Heisteria coccinea Jacq.

  • Authority

    Sleumer, Hermann O. 1984. Olacaceae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 38: 1-159. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Olacaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Heisteria coccinea Jacq.

  • Type

    Type.  In sylvis densis Martinicae ad torrentes anno 1755 , N. J. Jacquin s.n. no specimen preserved in Jacquin s herbarium at BM = t. 81.

  • Synonyms

    Heisteria guianensis Engl., Rhaptostylum coccineum (Jacq.) Kuntze

  • Description

    Species Description - Treelet or tree 3-6 m tall; trunk to 10 cm diam. Branches elongate, often almost horizontally spreading. Branchlets slender, subterete. Leaves ovate-oblong or elliptic, apex attenuate or short-acuminate, tip blunt, often subfalcate, base broadly attenuate, subcoriaceous, flexible, dull olive-brown on both surfaces when dry, rather smooth, i.e. not properly wrinkled or tuberculate, laticifers hardly or not visible beneath, 7-14(-20) x (2.5-)3-6(-8) cm, midrib plane above, strongly raised beneath, lateral nerves 6-9 pairs, somewhat irregularly curved-ascendent and looping, flat or faintly impressed above, slightly prominent beneath, reticulation of veins and veinlets inconspicuous on both surfaces; petiole rugulose, (5-)7-10(-13) x 1-2 mm. Flowers few from very short axillary multibracteolate glomerules or axes (1-2 mm long); pedicels slender, 2-3 mm long. Calyx deeply 5-lobed, hardly 1 mm long. Petals ovate-lanceolate, practically glabrous within, white, 1.5 mm long. Stamens 10, alternately slightly unequal. Ovary thickened at base by the adnate disk. Drupe broadly oblongoid or barrel-shaped at full maturity, markedly flattened or truncate on top, densely tuberculate in the dry state, at first shiny green, finally black, 1.2-1.4 x 0.7-1.2 cm, exceeding the fruit-calyx for ca. 3 mm. Fruit-calyx cup-shaped below, expanded in the upper stiffly membranaceous, vermillion-red, 2(-2.5) cm diam. when expanded, lobed to 1/3-½, lobes erect or finally slightly spreading, not plicate, obtuse; peduncle 1-1.5 cm long.

  • Discussion

    Wood red, hard.

  • Common Names

    Bois perdrix

  • Distribution

    Antilles (Windward Islands: Dominica, Martinique; doubtful for Guadeloupe), Venezuela (Miranda/Monagas border; Sucre: Peninsula de Paría); in rain forest, or cloud forest, 400-1000 m alt.

    Dominica South America| Martinique South America| Venezuela South America| Miranda Venezuela South America| Monagas Venezuela South America| Sucre Venezuela South America|