Caesalpinia pulcherrima (L.) Sw.
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Authority
Acevedo-Rodríguez, Pedro & collaborators. 1996. Flora of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 78: 1-581.
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Family
Caesalpiniaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Erect shrub to 3 m tall; stems prickly. Leaves 18-35 x 14-22 cm; pinnae 5-8 pairs, the leaflets 4-9 pairs per pinna, 1-2.5 x 0.6-1.2 cm, oblong to oblanceolate, chartaceous, glabrous, the apex rounded or slightly notched, the base obtuse or cuneate, unequal, the margins entire; petiolules short, cylindrical, glabrous; petioles and leaf rachises usually without spines. Flowers bisexual on long, terminal racemes, the rachis glabrous; bracts minute, early deciduous. Calyx of 4 spreading, petal-like green to orange, glabrous sepals 1-2 cm long; petals yellow, red, or orange, 1.5- 2.5 cm long, clawed; stamens 10, red, long-exserted, the filaments hairy below; ovary sessile, flattened, reddish, the stigma terminal. Legume oblong, 8-13 x 1.5-2 cm, flattened, glabrous, without spines, dehiscent through both sutures by twisting valves, the apex beaked. Seeds few, 0.8-1 cm long, flattened, cuneate, smooth, brown.
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Discussion
Common names: Barbados pride, dudeldu, dwarf poinciana
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Distribution
Cultivated throughout the island, sometimes escaping cultivation. Along road to Ajax Peak (A2655). Also on St. Croix, St. Thomas, and Tortola; native to South America but widely cultivated and sometimes naturalizing throughout the Caribbean.
South America| Tortola Virgin Islands South America| Saint Thomas Virgin Islands of the United States South America| Saint Croix Virgin Islands of the United States South America|