Monographs Details:
Authority:

Mori, S. A. & Prance, Ghillean T. 1990. Lecythidaceae - Part II: The zygomorphic-flowered New World genera (Couroupita, Corythophora, Bertholletia, Couratari, Eschweilera, & Lecythis). With a study of secondary xylem of Neotropical Lecythidaceae by Carl de Zeeuw. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 21: 1-376. (Published by NYBG Press)
Family:

Lecythidaceae
Synonyms:

Lecythis pyramidata Vell., Couratari rufescens Cambess., Couratari lecythopsis Mart., Lecythis rufescens (Cambess.) O.Berg, Couratari fumatoria Schrank ex Eyma
Description:

Description - Trees, to 20 m tall, the young branches tomentellous, becoming glabrous with age. Leaf blades oblong or rarely elliptic, 9-17 x 3-9 cm, coriaceous, glabrous above except for a few scattered stiff hairs on venation, scattered pilose beneath, the hairs simple and stellate; midrib prominulous and almost glabrous above, prominent and pilose beneath; secondary veins 13-17 pairs, prominent on both surfaces, the tertiary venation prominently reticulate on both surfaces; apex retuse to acute; base rounded to subcuneate; margins undulate to slightly crenate; petiole 3-10 mm long, tomentellous when young, slightly canaliculate, slightly winged or not winged. Inflorescences terminal or axillary, racemes or once branched paniculate arrangement of racemes, the rachis and rachillae densely tomentellous; pedicels ca. 2 mm long, densely tomentellous. Flowers with hypanthium campanulate, ca. 4 mm long; calyx lobes ca. 5 mm long, tomentellous on both surfaces, the margins ciliate; petals oblong-ovate, ca. 3 cm long, puberulous on exterior, glabrous within, yellow; androecium yellow, glabrous, ca. 4 cm long, the staminal ring ca. 8 mm in diam., the exterior of hood with numerous, dense, echinate appendages; ca. 45 stamens inserted around staminal ring with greater number towards ligule; ovary 3-locular. Fruit cylindrical, rounded in cross section, broadest at calycine ring, 7-7.5 x up to 4 cm broad, crustaceous on exterior, ca. 3 mm thick, hard and woody, the calycine ring 10-15 mm below apex, the ring forming an almost unbroken ridge 1 mm tall around perimeter; operculum not radially grooved, centrally convex or concave, the columella triangular. Seeds oblong-lanceolate, to 5 cm long.

Discussion:

Because type herbarium material of Couratari pyramidata has not been found, I have designated the Vellozo plate as the lectotype. Only two species of Couratari grow around Rio de Janeiro and, because this is a distinct species, it is easily recognized from the plate.

For the relationships of C. pyramidata see discussion of sectional relationships.
Distribution:

Brazil South America| Rio de Janeiro Brazil South America|