Macrolobium gracile Spruce ex Benth.
-
Authority
Maguire, Bassett, et al. 1953. The Botany of the Guayana Highland. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 8 (2): 87-160.
-
Family
Caesalpiniaceae
-
Scientific Name
-
Description
Species Description - Shrub or slender tree 4-20 m. tall, the branchlets pilosulose or pilose. Stipules 2-14 mm. long, 0.5-1 mm. wide, usually caducous, subulate-linear, linear, or linear-lanceolate, pilosulose on the outer surface, glabrous within. Petioles 1.5-6 mm. long, canaliculate, pilosulose. Leaf blades lanceolate, elliptic-oblong, or lanceolate-oblong, 10-40-jugate, the pairs of leaflets 2-8 mm. apart; rachis 4-14 cm. long, pilosulose or uncinate-puberulous on the upper surface and pilosulose or glabrous beneath. Leaflets 2-28 mm. long, 1-8 mm. wide, oblong or linear, the base inequilateral, the upper side obtuse to cordate, the lower side acute or obtuse, the apex rotund or rotund-truncate, retuse to emarginate or less frequently entire, minutely mucronate or apiculate; upper surface pilosulose, or puberulous, or pubescent only at the base with the costa pilosulose or puberulous or very rarely completely glabrous, the lower surface glabrous, generally pilose or pilosulose, the apical-lateral surface of the costa more densely invested, or more or less pubescent only on the apical one-half of the blade and the costa; costa plane to impressed, or salient on the upper surface, salient beneath, the venules obscure. Inflorescences 1-6.5 cm. long, the axis puberulous, the peduncle (when present) 1-3 mm. long; bracts 1.5-3 mm. long, 1-2.5 mm. wide, triangular, triangular-lanceolate, triangular-ovate, or oblong-ovate, glabrous within, puberulous externally; pedicels 1-3 mm. long, puberulous; bracteoles 5-7.5 mm. long, 2-4 mm. wide, oblanceolate, elliptic, lanceolate, or oblong, acute to acuminate, pilosulose or puberulous externally, pilose, pilosulose, or villosulose within, sometimes sparingly so. Hypanthium 1-1,5 mm. long, subsessile, sparingly puberulous, pilosulose, or infrequently glabrous. Sepals five, free or infrequently the adaxial pair partly united, 1-4,5 mm. long, 0.5-2 mm. wide, the adaxial pair often triangular, the others lanceolate or triangular-lanceolate, acute to acuminate, sparingly to sparsely ciliolate, infrequently glabrous. Petal blade 2.5-7.5 mm. long, 3-8.5 mm. wide, commonly transversely oval, sparingly villosulose on one or both surfaces in the center or only in the throat, the claw 3-6 mm. long, villosulose on both surfaces or only at the base externally, ciliolate. Filaments 13-27.5 mm. long, villosulose in the lower part. Stigma capitellate. Style 16.5-22 mm. long, villosulose or pilose basally. Ovary 1.5-2.5 mm. long, 0.5-1 mm. wide, fusiform or oblong, villose or pilose marginally, the lateral surfaces glabrous, 2-ovulate; gynophore 2-3 mm. long, villose or pilose, inserted in the hypanthium at the base, midway or at the margin of the adaxial wall. Fruit (immature to mature) 5-5—11.5 cm. long, 2.5~5 cm. wide, oblong, oblong-oblanceolate, or oblong-obovate, sparingly to sparsely pilose or glabrous on the margins, the carpophores 4-16 mm. long, sparingly pilose or pilosulose. Seeds 3.5 cm. long, 2.5 cm. wide, oval, the testa membranous, venose.