Eschweilera albiflora (DC.) Miers
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Family
Lecythidaceae (Magnoliophyta)
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Scientific Name
Eschweilera albiflora (DC.) Miers
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Primary Citation
Trans. Linn. Soc. London 30: 268. 1874
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Basionym
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Description
Author: Scott A. Mori, G. T. Prance & Nathan P. Smith
Type: Brazil. Amazonas: Rio Negro, forest at Manaquer, no date (fl), Martius 2817 (lectoype, M, photo NY, designated by Mori & Prance, 1990).
Description: Trees, usually less than 15 m tall, infrequently to 30 m. Leaves present at anthesis; petioles 8-14 mm long; blades usually elliptic, infrequently narrowly oblong, 8-25 x 3.5-8cm, with abaxial punctations not conspicuous, chartaceous, glabrous, the base acute, obtuse, or rounded, the margins entire, the apex acuminate to long acuminate; venation mostly brochidodromous, sometimes eucamptrodromous toward base, the midrib adaxially salient, abaxially prominulous, the secondaries in 9-13 pairs, excurrent or slightly decurrent, 1-3 intersecondaries present, the tertiaries reticulate. Inflorescences usually suprafoliar or sometimes in axils of uppermost leaves, unbranched or once-branched, the principal rachis 4-13 cm long, the pedicels 2-3.5 cm long, usually glabrous, sometimes puberulous, usually drying black, bracts and bracteoles caducous, not seen at anthesis. Flowers 3-4 cm diam; hypanthium attenuated into long pedicel; calyx with 6 lobes, the lobes narrowly ovate, 8-12 x 3.5-6 mm, thick, obliquely oriented, imbricate for less than 1/2 length, adaxially concave to cucullate, abaxially carinate, gibbous toward base; petals 6, widely obovate, 15-30 x 11-20 mm, white or yellow; androecium with hood 16-17 x 15-18 mm, yellow, with well-developed double coil; staminal ring asymmetrical, with 177-337 stamens, staminal ring lip present, the filaments 1.5-2 mm long, scarcely to slightly tapered to apex, the anthers 0.5-0.6 mm long; ovary 2-locular, with 6-8 ovules attached to basal placenta, the summit plateau-like, the style obconical, geniculate, 3-5 mm long, not well-differentiated from summit. Fruits turbinate, attenuated at base into persistent woody pedicel, 3.5-6 x 4.5-6.5 (excluding pedicel), the pedicel 1-4 cm long, the pericarp light brown, sometimes lenticellate, 7-10 mm thick, the calyx lobes persisting as woody knobs near apex of fruit. Seeds 2-3 x 1.5 cm; aril lateral.
Common names: Brazil: matamatá (a name applied to many species of Eschweilera). Colombia: duke. Peru: manchimango, manchimango colorado (names applied to numerous species of Eschweilera).
Distribution: Most common in Central and western Brazilian Amazonia and in Amazonian Peru. A few collections have been gathered in southeastern Amazonian Brazil south of the Amazon River.
Ecology: A common small- to medium-sized tree of periodically flooded várzea and igapó forests or in other wet places such as on the banks of lakes and in wet depressions in terra firme forest. A few collections state that this species was collected in terra firme forest but these may be errors caused by poor note taking, that collection has been misidentified, or the presence of wet areas in terra firme.
Phenology: This species has a flowering peak from Aug through Nov in the Brazilian Amazon which coincides with low water levels in the várzea and igapó habitats that it is most common in. A few fruits with seeds have been collected in Feb and Mar but it is difficult to collect seeds because they drop into the water.
Pollination: No observations recorded but most likely pollinated by bees as is the case with all known pollinators of Eschweilera (Gamboa-Gaitán, 1997; Mori & Boeke, 1987, Mori et al., 1978; Prance, 1976).
Dispersal: No observations recorded. The seeds have a lateral aril which indicates that they may be dispersed by animals. In addition, because of the habitat the seeds often drop in the water and may be carried away by water currents. The very thin seed coats indicate that the seeds are not dispersed by fish.
Predation: Lopes and Ferrari (1994) state that white uacari and capuchin monkeys prey upon the flowers and seeds of E. albiflora. However, a voucher specimen is not cited so it is not possible to confirm the species determination. Another species of this genus, Eschweilera ovalifolia, occurs in the same flooded forests and the fact that the seeds are described as small is more suggestive of the larger seeded E. ovalifolia being the species these authors studied. This species distinction is important because the basic seed structure of these two species differs in that E. albiflora has a lateral aril and E. ovalifolia has an aril that surrounds the entire seed (called a spreading aril by us). It is, however, very likely that that flowers of both species are preyed upon by monkeys.
Field characters: This species is distinguished by its usually flooded forest habitat; inflorescences that are unbranched or once-branched racemes and usuallly suprafoliar or less frequently axillary; pedicels that are long and conspicuous and usually dry black; calyx-lobes that are narrowly ovate, scarcely imbricate at the base, and abaxially carinate; an androecial hood with a double coil and a proximal hood sulcus; fruits that are turbinate, possess a calycine ring with peristent, distinct calyx-lobes, and a pericarp that usually drys light brown; and its relatively small seeds with a lateral aril.
Taxonomic notes: Most individuals of this species have glabrous pedicels but a few individuals with puberous pedicels have been collected. Flower color also varies with some individuals with white or cream-colored petals and either a white or yellow androecial hood while other flowers are described as having yellow flowers. Other species of this genus (e.g., E. parviflora) are known to have yellow petals in the morning but change to white in the afternoon. There is also considerable variation in leaf size in this species.
Conservation: IUCN Red List: not on list (Feb, 2014).
Uses: The bark is used for making carrying straps and the wood is utilized as firewood and for making charcoal.
Etymology: The species epithet refers to the presence of white flowers at least in some individuals of the species. Other individuals, however, are described as having pale yellow flowers.
Source: Based on Mori & Prance, 1990.
Acknowledgements: We are grateful to C. Davidson for allowing us to use his images to illustrate the characters of this species.
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Floras and Monographs
Eschweilera albiflora (DC.) Miers: [Article] Mori, S. A. & Prance, Ghillean T. 1990. Lecythidaceae - Part II: The zygomorphic-flowered New World genera (Couroupita, Corythophora, Bertholletia, Couratari, Eschweilera, & Lecythis). With a study of secondary xylem of Neotropical Lecythidaceae by Carl de Zeeuw. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 21: 1-376.
