Crateva tapia L.

Creator(s): R. Aguilar

Description: Terminal inflorescence of Crateva tapia based on Reinaldo Aguilar 10181 from the Osa Peninsula, Puntarenas, Costa Rica.

Rights: Rights reside with creator, otherwise property of NYBG.

  • Family

    Capparaceae (Magnoliophyta)

  • Scientific Name

    Crateva tapia L.

  • Primary Citation

    Sp. Pl. 444. 1753

  • Description

    Author : Xavier Cornejo

    Description: Trees or shrubs, to 30 m tall, glabrous throughout. Leaves spirally arranged, palmately 3-foliolate; petioles long; petiolules 3-10 mm long; folioles elliptic to ovate or obovate-elliptic, (3-)8-20 x 2-10 cm, deciduous, the base cuneate to obtuse, the apex acuminate to rounded. Inflorescences erect, terminal, corymbose racemes, usually on new leafy branches; peduncles 6-16 cm long; pedicels 2-5 cm long. Flowers zygomorphic, with open aestivation from early bud; sepals lanceolate to oblong or ovate, the upper part free, ca. 5-15 x 1-3 mm, the basal half fused to the prominently accrescent, massive, hypanthium, nectary covering inside the hypanthium; petals elliptic to oblanceolate, 8-45 x 2-7(-13) mm, inserted on the edge of disk between sepals, the base clawed, the claw 5-11 mm long; stamens 8 to 22 [in Mesoamerica], to 50 [in South America], the filaments ca. 3.5-5 cm long; gynophore 2.5-6 cm long, the ovary globose to ellipsoid or ovoid, the stigma sessile, capitate. Fruits amphisarca, globose to ovoid, 3-6(-8) cm diam, yellow, orange or brown at maturity, the pulp white. Seeds cochleate-reniform, 8-9 x 6-7 x 3-4 mm, the testa smooth; embryo white.

    Common names : There are ca. 60 local names recorded for this species throughout the Americas: MEXICO: árbol del pepe, bulillo, cascarón, churumbela, coscorrón, crucita, hoja de pepe, kolokmay, pepe, ruache, tres Marías, xkolocmax, yuy, zapotillo amarillo. GUATEMALA: granadillo, tortugo. El SALVADOR: anonilla de costa, cachimbo, matazanillo, matazano de mico, tortugo. HONDURAS: cachimbo. NICARAGUA: manzana de playa, matasano. PANAMA: estrella, palo de guaco. LESSER ANTILLES: gally pear, garlic pear tree, grand cosmaya, toke. COLOMBIA: anona de mico, jagua, naranjuelo. ECUADOR: jagua de lagarto, jahua de lagarto. VENEZUELA: chipororo, rabo pelao, toco, toco blanco, parcha, zorrocloco. SURINAM: Koeleroe. BRAZIL: catauari, catauré, catoré, catvary, courabaril, fruto de macaco, insira mashan, kasawam, nina caspi, palo de candela, picarana, tamara, tapia, trapiá. PERU: almendro, tamara; tamara blanca, tamara negra. BOLIVIA: ñadipa, palo nareida. PARAGUAY: Indian orange, payaguayan. ARGENTINA: naranjillo, naranjillo-guaicerú, ñandipá, payaguá naranja (based on herbaria information reported in Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

    Distribution: Crateva tapia is widespread, distributed from Mexico to Argentina and in the Lesser Antilles from sea level to 1000 m (Iltis, 2001; Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

    Ecology: In dry to moist forests, commonly along watercourses, or seasonally flooded areas (Iltis, 2001; Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

    Phenology: On the Osa Peninsula, Crateva tapia has been collected in flower from Dec to Apr.

    Pollination: The flowers of this species are fragrant, it is said that they are meliferous (Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

    Dispersal: "Fruto de macaco", one of the local names of this species, suggest that the fruits are eaten and the seeds dispersed by monkeys (Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

    Taxonomic notes: Crateva tapia is based on Plukenet's genus Aspiocorodon and his tab. 137 is cited in the protologue by Linnaeus (1753). Jacobs (1964) designated Plumier's tab. 21 (1703) as the type of Crateva tapia, but because Plumier's work was not cited in the protologue, can not be used for the type of the generic name. Al-Shehbaz's typification of this species, as well as his decision that the collector of the lectotype of Crateva gynandra (one of the synonyms of C. tapia) was P. Browne (Al-Shehbaz, 1988) not J.E. Smith as was stated by Jacobs (1964) , are correct (Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

    Conservation: Least Concern (LC).

    Uses: MEXICO: the bark has a disagreeable odor, it is reputed to have tonic, stomachic, anti-dysenteric, and febrifuge properties. The roots are very acrid, and their juice applied to the skin produces blisters. The leaves are sometimes used as poultices (Standley, 1961). The fruits are edible, and the wood is used for lumber. LESSER ANTILLES: the bitter and astringent bark is being used against malaria and other diseases in Martinique. COLOMBIA: the indians make a purple dye from the fruits. BRAZIL: the bark is scraped and snuffed as a cure for headache by Paumaris indians. PERU: reported as poisonous. It has been used in witchcraft. The bark is used as poultices to relieve rheumatism. The fruits are used in fishing. PARAGUAY: it is said that the fruit is eaten by the Indians (All of the above is based on herbaria information reported in Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

    Etymology: "Tapia" was proposed by Plumier (1703) as the generic name, but Linnaeus (1753: 444) based this species on Plukenet's tab. 137 (1692), and used "Tapia" as the specific epithet (Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

    Chromosome number: n=13 (Iltis 29193 [WIS], from Jalisco, Mexico, in Cornejo & Iltis, 2008).

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