Monographs Details:
Authority:
Smith, Albert C. & Wodehouse, R. P. 1938. The American species of Myristicaceae. Brittonia. 2: 393-527. f. 1-9.
Smith, Albert C. & Wodehouse, R. P. 1938. The American species of Myristicaceae. Brittonia. 2: 393-527. f. 1-9.
Family:
Myristicaceae
Myristicaceae
Description:
Species Description - Tree up to 30 m. high, the trunk up to 1 m. in diameter; branchlets densely tomentellous (hairs ferruginous, few-branched, up to 0.5 mm. long), glabreseent, often flexuose; petioles shallowly canaliculate, 1.5- 4 mm. in diameter, 7-12 mm. long, tomentellous as the branchlets; leaf blades thin coriaceous, oblong or narrowly elliptic, 13-35 cm. long, 4-13 cm. broad, cordate, truncate, rounded, or broadly obtuse at base, cuspidate at apex, glabrous above or tomentellous when young and often persistently so on the costa, densely tomentose beneath (hairs stalked, stellate, 3-6-branched, 0.3-0.4 mm. long), the costa plane or slightly raised above, very prominent beneath, the secondary nerves 18-35 per side, straight or slightly arcuate, often slightly impressed above, prominent beneath, the veinlets plane or slightly impressed; staminate infloreseences comparatively simple, once- or twice-branched, 6-13 cm. long, 3-10 cm. broad, the branches slightly flattened, the peduncle up to 4 cm. long, with the branches and flowers densely tomentose (hairs ferruginous, few-branched, 0.1-04 mm. long), the ultimate peduncles swollen at apex; bracts oblong, puberulent on both surfaces, about 5 mm. long, soon deciduous; flowers in ultimate clusters of 5-15, the pedicels slender, 2-5 mm. long; perianth thin carnose, 1.5-3 mm. long, 3-lobed nearly to base, the lobes broadly deltoid, obtuse; androecium
Species Description - Tree up to 30 m. high, the trunk up to 1 m. in diameter; branchlets densely tomentellous (hairs ferruginous, few-branched, up to 0.5 mm. long), glabreseent, often flexuose; petioles shallowly canaliculate, 1.5- 4 mm. in diameter, 7-12 mm. long, tomentellous as the branchlets; leaf blades thin coriaceous, oblong or narrowly elliptic, 13-35 cm. long, 4-13 cm. broad, cordate, truncate, rounded, or broadly obtuse at base, cuspidate at apex, glabrous above or tomentellous when young and often persistently so on the costa, densely tomentose beneath (hairs stalked, stellate, 3-6-branched, 0.3-0.4 mm. long), the costa plane or slightly raised above, very prominent beneath, the secondary nerves 18-35 per side, straight or slightly arcuate, often slightly impressed above, prominent beneath, the veinlets plane or slightly impressed; staminate infloreseences comparatively simple, once- or twice-branched, 6-13 cm. long, 3-10 cm. broad, the branches slightly flattened, the peduncle up to 4 cm. long, with the branches and flowers densely tomentose (hairs ferruginous, few-branched, 0.1-04 mm. long), the ultimate peduncles swollen at apex; bracts oblong, puberulent on both surfaces, about 5 mm. long, soon deciduous; flowers in ultimate clusters of 5-15, the pedicels slender, 2-5 mm. long; perianth thin carnose, 1.5-3 mm. long, 3-lobed nearly to base, the lobes broadly deltoid, obtuse; androecium
Discussion:
Virola merendonis Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 20: 453. 1922
Type locality: San Carlos, Costa Rica.
Native names: Sangre, Banak, Drago, Fruto dorado, Bogamani.
Although this species appears to be fairly common locally and is very distinct, it escaped description until after Warburg 's major work. In literature and in herbaria Pittier's name has commonly been accepted, but the two types have no essential differences.
Distribution:
Guatemala Central America| Belize Central America| El Salvador Central America| Honduras Central America| Nicaragua Central America| Costa Rica South America| Panama Central America|
Guatemala Central America| Belize Central America| El Salvador Central America| Honduras Central America| Nicaragua Central America| Costa Rica South America| Panama Central America|