Trichilia cipo (A.Juss.) C.DC.

  • Authority

    Pennington, Terence D. 1981. Meliaceae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 28: 1-359, 418-449, 459-470. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Meliaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Trichilia cipo (A.Juss.) C.DC.

  • Type

    Type. Collector unknown s.n., Cayenne, banks of R. Kourou, fl (holotype, P (ex herb. L. C. Richard)).

  • Synonyms

    Moschoxylum cipo A.Juss., Trichilia sampaioana Harms, Trichilia froesii A.C.Sm.

  • Description

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    Species Description - Young branches appressed puberulous (most trichomes basifixed) at first, becoming glabrous, brown to greyish-white, lenticellate. Bud scales absent. Leaves imparipinnate or pinnate with one leaflet of ultimate pair orientated to simulate a terminal leaflet, 10-26 cm long; petiole semiterete or narrowly winged at base, rhachis semiterete becoming terete in upper half, minutely puberulous, hairs erect or appressed; petiolule 1.5-3 mm long. Leaflets alternate or less frequently opposite, 7-11, oblong to elliptic, apex acuminate to obtusely cuspidate, base cuneate to attenuate, subcoriaceous, 10-21.5[14.1] cm long, 3.5-6[4.4] cm broad, basal leaflets smaller, upper surface glabrous or with midrib puberulous, lower surface with a few scattered appressed hairs or glabrous, sometimes glandular-punctate and -striate; venation eucamptodromous or rarely brochidodromous, midrib usually prominent above; secondaries (13-) 16-18(-21) on either side of midrib, usually rather shallowly ascending, arcuate, slightly convergent to ± parallel; intersecondaries short, usually rather obscure. Flowers unisexual, plants dioecious; 9 flowers usually somewhat larger and fewer than [male]; inflorescence axillary, 10-40 cm long, a broad to narrowly pyramidal, rather laxly-branched, few- to many-flowered, thyrse, minutely puberulous; pedicel 0.5-1(-2) mm long or flowers subsessile. Calyx patelliform to shallowly cyathiform, 0.5-1.5 mm long, with 4-5 broadly ovate, triangular, acute or obtuse lobes, 1/2-3/4 length of calyx, aestivation open, sparsely appressed puberulous. Petals (3-)4-5, fused 1/3-2/3 their length (Sampaio 5768 from Pará, Brazil, has free petals), valvate, 2-2.5 mm long, 0.75-1.5 mm broad, ovate to lanceolate, acute, appressed puberulous outside, glabrous inside. Staminal tube urceolate or rarely shortly cylindrical; filaments completely fused, 1-1.75 mm long and broad, margin with l(-2) lanceolate or subulate lobes alternating with anthers and equalling or only 1/2 their length, glabrous outside, usually glabrous or rarely with a few crisped hairs inside; anthers 7-8, 0.4-0.7 mm long, glabrous; antherodes slender, not dehiscent, without pollen. Nectary absent. Ovary ovoid (2-)3-locular, loculi with 2 collateral ovules, densely puberulous to strigulose; style glabrous, at least at apex; style-head capitate rarely minutely apiculate, held below or at level of anthers. Pistillode smaller, ± conical, containing well-developed, non-functional ovules. Capsule ellipsoid to botuliform, smooth, moderately to densely appressed puberulous, 1.3-2 cm long, 0.6-1.1 cm broad, 3(-4)-valved; pericarp ca. 0.5 mm thick; endocarp thin, cartilaginous. Seeds 2, collateral in each fruit, 1-1.5 cm long; arillode fleshy, strongly developed at apex of seed and extending along adaxial surface, at least lower half of abaxial face of seed remaining exposed at maturity, arillode also developing around abortive ovules, free except for thin line of attachment from micropyle to raphe; seed coat membraneous. Embryo with plano-convex, collateral cotyledons; radicle superior, included. Endosperm absent.

  • Discussion

    Trichilia cipo is closely related to T. surinamensis and their relationships are discussed under that species.

    Relationships

    Trichilia cipo differs from T. tuberculata in the following characters: petals nearly always united 1/3-2/3 of their length (free in T. tuberculata); staminal tube usually urceolate (usually cyathiform in T. tuberculata); capsule smooth, moderately to densely appressed puberulous (prominently verrucose with or without a few scattered appressed hairs in T. tuberculata); and arillode thick, fleshy, strongly developed only at the apex and along the adaxial surface of seed (thin, completely surrounding seed in T. tuberculata).

    The fruit and seed characters also distinguish T. cipo from T. pleeana. It also lacks the reduced basal leaflets of T. pleeana.

    Field Characters: Treelet or tree to 20 m with smooth, greyish to mid-brown bark; the cream-coloured flowers are without scent and flowering occurs from July to December with the fruit maturing in March. The fruit is greyish, with a dark red arillode, and the cotyledons are also coloured red.

  • Common Names

    Lurohy, Requia Colorada

  • Distribution

    Throughout central and western Amazonia, Maranhão, Brazil and also into Cayenne and Guyana. A small tree or lowland rain forest, usually recorded from riverbanks and occasionally from seasonal swamp forest (várzea).

    Guyana South America| French Guiana South America| Peru South America| Loreto Peru South America| Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America| Maranhão Brazil South America| Amazonas Brazil South America|