Caraipa heterocarpa Ducke

  • Authority

    Maguire, Bassett. 1978. The botany of the Guayana Highland--part X. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 29: 1-288.

  • Family

    Clusiaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Caraipa heterocarpa Ducke

  • Description

    Species Description - Tree to 12 m in height; bark exuding a yellow viscous sap; branches smooth, glabrous. Leaves distichous, subcoriaceous, on the lower side slightly pilose along the midrib, otherwise completely glabrous on both faces, lanceolate-ovate or (obovate-) lanceolate, widest at the middle or above or below the middle, (1.75-) 2.2-3.4 times longer than wide, (7-) 10-17 cm long, (4-)5-7.5 cm wide, the base rounded or obtuse, the top obtuse or acute and prolonged in an acumen 0.5-1.2 cm long, the midrib slightly sunken above and prominent beneath, nerves 8-13 pairs, the margin slightly revolute or not, translucent dots not visible; petiole stout, glabrous, 0.5-1 cm long. Inflorescences terminal and in upper leaf axils (10-)20-40-flowered lax panicles, about 10-15 cm long, the branches, sepals and outer side of petals minutely tomentellous, the bracts and bracteoles caducous, the bracteoles inserted at the middle or below the middle of the pedicels, the pedicels stout, 0.8-1.5 cm long. Flower buds globose, before anthesis 7-8 mm long, sepals obtuse, free lobes about 2 mm wide at the base and 3 mm long, inside slightly strigillose, petals oblong, about 1 cm long, ovary ferrugineous-villous. Capsule indistinctly trigonous, obliquely curved, brownish-tomentellous, with 1 (or 2 ?) fertile cell(s), 3-4 cm long, 2.3-2.8 cm wide, exocarp and endocarp not separable, seeds flattened, ovate, toward the top narrowly winged, about 2.5 cm long and 1.8 cm wide.

  • Discussion

    2. Caraipa heterocarpa Ducke, Bull. Mus. Hist. Nat. Paris II. 4: 472. 1932; Arch. Jard. Bot. Rio de Janeiro 6: 67. 1933. Fig 67. Syntypes. A. Ducke 29.10.1929, RB 23456, flowering part only (lectotype RB, n v; isotypes NY, K, P, S, US); A. Ducke 1.2.1930, R B 23456, fr (NY, P) Notes. 1. Prance 3860 represents an especially narrow-leafed form. 2. A collection from western Amazonia (Brazil. Amazonas. Esperanga, mouth of Rio Javary: A . Ducke 1104, M, NY, US) differs by a denser, ferrugineous tomentum of the inflorescence, by smaller sepals, and by a more prominent venation of the lower leaf surface; moreover, it is annotated as an "arvore bastante grande." 3. Two flowering collections from central Amazonia (Brazil. Amazonas. Estrada Manaus-Itacoatiara, km 90, Rio Preto: Rodrigues &. Chagas 3026 = INPA 9572, INPA, M; and from Rio Urubu, between rapids of Lindoya and Iracema: Ducke 1206 = RB 50903, NY, RB, US) possess a foliage similar to C. heterocarpa, whereas the few- to medium-flowered panicles are characterized by glabrous branches and sepals with translucent margins.

  • Distribution

    Distribution. Fig 64. BRAZIL. Amazonas: Manaus, Igarape Mindu, Ducke R B 23456 (NY, K, P, S, US). Ibid, Cachoeira do Mindu, Ducke R B 24075 (G, K, P, S, U). Ibid, Estrada do Aleixo, Ducke 66 (F, K, NY, R, S, US). Ibid, Parque 10, Dionisio sn INPA 3296 (INPA, M, NY). Ibid, Rio Taruma, Cachoeira baixa. Prance et al 3860 (NY); Rodrigues et al 4946 = INPA 13479 (INPA, M).

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