerous ovules in each loculus. Style very short. Pyxidium typically tubular-cylindrical, but varying from campanulate-cylindrical to cylindrical, usually of almost equal width from near top to base, sometimes slightly curved especially when young, 7.0-18.0 cm long, 3.5-6.5 cm broad, crustaceous on exterior, often cracking irregularly when dry, 4-5 locular, the calycine ring 5.0-10.0 cm below apex; operculum 5.0-12.0 cm long, 4-5 angular, the apex convex to deeply concave, usually concave; seeds narrowly linear-elongate, 5.0-6.0 cm long with caducous stipe-like funcile to 2.0 cm long, the exterior of the angled edges verrucose.
Description - Small to medium sized tree, usually about 10 m tall, rarely larger, the young branches glabrous. Leaves with laminas usually oblong, but from ovate to oblong-lanceolate, coriaceous, 10.0-29.0 cm long (usually 12.0-20.0 cm long), 5.0-11.5 cm broad, the margins entire or slightly revolute to undulate, long-acuminate to caudate at apex, with acumen 10.0-20.0(-30.0) mm long, rounded to subcuneate at base, glabrous on both surfaces, midrib prominent beneath, prominulous above; primary veins 18-25 pairs, prominulous above, prominent beneath, the secondary venation plane; petioles 12.0-20.0 mm long, canaliculate, glabrous, not winged. Inflorescences terminal or subterminal racemes or little-branched panicles of racemes, the rachis and branches glabrous, conspicuously lenticellate; bracts lanceolate, ca 2.0 mm long, membraneous, early caducous; pedicels 1.0-3.0 mm long, glabrous. Hypanthium campanulate, 7.0 mm long, the lobes 5-6 rather indistinct and little divided, triangular, glabrous on exterior. Petals 5, oblong, fleshy, white, lenticellate. Androecium glabrous, to 10.0 mm long, the apex divided into 8-10 inward-reflexed lacinae with anthers at the apex of most of them, the stamens also borne on short reflexed filaments scattered over the interior surface of the androecium. Ovary 4-5 locular (3 locular in one collection) with numerous ovules in each loculus. Style very short. Pyxidium typically tubular-cylindrical, but varying from campanulate-cylindrical to cylindrical, usually of almost equal width from near top to base, sometimes slightly curved especially when young, 7.0-18.0 cm long, 3.5-6.5 cm broad, crustaceous on exterior, often cracking irregularly when dry, 4-5 locular, the calycine ring 5.0-10.0 cm below apex; operculum 5.0-12.0 cm long, 4-5 angular, the apex convex to deeply concave, usually concave; seeds narrowly linear-elongate, 5.0-6.0 cm long with caducous stipe-like funcile to 2.0 cm long, the exterior of the angled edges verrucose.
Discussion:
The nut is edible and is known in English as “Skittle-nut,” but is not widely used. The bark is used as a cigarette wrapper in Venezuela.The twelve species of Allantoma recognized by Knuth (1939b) are a good example of the multiplication of species of Lecythidaceae based on inadequate material, using minute differences with little attention to the biology of the group. Eight out of the twelve species recognized by Knuth were originally described from pyxidia alone without any material of the leaves or flowers. Furthermore, the pyxidia of two species (A. corbula Miers and A. aulacocarpa (Mart, ex Berg) Miers) are empty; they lack seeds and opercula. Four of these eight fruits were described as separate species by Miers (1874), three by Berg (1858), and one by Knuth (1939b), who recognized all the species of the former authors.As can be seen above, I have reduced into synonymy under Allantoma lineata three of the four species of Allantoma described by Berg (1858) in the genus Couratari. Since A, lineata was the only Berg species based on adequate material (leaves and fruit), it is chosen as the name in preference to the other three Berg names.The main characters used to separate the “species” by previous authors were the number of loculi of the pyxidia, and differences in size and shape of the pyxidia and opercula. Knuth (1939b), divided the genus into two sections based on the number of locules in the pyxidia (Section Pentakolpos with 5; and Section Tetrakolpos with 4). This is an absolutely false division since the number of compartments is not even a specific character. I have collected pyxidia with both four and five compartments from the same tree at Tarumã near Manaus (Prance et al 11618), Since the major key character used by Knuth breaks down, his key and his division of the genus into twelve species is meaningless. The number of loculi of the ovary and fruit has been much over-used as a taxonomic character in the Lecythidaceae. Its use has led to the creation of too many genera and species. Even in Couratari a genus characterized by the 3-partite pyxidium there are a few individuals with 4-partite pyxidia. The ovary of several collections of Allantoma was found to vary from 4-5 locular within the same individuals.The other main characters used to separate the species of Allantoma were small differences in size and shape of the pyxidia. These differences are in fact due to collections made at different stages of fruit development, and they are also due to the effect of minor ecological differences and to natural variation within the same individuals. For example: Allantoma dictyocarpa (Mart. ex Berg) Miers, was described from a single very young and immature fruit which naturally differs in size and shape from the adult fruit; Allantoma aulacocarpa (Mart. ex Berg) Miers was described from a single very old and half-rotted pyxidium which has a different surface texture because the outer layers have rotted off exposing the fibrous ridged inner layer of the pericarp. The method of drying and the stage of maturity of the collection considerably affect the outer texture of the pericarp and the opercular shape, e g Prance 11478 was dried in an oven and consequently has many fissures and cracks in the pericarp, but Prance 11618 was air dried and has a smooth pericarp. The operculum may remain convex or become concave according to the drying procedure and the stage of maturity when collected. These are all features which have been used as taxonomic characters to separate species by previous workers. Figures 64 and 65 illustrate some of the type specimens for Allantoma and also the variation from a single gathering.The two species proposed by Knuth, Allantoma caudata and A. dilatata were based on minor variation of fruit and leaf shape which fall well within the range of variation of A. lineata.In light of the above facts a large synonymy is presented here. Ducke (1925), has already suggested that four of Miers’ species of Allantoma are synonymous with A lineata.The collection Wurdack & Adderley 43035, from the Rio Orinoco, Amazonas, Venezuela, is particularly interesting since it is geographically far removed from all other collections studied. Allantoma lineata is otherwise known only from the lower Rio Negro of Brazil, eastwards to eastern Para. This collection is also the only one studied with very young developing fruit. These young fruit still have the persistent corolla and androecium above the fruit. The petals are still closed in all the flowers even in those which persist above quite well developed fruit. This is indicative of self-pollination.
The nut is edible and is known in English as “Skittle-nut,” but is not widely used. The bark is used as a cigarette wrapper in Venezuela.The twelve species of Allantoma recognized by Knuth (1939b) are a good example of the multiplication of species of Lecythidaceae based on inadequate material, using minute differences with little attention to the biology of the group. Eight out of the twelve species recognized by Knuth were originally described from pyxidia alone without any material of the leaves or flowers. Furthermore, the pyxidia of two species (A. corbula Miers and A. aulacocarpa (Mart, ex Berg) Miers) are empty; they lack seeds and opercula. Four of these eight fruits were described as separate species by Miers (1874), three by Berg (1858), and one by Knuth (1939b), who recognized all the species of the former authors.As can be seen above, I have reduced into synonymy under Allantoma lineata three of the four species of Allantoma described by Berg (1858) in the genus Couratari. Since A, lineata was the only Berg species based on adequate material (leaves and fruit), it is chosen as the name in preference to the other three Berg names.The main characters used to separate the “species” by previous authors were the number of loculi of the pyxidia, and differences in size and shape of the pyxidia and opercula. Knuth (1939b), divided the genus into two sections based on the number of locules in the pyxidia (Section Pentakolpos with 5; and Section Tetrakolpos with 4). This is an absolutely false division since the number of compartments is not even a specific character. I have collected pyxidia with both four and five compartments from the same tree at Tarumã near Manaus (Prance et al 11618), Since the major key character used by Knuth breaks down, his key and his division of the genus into twelve species is meaningless. The number of loculi of the ovary and fruit has been much over-used as a taxonomic character in the Lecythidaceae. Its use has led to the creation of too many genera and species. Even in Couratari a genus characterized by the 3-partite pyxidium there are a few individuals with 4-partite pyxidia. The ovary of several collections of Allantoma was found to vary from 4-5 locular within the same individuals.The other main characters used to separate the species of Allantoma were small differences in size and shape of the pyxidia. These differences are in fact due to collections made at different stages of fruit development, and they are also due to the effect of minor ecological differences and to natural variation within the same individuals. For example: Allantoma dictyocarpa (Mart. ex Berg) Miers, was described from a single very young and immature fruit which naturally differs in size and shape from the adult fruit; Allantoma aulacocarpa (Mart. ex Berg) Miers was described from a single very old and half-rotted pyxidium which has a different surface texture because the outer layers have rotted off exposing the fibrous ridged inner layer of the pericarp. The method of drying and the stage of maturity of the collection considerably affect the outer texture of the pericarp and the opercular shape, e g Prance 11478 was dried in an oven and consequently has many fissures and cracks in the pericarp, but Prance 11618 was air dried and has a smooth pericarp. The operculum may remain convex or become concave according to the drying procedure and the stage of maturity when collected. These are all features which have been used as taxonomic characters to separate species by previous workers. Figures 64 and 65 illustrate some of the type specimens for Allantoma and also the variation from a single gathering.The two species proposed by Knuth, Allantoma caudata and A. dilatata were based on minor variation of fruit and leaf shape which fall well within the range of variation of A. lineata.In light of the above facts a large synonymy is presented here. Ducke (1925), has already suggested that four of Miers’ species of Allantoma are synonymous with A lineata.The collection Wurdack & Adderley 43035, from the Rio Orinoco, Amazonas, Venezuela, is particularly interesting since it is geographically far removed from all other collections studied. Allantoma lineata is otherwise known only from the lower Rio Negro of Brazil, eastwards to eastern Para. This collection is also the only one studied with very young developing fruit. These young fruit still have the persistent corolla and androecium above the fruit. The petals are still closed in all the flowers even in those which persist above quite well developed fruit. This is indicative of self-pollination.
Distribution:
Venezuela South America| Amazonas Venezuela South America| Brazil South America| Amazonas Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America|
Venezuela South America| Amazonas Venezuela South America| Brazil South America| Amazonas Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America|
Common Names:
Tabari, Cerú, Cherú, Churú, Xurú, Tauarí
Tabari, Cerú, Cherú, Churú, Xurú, Tauarí