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FLORA OF GUATEMALA

PAUL C. STANDLEY

AND

JULIAN A. STEYERMARK

FIELDIANA: BOTANY

VOLUME 24, PART V

Published by

CHICAGO NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM

AUGUST 27, 1946

.

FLORA OF GUATEMALA

PART V

FLORA OF GUATEMALA

PAUL C. STANDLEY

Curator of the Herbarium

AND

JULIAN A. STEYERMARK

Assistant Curator of the Herbarium

FIELDIANA: BOTANY

VOLUME 24, PART V

Published by

CHICAGO NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM

AUGUST 27, 1946

THE LIBRARY OF THE

OCT9 1346

UNIVERSITY Of

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

BY THE CHICAGO NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM PRESS

5&0.5

CONTENTS

Families Included in Part V

PAGE PAGE

Leguminosae 1 Zygophyllaceae 393

Geraniaceae 368 Rutaceae 398

Oxalidaceae 374 Simaroubaceae 425

Tropaeolaceae 385 Burseraceae 434

Linaceae 387 Meliaceae 444

Erythroxylaceae 390 Malpighiaceae 468

LEGUMINOSAE. Bean Family

References: N. L. Britton and J. N. Rose, Mimosaceae, N. Amer.

Fl. 23: 1-194. 1928; Caesalpiniaceae, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 201-349.

1930. P. A. Rydberg, Fabaceae, N. Amer. Fl. 24: 1-462. 1919-1929.

Trees, shrubs, or herbs, various in habit, sometimes scandent, often armed

with spines or prickles; leaves stipulate, alternate or rarely opposite, mostly

pinnately or digitately compound or bipinnate, the leaflets few or numerous, small

or large, entire, lobate, or rarely dentate, sometimes stipellate; flowers mostly

irregular and perfect, or regular and polygamous, the peduncles axillary or termi-

nal, 1 -many-flowered ; pedicels solitary, geminate, or fasciculate, usually in the

axis of a bract; bractlets usually 2 at the base of the calyx; sepals in the irregular

flowers usually 5, sometimes 4, united to form a variously dentate or lobate calyx,

or sometimes free, imbricate or valvate; sepals in the regular flowers usually 5,

sometimes 3-6, connate or free; irregular flowers similar to those of the bean

(frijol), the petals 5 or by abortion sometimes fewer, very unlike in form, the

uppermost (standard) usually larger than the others, the 2 lateral ones (wings)

narrower, and the 2 lowest (forming the keel) usually still smaller and often united;

petals in the regular flowers as many as the sepals; stamens generally twice as

many as the petals, rarely as many as the petals, sometimes fewer or numerous,

hypogynous, or usually inserted on the margin of a disk adnate to the calyx, free

or connate; anthers 2-celled, the cells parallel, opening by longitudinal slits or

rarely by terminal pores; pistil 1-carpellate, ex centric, 1-celled; style simple, con-

tinuous with the margin of the ovary, entire or with a small tooth at the apex;

stigma entire, terminal or lateral and introrse below the apex of the style, rarely

extrorse; ovules numerous or rarely 1, inserted along the inner angle of the ovary

in 1-2 series, transverse or ascending; fruit a legume, typically similar to a bean

pod, but often very greatly altered, usually dry, sometimes pulpy within, rarely

drupaceous, most often 2-valvate but often indehiscent, continuous within or

septate; seeds 1-many, affixed along the upper suture of the fruit; funicle often

expanded to form a fleshy aril; endosperm usually scant or none, rarely copious;

cotyledons usually flat and foliaceous or thick and fleshy, the radicle superior,

rarely inferior, straight, oblique, or inflexed.

A vast family, with about 500 genera and more than 12,000

species, represented in all parts of the earth. A very few additional

genera are found in other parts of Central America. The Legu-

minosae constitute one of the most natural of families, recognizable

as a rule by their foliage and fruit. They include many of the most

valuable members of the plant kingdom, especially useful for food

and wood. Some botanists divide the family into three, Papilio-

naceae or Fabaceae, Mimosaceae, and Caesalpiniaceae, but most

authors maintain the group in its historic sense, as here employed.

2 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Probably no key to genera of Leguminosae that ever has been

prepared is wholly satisfactory, since in almost every group there

are exceptions to the characters on which the groups are based.

In some tribes, particularly Phaseoleae and Dalbergieae, the genera

are based on difficult and variable characters, which often make

the generic position of species uncertain. In other tribes, however,

the genera are sharply marked.

Flowers regular, the petals equal or nearly so; petals valvate in bud, generally

united near the base; stamens distinct or united; leaves usually bipinnate,

pinnate in Inga and a few species of Pithecolobium I. Mimoseae.

Flowers more or less irregular, usually conspicuously so; petals imbricate in bud.

Upper petals within the others in bud; stamens usually distinct; leaves bipinnate

or pinnate, rarely simple II. Caesalpinieae.

Upper petals exterior in bud; stamens usually united; leaves never bipinnate.

III. Papilionatae.

I. MIMOSEAE

Leaves pinnate Inga.

Leaves bipinnate.

Anthers tipped with a small gland (this often easily detached).

Flowers capitate; unarmed herbs Neptunia.

Flowers spicate; shrubs or trees, sometimes scandent, usually armed with

spines or prickles.

Valves of the fruit separating at maturity into 1-seeded joints; woody

vines Entada.

Valves of the fruit continuous; plants not scandent.

Legume septate between the seeds, indehiscent Prosopis.

Legume not septate, 2-valvate Piptadenia.

Anthers eglandular.

Stamens as many as the corolla lobes or twice as many.

Margins of the legume persistent, the valves separating from it; flowers

capitate or spicate.

Valves very narrow, scarcely as wide as the thickened margin, continuous.

Schrankia.

Valves of the legume usually much wider than the margins and breaking

up into joints Mimosa.

Margins of the legume not separating from the valves; flowers capitate.

Seeds longitudinal or oblique; herbs, sometimes suffrutescent at the base.

Desmanthus.

Seeds transverse; trees or large shrubs Leucaena.

Stamens numerous, more than twice as many as the corolla lobes.

Stamens free; flowers capitate or spicate; plants armed or unarmed. .Acacia.

Stamens united at or often far above the base.

Legume elastically 2-valvate; plants unarmed; flowers capitate.

Calliandra.

Legume not elastically 2-valvate.

Valves of the fruit very thin, separating from the persistent margins;

plants unarmed; flowers spicate or capitate Lysiloma.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 3

Valves of the fruit often thick, not separating from the margins.

Valves of the legume thin, straight, broad, never contorted; plants

unarmed; flowers capitate or umbellate Albizzia.

Valves of the legume thick, often ligneous or coriaceous, often coiled

or contorted.

Legume broad, coiled, strongly compressed; unarmed trees;

flowers capitate Enterolobium.

Legume various, but not forming a flat coil; shrubs or trees, often

armed with spines or prickles; flowers capitate or spicate.

Pithecolobium.

ACACIA L.

Trees or shrubs, unarmed or usually armed with spines or prickles; leaves

bipinnate, the leaflets mostly small and numerous, sometimes reduced to a leaf-

like petiole (phyllode); petiole usually bearing a gland; stipules often spinescent

and large, or small and inconspicuous; flowers small, 4-5-parted, generally yellow,

in globose heads or umbels or cylindric spikes, the peduncles axillary and solitary

or fasciculate, or in terminal panicles; calyx campanulate, dentate or lobate;

petals more or less united, rarely free; stamens numerous, sometimes 50 or more,

free or nearly so, the anthers small; ovary sessile or stipitate, 2-many-ovulate,

the styles filiform, the stigma small, terminal; legume highly variable in form,

ovate to oblong or linear, terete or compressed, straight or variously curved or

contorted, membranaceous to ligneous, 2-valvate or indehiscent; seeds transverse

or longitudinal, usually ovate and compressed.

Species probably 500, widely distributed, most plentiful in

tropical America, Africa, and Australia. A few besides those listed

here are known from other parts of Central America. Britton and

Rose in North American Flora scatter the species among 12 genera,

a few of which really can claim recognition as distinct groups.

Branches armed with stipular spines, these present only at the nodes, often greatly

enlarged and hollow.

Spines small or at least slender, straight, solid, not hollow; flowers capitate.

Pinnae many pairs A, pennatula.

Pinnae 2-8 pairs.

Legume and leaflets pubescent A. tortuosa.

Legume glabrous, the leaflets glabrous or nearly so A. Farnesiana.

Spines very large, usually hollow, usually punctured by ants, often twisted or

contorted and suggestive of the horns of a bull.

Flowers capitate; legume compressed, dehiscent A. Cookii.

Flowers spicate; legume compressed and dehiscent or terete and indehiscent.

Legume terete, indehiscent, terminated by a long, sharp, spine-like beak;

flower spikes oblong, very dense, the rachis thick.

Spines strongly compressed, concave on the upper surface, with thin

acute edges; legume attenuate at the apex A. mayana.

Spines terete; legume abruptly contracted into the terminal spine.

A. spadicigera.

Legume more or less compressed, dehiscent along one or both sutures, with

a short beak or none; flower spikes oblong or linear, dense or lax, the

rachis thick or often very slender.

4 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Legume opening along the ventral suture only; spines often united for

half or more of their length, the united portion strongly compressed

and broad; bractlets of the spikes not peltate, the spikes elongate,

rather lax, slender-pedunculate '. A. Hindsii.

Legume opening along both sutures; spines mostly united only at or near

the base, elongate and terete, the united portion not conspicuously

compressed; bractlets peltate or not, the spikes oblong or elongate,

usually very dense.

Bractlets not peltate; involucre inserted on the peduncle above the

middle A. hirtipes.

Bractlets peltate, at first hiding the flower buds; involucre inserted

below the middle of the peduncle.

Legume strongly compressed, long-stipitate, 20 cm. long or longer;

leaflets 3-nerved at the base A. Gentlei.

Legume only slightly compressed, 4-6 cm. long, sessile or nearly

so; leaflets 1-3-nerved.

Leaflets 3-nerved at the base, thick A. costaricensis.

Leaflets 1-nerved, thin A. Collinsii.

Branches unarmed or aculeate, the prickles scattered along the branches between

the nodes, always small.

Flowers pedicellate, in head-like umbels or very short, oblong racemes; petiole

eglandular; branches unarmed.

Margins of the leaflets conspicuously revolute A. polypodioides.

Margins of the leaflets not revolute A. angustissima.

Flowers sessile, capitate or spicate; petiole usually bearing a gland; branches

often aculeate.

Flowers in elongate spikes.

Leaflets obtuse A. dolichostachya.

Leaflets acute A. centralis.

Flowers in dense globose heads or in very short, oblong, head-like spikes.

Leaves (phyllodes) simple A. neriifolia.

Leaves bipinnate.

Costa of the leaflets strongly excentric, close to the upper margin.

Plants tall trees, the branches mostly unarmed; flowers capitate;

petiole bearing a single gland A. glomerosa.

Plants woody vines, the branches aculeate; flowers in very short

spikes; petiole bearing numerous glands A. acanthophylla.

Costa of the leaflets central or nearly so.

Legume glabrous; leaflets 1-nerved A. Deamii.

Legume pubescent; leaflets with remote veins divergent from the costa.

A. riparioides.

Acacia acanthophylla (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus. Bot.

18: 488. 1937. Senegalia acanthophylla Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl.

23: 118. 1928.

Reported by Britton and Rose from Guatemala, the locality not

indicated. Chiapas; Costa Rica.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 5

A large woody vine, the branches glabrous, armed with numerous recurved

prickles; petiole and rachis pubescent, bearing numerous elevated glands; pinnae

8-15 pairs; leaflets many pairs, 8-10 mm. long, 2 mm. wide, oblique, acute, glabrous

above, glabrous beneath except along the costa, this excentric, the margins ciliate;

flowers in short spikes, the spikes paniculate; calyx and corolla glabrous; legume

15-20 cm. long, 3 cm. wide, flat.

Acacia angustissima (Mill.) Kuntze, Rev. Gen. 3, pt. 2: 47.

1898. Mimosa angustissima Mill. Card. Diet. ed. 8. no. 19. 1768.

M.filicioides Cav. Icon. PL 1: 55. pi. 78. 1791. Acacia filicina Willd.

Sp. PI. 4: 1072. 1806. A. filicioides Trelease, Kept. Ark. Geol. Surv.

1888, pt. 4: 178. 1891. A. angulosa Bertol. Fl. Guat. 442. 1840

(type from Volcan de Agua, Velasquez). Acaciella angustissima

Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 100. 1928. Acaciella angulosa Britt.

& Rose, loc. cit. Acaciella Rensonii Britt. & Rose, op. cit. 101.

Guajito; Sere (Jutiapa); Guaje; Chali (Volcan de Agua); Barbasol;

Barretillo; Yoca (Chiquimula) ; Timbre (Huehuetenango) ; Pluma-

jillo; Huaj; Ninte (Huehuetenango).

Mostly on rather dry, often rocky, brushy slopes or in thin forest,

frequent in pine-oak forest, sometimes in hedges, 2,700 meters or

lower; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Baja Verapaz; Izabal; Zacapa; Chi-

quimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez;

Chimaltenango; Solola; Retalhuleu; Quezaltenango; San Marcos;

Huehuetenango. Southern United States; Mexico; Honduras and

Salvador to Costa Rica.

Commonly a shrub of 2-3 meters, sometimes a tree of 7 meters or more with

rounded crown, unarmed, the branchlets glabrous to short-hirsute; petiole eglandu-

lar, the pinnae 6-12 pairs or more; leaflets numerous pairs, linear, 4-7 mm. long,

acute or obtuse, usually ciliate, glabrous or somewhat pilose or puberulent,

1-nerved, the margins plane; flowers white, in globose head-like umbels, the pedun-

cles axillary and in terminal racemes or panicles; legume oblong, 4-8 cm. long,

glabrous, acute to rounded at the apex, glabrous or sparsely pubescent, usually

8-12 mm. wide, the valves very thin, flat.

Called "guajillo" in Salvador; "xaax," "cantemo," "cantebo"

(Yucatan, Maya). A common, rather weedy shrub in many regions

of Guatemala, often in second growth. The treatment of the

Acacia species of this alliance (genus Acaciella of Britton and Rose)

has been considered "difficult," but only, it seems, because attempts

have been made to recognize too many species. Britton and Rose

recognized 49 species of their genus in North America, of which

one-third may be distinct. Their numerous other species are to be

relegated to synonymy under A. angustissima. Examination of

their key shows that they used characters of little or no importance

6 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

for separating the various forms, and with recent ample collections

of the group it is obvious that the supposed characters do not hold.

However, if most of the recently described species are reduced to

synonymy, we have one not very variable and easily recognized

species. The group has been studied recently by Wiggins (Acacia

angustissima (Mill.) Kuntze and its near relatives, Contr. Dudley

Herb. 3: 227. 1942), who recognizes A. angustissima with several

varieties. He, however, treats A. filicioides as a species distinct

from A. angustissima. The characters upon which he separates

these two do not hold in the material we have studied.

Acacia centralis (Britt. & Rose) Lundell, Contr. Univ. Mich.

Herb. 4: 7. 1940. Senegalia centralis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

113. 1928.

Dry brushy hillsides, 180 meters; Zacapa (near Gualan, C. C.

Deam 6281, 6282). Salvador, the type collected near San Salvador.

An unarmed tree about 6 meters high, the branchlets puberulent; stipules

minute, setaceous, deciduous; petiole short, slender, puberulent, bearing a rather

large gland near the middle, the pinnae 12-22 pairs; leaflets numerous pairs,

linear-oblong, 2-3 mm. long, acute, falcate, glabrous or nearly so, ciliate; flowers

spicate, white, the spikes axillary, shorter than the leaves, short-pedunculate, the

rachis puberulent; calyx and corolla minutely puberulent or sericeous; legume

unknown.

Called "quebracho" in Salvador. From that country it has

been reported as A. acatlensis Benth., a closely related Mexican

species.

Acacia Collinsii Safford, Science II. 31: 677. 1910 (type from

Chiapas). A. yucatanensis Schenck, Repert. Sp. Nov. 12: 361. 1913.

Myrmecodendron Collinsii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 92. 1928.

Cornezuelo; Subin (Pete"n, Maya).

Brushy plains or hillsides or open forest, 300 meters or less;

Pete"n. Southern Mexico; British Honduras.

A shrub or small tree, usually 5 meters high or less, the branches glabrous;

spines inflated and hollow, 3-5 cm. long, terete, attenuate, straight and somewhat

ascending, usually broadly V-shaped, shortly united at the base, grayish to dark

brown, lustrous, glabrous; pinnae several or numerous pairs; leaflets 15-20 pairs,

linear-oblong, 6-8 mm. long, glabrous, obtuse; peduncles axillary, often clustered,

very short, the dentate involucre inserted near its base; flower spikes oblong, very

dense, the flowers very numerous and densely crowded, the bracts peltate, con-

cealing the flower buds; calyx glabrous; legume only slightly compressed, 3-5 cm.

long, 1 cm. thick, dark ferruginous, acute or obtuse, glabrous, 2-valvate.

The Maya name "subin" used in Yucatan and British Honduras

signifies "cock spur." Called "torito" in Oaxaca.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 7

Acacia Cookii Safford, Science II. 31: 677. 1910. Acacia

bucerophora Robinson, Proc. Amer. Acad. 49: 502. 1913 (type from

British Honduras, M. E. Peck 632). Myrmecodendron Collinsii

Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 92. 1928. Subin (Pet&i, Maya);

Guascanol (Izabal).

Wet to dry thickets or forest, 850 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta

Verapaz (type from Finca Trece Aguas near Secanquim, Alta

Verapaz, G. P. Goll 102); Zacapa; Izabal. British Honduras; Hon-

duras.

A shrub or small tree, 9 meters high or less, the branches glabrous; spines

hollow, 3-6 cm. long, terete, usually brown or blackish and lustrous, broadly

V-shaped, ascending or spreading, glabrous, shortly united at the base; leaves

large, the pinnae 14-28 pairs; leaflets many pairs, oblong-linear, 6-7 mm. long,

obtuse, glabrous; peduncles short and stout, axillary, densely clustered, very

unequal in length in the same cluster, bearing a 3-lobate involucre near the middle;

flowers yellow, crowded in very dense, globose heads; legume linear, somewhat

compressed, 10-30 cm. long, usually curved, glabrous, dark ferruginous, 2-valvate,

sessile, long-attenuate at the apex into a stiff spine-like beak.

Known in British Honduras as "cockspur," "ant thorn," and

"huascanal."

Acacia costaricensis Schenck, Repert. Sp. Nov. 12: 361. 1913.

Myrmecodendron costaricense Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 93.

1928. Subin Colorado (Pet&i).

Moist or wet thickets or in lowland thickets, 300 meters or less;

Pete"n; San Marcos. Southern Mexico; ranging southward to

Panama.

A shrub or small tree, the branches glabrous; spines large, hollow, terete,

gray or dark brown, V-shaped or shaped like the horns of an ox, 4 cm. long or less,

short-connate at the base, glabrous; pinnae 4-8 pairs; leaflets 14-20 pairs, linear-

oblong, 8-10 mm. long, rounded at the apex, glabrous, 3-nerved at the base, at

least in age; peduncles short, axillary, often clustered, puberulent, the 3-lobate

involucre attached near the base; flowers yellow, in rather slender spikes 3-3.5

cm. long; bractlets peltate, at first concealing the flower buds; legume 3-6 cm.

long, little compressed, dark ferruginous, with a long or short beak, glabrous,

2-valvate.

Called "cockspur" in British Honduras.

Acacia Deamii (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 11: 158.

1936. Senegalia Deamii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 117. 1928.

Guaje; Yaje; Orotoguaje.

Dry or moist thickets or thinly forested hillsides, sometimes in

oak forest or on limestone, 200-2,250 meters; Zacapa (type from

8 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Gualan, C. C. Deam 6286); Chiquimula; Baja Verapaz; El Progreso;

Jalapa; Huehuetenango. Reported from Honduras.

An unarmed shrub or tree 2-9 meters high, the branchlets puberulent or

glabrate; petiole puberulent, bearing a cupular gland near the middle, the pinnae

6-10 pairs; leaflets 20-30 pairs, linear-oblong, 4-6 mm. long, obtuse or rounded

at the apex, glabrous above, thinly sericeous beneath, the costa central; flowers

probably white, in small dense globose heads, these racemose and often paniculate;

peduncles often fasciculate, 6-10 mm. long, puberulent, bracteate near the middle;

calyx and corolla glabrous; ovary pilose; legume oblong, glabrous, 9-12 cm. long,

2-2.5 cm. wide, broadly rounded to obtuse and apiculate at the apex, acute at

the base and long-stipitate, the valves thin.

The wood is reported as useful for construction purposes. The

name "guaje," a term of Nahuatl origin, is given in Guatemala and

Mexico to various species of Acacia and allied groups. The name of

the town of Gualan in Zacapa signifies "place where guaje abounds."

Acacia dolichostachya Blake, Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 34: 43.

1921. Senegalia dolichostachya Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 112.

1928. Quiebra-hacha.

At 800-900 meters; Huehuetenango (between Santa Ana Huista

and Rancho Lucas, Steyermark 51338). Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.

A large shrub or a tree as much as 12 meters high, unarmed, the branches

puberulent at first, glabrate in age; petiole bearing a depressed oval gland at

about its middle; pinnae 5-11 pairs, the leaflets about 25 pairs, linear-oblong,

3.5-7 mm. long, very obtuse or rounded at the apex, appressed-pubescent or in

age glabrate, rather thick; spikes numerous, pedunculate, in anthesis 3-4.5 cm.

long, puberulent or glabrate, the bractlets minute, persistent; calyx 0.5 mm. long,

puberulent; legume borne on a slender stipe 1.5 cm. long, 9-13 cm. long, 1.3-1.6

cm. wide, obtuse, subacute at the base, glabrous, flat, the valves coriaceous, with

conspicuous, elevated, laxly reticulate venation, somewhat lustrous.

Acacia Donnelliana Safford (Myrmecodendron Donnellianum

Britt. & Rose) is reported in North American Flora by Britton and

Rose from Guatemala, but the type is really Honduran.

Acacia Farnesiana (L.) Willd. Sp. PI. 4: 1083. 1806. Mimosa

Farnesiana L. Sp. PI. 521. 1753. Vachellia Farnesiana Wight &

Arn. Prodr. 272. 1834. Espino bianco; E spinal; Subin (Oriente).

Chiefly on dry plains or hillsides, dominant over wide areas of

the Oriente and the lower Motagua Valley and elsewhere, often

forming dense stands of wide extent, frequent in sandy land along

streams, chiefly at 1,300 meters or less; Pete"n; Baja Verapaz;

Zacapa; El Progreso; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa;

Guatemala; Huehuetenango; Quiche". Southern United States;

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 9

Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and Panama; West Indies;

South America; introduced in the Old World.

Usually a shrub of 2-3 meters but sometimes a small tree, densely branched,

the branchlets glabrous or nearly so; stipular spines usually white or whitish,

slender, 1-5 cm. long; leaves small, the short petiole bearing a small gland, the

pinnae 2-6 pairs; leaflets 10-25 pairs, linear or linear-oblong, obtuse, 3-5 mm. long,

minutely puberulent or glabrous, the costa almost central; peduncles slender,

axillary, 2-4 cm. long, pubescent; flowers yellow, fragrant, in dense globose heads

1 cm. in diameter; legume 2-valvate, dark ferruginous, turgid, straight or slightly

curved, glabrous, 4-7 cm. long, 1 cm. thick or more, filled with a sweet pulp.

Known in British Honduras as "cuntich" (Maya) and "cashaw";

"cankilizche," "subinche" (Yucatan, Maya); "aroma," "huizache"

(Campeche); "quisache" (Chiapas); "espino ruco" (Salvador). The

shrub, usually called "espino bianco," is abundant or dominant

over large areas of Guatemala, particularly in the lower Motagua

Valley, some parts of the Oriente, and in Quich£ and Huehuetenango.

It is more or less distinctive in habit, and conspicuous because of the

abundant white spines. While the bushes usually are irregular in

form, they sometimes are widely spreading and flat-topped, like

those of A. pennatula. The wood is hard, close-grained, brownish

red to yellow, its specific gravity about 0.83. It is employed prin-

cipally for fuel. The bark and fruit are rich in tannin and are utilized

for tanning and dyeing, while the pods sometimes are used for making

ink. The leaves and pods are much eaten by stock, which probably

aid in diffusion of the seeds. The viscid juice of the pods is useful

for mending broken china. The gum exuding from the trunk is

similar to gum arabic and is suitable for making mucilage. In

southern Europe, particularly about Grasse in France, the shrub is

cultivated extensively for its sweet-scented flowers, known in com-

merce as "cassie flowers," from which perfume is manufactured.

It is reported that about Grasse as much as 100,000 pounds of them

are harvested annually.

Acacia Gentlei Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 22: 77. 1940. Cacho

de toro.

Moist or wet forest or thickets, 200 meters or less; Peten; Alta

Verapaz; Izabal. British Honduras, the type from some unspecified

locality, Percy Gentle 185.

A tree, sometimes 15 meters high, the branchlets glabrous or nearly so; spines

blackish, terete, hollow, slender, 4-4.5 cm. long, suberect and close together, very

shortly connate at the base, glabrous; leaves short-petiolate, the petiole bearing a

gland below the apex, the pinnae mostly 3-5 pairs, the rachises puberulent or

10 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

pilosulous; leaflets 9-18 pairs, oblong, 8-13 mm. long, very obtuse, glabrous or

nearly so, 3-nerved at the base; flowers yellow, spicate, the peduncles solitary at

the nodes; legume linear, on a stipe 2-3 cm. long, 20 cm. long or more, 8 mm. wide,

strongly compressed, long-attenuate into a slender spine-like beak, long-attenuate

to the base, blackish, glabrous, somewhat striate-veined longitudinally.

Called "cockspur" or "red cockspur" in British Honduras.

Sterile material collected near San Rafael Pe"tzal, Huehuetenango,

where the plant is a common tree along streams, is very similar to

A. gladiata Safford, having long, narrow, stout, compressed, sword-

like spines. The species belongs to the bullhorn group. It is not

believed, however, that the Guatemalan Acacia can really be this

species, which is known otherwise only from the western coast of

Mexico.

Acacia glomerosa Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 1: 521. 1842. Sene-

galia glomerosa Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 116. 1928. Espino;

Cantemoc (Pete"n, Maya).

Wet to dry forest or thickets, sometimes left for shade in coffee

plantations, 600 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Retalhuleu;

Quezaltenango. Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico; British Honduras;

Salvador to Panama; Colombia to Brazil.

A tree of 12-35 meters, with a thick trunk, often with buttresses, the crown

broad and depressed, the bark brown or ochraceous, studded with scattered

prickles, the branchlets aculeate or unarmed, tomentulose or glabrate; petiole

bearing a small gland, the pinnae 6-8 pairs; leaflets 12-35 pairs, oblong or linear-

oblong, asymmetric, 10-12 mm. long, obtuse, green above, puberulent or glabrate,

paler beneath, puberulent or glabrate, the costa close to the margin; flowers

white, fragrant, in small dense globose heads, these arranged in large panicles;

calyx strigillose, the corolla densely sericeous; ovary villous; legume narrowly

oblong, 10-17 cm. long, 3 cm. wide, glabrous, rounded to subtruncate at the apex,

the valves thin.

Known in British Honduras by the names "white tamarind,"

"bastard prickly yellow," "prickly yellow," "Jim Crow," and

"wild tamarind"; "espino bianco" (Honduras); "cagalero," "zarzo,"

"palhuishte," "malacaro," "llora-sangre" (Salvador); "teposonte

bianco" (Veracruz). The inner bark yields a small amount of sweet,

yellowish resin. The sapwood is light brown, the heartwood dark

pinkish or dark brown.

Acacia Hindsii Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 1: 504. 1842. A.

bursaria Schenck, Repert. Sp. Nov. 12: 363. 1913 (type from San

Felipe, Retalhuleu, Bernoulli & Carlo 1129). Myrmecodendron

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 11

Hindsii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 91. 1928. Ixcanal; Iscanal;

Subin (Alta Verapaz, Quecchi).

Dry to wet thickets, abundant on gravel bars along and near

streams, sometimes in thin lowland forest, 1,800 meters or less,

mostly at 1,000 meters or lower; Alta Verapaz; Zacapa; Chiquimula;

Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez ; Suchite-

pe"quez; Retalhuleu; Quezaltenango; San Marcos. Western Mexico;

British Honduras to Salvador and Panama.

A shrub or small tree, usually 6 meters high or less, the branches stout and

stiff or sometimes slender, elongate, and drooping, glabrous or nearly so; spines

usually very large, 3-5 cm. long, the free portions terete or somewhat compressed,

spreading or ascending, the spines united below usually for half their length or

more, the united portion usually broadened and somewhat compressed, commonly

blackish and lustrous, sometimes pale; petiole with a row of elevated cupular

glands, the pinnae 6-15 pairs; leaflets 12-20 pairs, linear-oblong, 3-8 mm. long,

obtuse, glabrous or nearly so; flowers bright yellow, spicate, the spikes axillary,

slender-pedunculate, often very numerous, slender and rather laxly flowered, 3-5

cm. long, the bractlets peltate; flowers glabrous; legume 4-6 cm. long, 12 mm. wide,

blackish, usually rostrate, sessile, glabrous, dehiscent along the lower suture, the

valves thick and coriaceous; seeds imbedded in fleshy pulp.

Sometimes known in Salvador by the names "cutupito," "iscanal

negro," "cachito," and "guascanal." This plant belongs to the

peculiar American group called "bullhorn" or "ant acacias," con-

fined to Mexico, Central America, and Colombia, and referred by

Britton and Rose to two separate genera, Tauroceras and Myrmeco-

dendron. They are distinguished from other species primarily by

their large, hollow spines that have more or less the appearance of

the horns of a bull or ox, being united in pairs and either straight or

variously curved. For an account of the group see W. E. Safford,

Acacia cornigera and its allies, Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 4: 356-368.

1914. The classic account of these plants is that of Thomas Belt

in A Naturalist in Nicaragua. In Guatemala there are no less than

9 species of this alliance, as many as are known from all of Mexico.

The shrubs are abundant in most of the lowland areas and often

form dense thickets, especially along rocky stream banks. The

enlarged spines usually are inhabited by rather large and bellicose

ants that bite fiercely and move with great rapidity. A complete

colony of ants inhabits each spine, access to the interior of which is

obtained by a small round hole punctured at some part of the spine's

surface. The moment a bush is molested, numbers of the ants sally

forth to attack the disturber, and they are very persistent in hunting

him out. Birds often make their nests in the bushes, and evidently

the ants do not molest them. Strangely enough, collecting speci-

12 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

mens of the bullhorn acacias is not a very painful task, for if the

branches and spines can be got into the collecting press and it is

closed, the ants seem never to leave the spines but may be found

dead in the dried herbarium specimens. The ants subsist in part on

conspicuous yellow nectar bodies borne on the tips of the small

leaflets. Where these plants occur one will search in vain for a spine

that has not been punctured by ants, but isolated bushes not infested

sometimes are found. Near Retalhuleu the senior author was

interested in finding extensive colonies of the bushes on which it was

impossible to find any punctured spines at all, but this is most

unusual. The usual name for all the species in most parts of Guate-

mala is "ixcanal" or "iscanal"; the name used in Quich£ for one of

the species is said to be "chocol." A caserio of El Progreso has been

named Ixcanal.

Acacia hirtipes Safford, Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 4: 367. 1914.

Myrmecodendron hirtipes Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 92. 1928.

In thickets or pastures, 900-1,500 meters; so far as known,

endemic; Santa Rosa (type from Rio de las Caiias, Heyde & Lux

3299, in part); Escuintla; Guatemala.

A tree of 9 meters or less with spreading crown, the branches dark brown or

fuscous; spines 3-4 cm. long, terete or slightly compressed, spreading or ascending,

united only at the base, puberulent; pinnae 5-12 pairs; leaflets 9-18 pairs, 2.5-3.5

mm. long, obtuse, ciliate, 1-nerved; peduncles 1-2 cm. long, puberulent, stout,

bearing a small involucre above the middle; flowers spicate, the spikes oblong,

very dense, 11-15 mm. long; bractlets peltate, at first concealing the flower buds;

immature legume sessile, compressed, acute at each end, puberulent.

Acacia mayana Lundell, Carnegie Inst. Wash. Publ. 478: 210.

1937. Crucetillo.

Pete'n, the type from San Diego, Rio Pasion, Mercedes Aguilar

495; Alta Verapaz (Rio Icvolay). Tabasco.

A shrub or small tree, the branchlets glabrous; spines large, blackish, 4-7 cm.

long, 1-2 cm. wide, shortly united below, strongly compressed, almost triangular

in cross section, convex on the lower surface, concave on the upper, long-attenuate,

the margins thin and acute; pinnae about 8 pairs; leaflets 10-35 pairs, linear-

oblong, about 12 mm. long, 3-nerved at the base, rounded at the apex, glabrous;

flowers spicate, the spikes racemose, the stout peduncles 1 cm. long or less, bearing

an involucre at the base; spikes very thick and dense, 3-5.5 cm. long, the axis

much thickened; legume dark ferruginous, terete, indehiscent, 8-12 cm. long, 2 cm.

thick, the pericarp thin and fragile, narrowed into a long terminal spine.

The species is remarkable for its large, compressed spines, very

unlike those of other bullhorn acacias.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 13

Acacia neriif olia A. Cunn. ex Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 1 : 357.

1842. A. retinoides Schlecht. Linnaea 20: 664. 1847.

Native of Australia, frequently planted for ornament, especially

in Quezaltenango, and doubtless in other departments.

An unarmed shrub or small tree, glabrous throughout or nearly so, the branch-

lets angulate; leaves represented by leaf -like phyllodes, i.e. petioles, these resem-

bling a simple leaf, linear-lanceolate or linear, 6-15 cm. long, attenuate to each

end, sessile, bearing a gland above the base, many-nerved; flowers yellow, in small

dense heads, these in axillary racemes; legume flat, 7-10 cm. long, 6-7 mm. wide;

seeds oval, subtended by a fleshy aril.

Branches of this are sold in quantity in the Quezaltenango

market, to be used as decorations. They retain their form when

dry, and are much used for adorning altars.

Acacia pennatula (Schlecht. & Cham.) Benth. Lond. Journ.

Bot. 1: 390. 1842. Inga pennatula Schlecht. & Cham. Linnaea

5: 593. 1830. Poponax pennatula Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

88. 1928. Espino negro; Mesquite; Espino bianco; Espino jiote;

Sarespino*.

Brushy plains and hillsides, often on open rocky slopes, frequent

in pine-oak forest, 250-2,300 meters; Alta Verapaz; Baja Verapaz;

Zacapa; El Progreso; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Guatemala;

Chimaltenango; Huehuetenango. Mexico; Salvador; Nicaragua;

Colombia.

A shrub or small tree, 2-6 meters high, rarely as much as 12 meters high,

usually with a short trunk and broad spreading flat-topped crown, the young

branchlets densely tomentose or pilose; spines short, stout, 1.5 cm. long or shorter;

petiole bearing a large cupular gland, the pinnae very numerous pairs; leaflets

many pairs, oblong, 2-3 mm. long, pubescent, obtuse, crowded in the pinnae;

flowers yellow, fragrant, in dense globose heads; peduncles axillary, usually fascicu-

late, 1-2.5 cm. long; legume oblong, pubescent when young, glabrate in age, 6-12

cm. long, 1.5-3 cm. wide, tardily dehiscent, the valves ligneous, thick, dark fer-

ruginous or blackish; seeds globose or nearly so, 7 mm. long, surrounded by pulp.

Sometimes called "espino jiote" in Salvador. This is a charac-

teristic shrub of the plains and hillsides of the lower Motagua

Valley and of many places in the Oriente, also over much of Baja

Verapaz, often forming stands of great extent. It is easily recognized

from a distance because of the peculiar, spreading, flat-topped form

of the bushes. It sometimes grows abundantly in open stands of

pine and oak.

Acacia polypodioides Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 20: 184.

1919. A. Calderoni Standl. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 13: 439. 1923

14 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

(type collected on Cerro de la Olla, near Chalchuapa, Salvador).

Acaciella polypodioides Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 98. 1928.

Brushy, often rocky slopes, 250-900 meters; Zacapa; Chiquimula.

Southern Mexico; Salvador.

An unarmed shrub, the branchlets densely pilose and glandular; leaves small,

the pinnae 2-8 pairs, the petiole eglandular; leaflets 12-25 pairs, oblong, 2.5-6

mm. long, obtuse, lustrous above and puberulent, pale beneath and glabrous, rather

thick, the margins conspicuously revolute, the lateral nerves conspicuous, almost

perpendicular to the costa; flowers white, in dense, globose, head-like umbels,

these axillary or often in terminal racemes; calyx and corolla puberulent; legume

linear-oblong, 3-5 cm. long, 8-10 mm. wide, long-acuminate, acute at the base,

stipitate, pubescent, flat, the valves thin.

Called "guajillo" in Salvador. Britton and Rose recognized A.

polypodioides and A. Calderoni as distinct species, one having

"capitate," the other short-racemose flowers, but this character is

a variable one and not reliable.

Acacia riparioides (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 3:

277. 1930. Senegalia riparioides Britt. & Rose, N. AmeV. Fl. 23:

117. 1928. Sare.

Moist or dry thickets on plains or hillsides, 150-900 meters;

Jutiapa; Santa Rosa. Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico; Salvador

(type from Ahuachapan).

A large shrub or a tree sometimes 6 meters high, the branches sometimes

recurved, usually abundantly armed with small broad-based recurved prickles,

puberulent or glabrous; petiole bearing a small orbicular gland, the pinnae 7-10

pairs; leaflets 15-30 pairs, oblong-linear, subacute, 4-7 mm. long, puberulent or

glabrous, often ciliate, the lateral nerves often conspicuous beneath and divergent

at almost a right angle from the costa; flowers white, fragrant, in globose heads,

glabrous or puberulent, the heads fasciculate in the leaf axils or forming large

terminal panicles; legume flat, 6-11 cm. long, about 2 cm. wide, obtuse and

apiculate, short-stipitate, puberulent, the valves thin.

Called "yaxcatzim" in Yucatan; "zarza" in Salvador. The bark

is reported to be very rich in tannin and to be used in Yucatan for

tanning skins.

Acacia spadicigera Schlecht. & Cham. Linnaea 5: 594. 1830.

Tauroceras spadicigerum Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 85. 1928.

Pico de gurrion; Pico de gorrion; Subin (Quecchi and Maya); Subin

bianco (Pete"n).

Moist or dry thickets or thin forest of the lowlands, chiefly on

the plains, 900 meters or less; Peten; Alta Verapaz; Baja Verapaz;

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 15

Escuintla; Suchitepe'quez ; Retalhuleu; doubtless in all the Pacific

coast departments. Mexico; Honduras; Costa Rica.

A shrub or small tree, 6 meters tall or less, the branches glabrous; spines large,

hollow, terete, 8 cm. long or less, usually pale and divergent, shortly united at the

base; pinnae 1-12 pairs; leaflets numerous, oblong-linear, 5-7 mm. long, glabrous,

rounded at the apex; peduncles axillary, solitary or clustered, usually very short

and thick, bearing a cupular involucre at the base; flowers yellow, the spikes very

dense, oblong, 1-2.5 cm. long, with a thick rachis; bractlets peltate, pointed at the

upper end; legume oblong, broadest near the apex, terete, indehiscent, dark red

at maturity, the body usually 4-5 cm. long and 1.5 cm. thick, contracted into a

thick stipe, abruptly contracted at the apex into a long, slender, needle-like beak;

seeds surrounded by abundant pulp.

This species is well known in Guatemala under the name "pico

de gorrion" (hummingbird beak, in allusion to the slender beak of

the fruit) and is abundant along the plains of the Pacific coast,

often forming dense thickets. The pulp of the mature fruit is eaten

commonly, and quantities of the pods often are displayed in the

markets, being carried from the plains even up to Quezaltenango

for sale.

Acacia tortuosa (L.) Willd. Sp. PL 4: 1083. 1806. Mimosa

tortuosa L. Syst. Nat. ed. 10. 1312. 1759. Poponax tortuosa Raf.

Fl. Tell. 118. 1838.

Dry brushy plains, 200 meters; Zacapa (near Estanzuela, Steyer-

mark 29088). Mexico; West Indies.

Usually a shrub of 1.5-5 meters, much branched, the branches dark ferrugi-

nous or blackish, densely pubescent at first, armed with stout grayish spines 1-3

cm. long; pinnae 2-8 pairs; leaflets 10-20 pairs, oblong-linear, 4-7 mm. long, obtuse,

pubescent; flowers yellow, in dense globose heads, the slender peduncles 1.5-3 cm.

long, pilose, solitary or fasciculate; legume linear, 8-14 cm. long, turgid, about 6-8

mm. in diameter, dark ferruginous, densely pubescent, sessile, often somewhat

constricted between the seeds.

ALBIZZIA Durazzini

Unarmed shrubs or trees; leaves bipinnate, the leaflets very numerous and

small, or large and rather few, with glands on the rachis and between the pinnae;

stipules setaceous or obsolete, rarely large and membranaceous; peduncles axillary

or in terminal panicles, the flowers spicate or in globose heads, mostly 5-parted,

perfect or rarely polygamous; calyx campanulate or tubular, dentate or shallowly

lobate; corolla funnelform, lobate to the middle or less deeply, the lobes valvate;

stamens numerous, united at the base or sometimes higher to form an elongate

tube, often greatly elongate, the anthers small; fruit broadly linear, straight,

compressed, flat, indehiscent or 2-valvate, the valves thin, neither elastic nor

contorted; seeds ovate or orbicular, compressed, the funicles filiform.

16 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Probably 75 species, most numerous in the Old World tropics.

About 3 additional species have been recorded from other parts of

Central America.

Leaflets small, 6 mm. wide or less, or rarely slightly larger.

Branches, peduncles, leaflets, and fruit glabrous or with sparse pubescence of

short appressed hairs A. idiopoda.

Branches, peduncles, lower leaf surface, and fruit tomentulose or densely short-

pilose with spreading hairs A. tomentosa.

Leaflets large, more than 1 cm. wide and often 2 cm. or more.

Flowers capitate, sessile; leaflets mostly acute or acuminate, pale beneath.

A. adinocephala.

Flowers umbellate, pedicellate; leaflets rounded at the apex, not pale beneath.

Leaflets glabrous or nearly so; calyx 4 mm. long; fruit glabrous. . .A. Lebbeck.

Leaflets densely short-pilose beneath; calyx 6-7 mm. long; fruit pubescent.

A. longepedata.

Albizzia adinocephala (Bonn. Smith) Britt. & Rose, N. Amer.

Fl. 23: 47. 1928. Pithecolobium adinocephalum Bonn. Smith, Bot.

Gaz. 57: 419. 1914 (type from Costa Rica). P. discolor Pittier,

Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 20: 464. 1922. Gavilancillo, Palometa (fide

Aguilar).

Moist or wet forest, mostly on hillsides, sometimes along borders

of streams or in other low ground, 1,400 meters or less, chiefly

below 800 meters; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Santa Rosa; Guatemala;

Escuintla; Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu. British Honduras; Hon-

duras; Salvador; Costa Rica; Panama.

A large tree, sometimes 30 meters high with a trunk 50 cm. or more in diameter,

the branchlets glabrous or nearly so; petioles 2-7 cm. long, bearing an oblong or

ovate gland near the base; pinnae 1-3 pairs, the leaflets 2-5 pairs, lance-oblong

to ovate, 2-6 cm. long, usually acute or acuminate, obtuse or subacute at the base,

rather thick and firm, often lustrous above, glabrous or nearly so, with prominent

reticulate venation, pale beneath and glabrous or nearly so, usually bright green

when dried; inflorescence of small racemiform panicles, the peduncles slender,

puberulent, 1-2 cm. long, the flowers in dense globose heads; calyx puberulent,

1.5-2 mm. long, with subacute teeth; corolla 3 mm. long, almost glabrous; stamen

tube included, the filaments creamy white; legume broadly linear, 10-17 cm. long,

1.5-2 cm. wide, short-stipitate, glabrous, 10-13-seeded.

Known in Salvador by the names "chipilte," "chipilse," "cha-

culaltapa," and "conacaste bianco." The wood is brownish,

moderately hard, strong, and coarse-textured. So far as known,

no use is made of it.

Albizzia idiopoda (Blake) Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 44.

1928. Pithecolobium idiopodum Blake, Contr. Gray Herb. 52: 70.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 17

1917 (type collected on pine ridge, Manatee Lagoon, British Hon-

duras, M. E. Peck 437).

Hilly pine forest or on forested plains, 300 meters or less; Pete"n.

Campeche; Yucatan; British Honduras.

A tree, sometimes 20 meters high with a trunk 45 cm. in diameter, the branch-

lets sometimes reddish-puberulent but usually glabrous or nearly so; leaf rachis

bearing a large gland between each pair of pinnae; pinnae usually 3-4 pairs, the

leaflets generally 12-20 pairs, narrowly oblong, 9-18 mm. long, obtuse, subtrun-

cate at the base, sparsely appressed-pilosulous or almost glabrous, paler beneath,

indistinctly veined; peduncles axillary and geminate, short or elongate, the flowers

sessile in small globose heads; calyx puberulent, 2.5 mm. long, with acute teeth;

flowers white, fragrant, the corolla 6.5 mm. long, pubescent; stamen tube about

equaling the corolla tube; legume 10-18 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, glabrous or

nearly so, long-attenuate at the apex, acute or attenuate at the base and long-

stipitate.

Called "salem" in British Honduras, probably a Maya name or a

modification of one. The bark is employed there for tanning.

Albizzia Lebbeck (L.) Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3: 87. 1844.

Mimosa Lebbeck L. Sp. PI. 516. 1753.

Native of the Old World tropics, probably of Africa, and some-

times planted as a shade tree in tropical America; planted in British

Honduras and perhaps also in Guatemala.

A tree, sometimes 15 meters high but usually lower, the branchlets puberulent

or glabrous; leaves large, the petiole bearing a large oblong gland; pinnae 2-4 pairs,

the leaflets 4-9 pairs, sessile, oblong or obovate, 2-4 cm. long, obtuse or rounded

at the apex, obtuse at the base, glabrous or nearly so, reticulate- veined, thin;

peduncles 3-10 cm. long, the flowers fragrant, cream-colored or yellowish, in large

head-like umbels, the pedicels pubescent, 2-5 mm. long; calyx narrowly cam-

panulate, pubescent, 4 mm. long; corolla 6 mm. long; stamens as much as 3 cm.

long; legume oblong or broadly linear, 15-30 cm. long, 2-5 cm. wide, glabrous,

lustrous, pale; seeds 1.5 cm. long.

Called "canjuro" and "acacia" in Salvador. The tree is infre-

quent in Central America but very common in Cuba, as about

Havana. The large pods hang upon the tree long after the leaves

have fallen during the dry season and make a great clatter in the

wind. Because of this clatter, and perhaps also because of the shape

of the pods, the tree is often called "woman's tongue tree." The

wood is used in India for furniture and general construction, and

also for fuel.

Albizzia longepedata (Pittier) Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23 :

46. 1928. Pithecolobium longepedatum Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat.

Herb. 20: 464. 1922 (type from Costa Rica). Cadeno.

18 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Moist or dry forest, 300 meters or less; Izabal; Zacapa; El

Progreso. Salvador; Costa Rica; Panama; Colombia and Venezuela.

A large tree, the branchlets short-pilose; leaves large, the pinnae 2-6 pairs;

leaflets 3-7 pairs, mostly obovate or oval-ovate, often rhombic, 1.5-4 cm. long,

rounded or emarginate at the apex, obtuse or rounded and often somewhat oblique

at the base, softly pubescent on both surfaces, more densely so beneath; peduncles

axillary, 3-7 cm. long, the flowers umbellate, the tomentose pedicels 8-15 mm.

long; calyx tubular-campanulate, 6-7 mm. long; corolla green, tomentose, 9-10

mm. long; stamens pink or white, the tube shorter than the corolla; legume almost

sessile, linear, 15-20 cm. long, 2.5-3.5 cm. wide, densely pubescent, often long-

rostrate.

Albizzia tomentosa (Micheli) Standl. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci.

13: 6. 1923. Pithecolobium tomentosum Micheli, Me"m. Soc. Phys.

Hist. Nat. Geneve 34: 285. 1903. A. Hummeliana Britt. & Rose,

N. Amer. Fl. 23: 46. 1928 (type from Hillbank, British Honduras,

S. J. Record 27).

In forest, at or little above sea level; British Honduras; western

Mexico southward to Yucatan.

A tree, sometimes 15 meters high with a trunk 50 cm. in diameter, the crown

widely spreading, open, the bark pale brown or gray-brown, slightly scaly or fairly

smooth, the inner bark whitish to pinkish red, the young branches densely tomentu-

lose; petioles bearing a large oblong depressed gland near the base; pinnae 3-4

pairs, the leaflets 6-11 pairs, oblong or oblong-obovate, 1-2 cm. long, obtuse or

rounded at the apex, tomentulose or velutinous-pilosulous on both surfaces, paler

beneath; flowers whitish, capitate, the heads small, globose, dense, paniculate, the

peduncles 5-20 mm. long, tomentulose; calyx 1.5 mm. long; corolla 5 mm. long,

tomentulose, the small lobes ovate; stamen tube slightly shorter than the corolla;

legume linear-oblong, 8-15 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, softly puberulent or glabrate;

seeds oval, 8 mm. long.

Called "wild tamarind" and "prickly yellow" in British Hon-

duras; "tepesontle" (Oaxaca); "guanacastillo," "nacastillo" (Vera-

cruz); called "parotilla" in central Mexico; "xiahtsimin" (Yucatan,

Maya). The heartwood is brownish, the sapwood thick, yellowish,

tough, and strong, of about the consistency of hickory (Can/a) ; not

resistant to decay or insects.

CALLIANDRA Bentham

Shrubs or small trees, sometimes herbs, unarmed; leaves bipinnate, the

leaflets membranaceous or coriaceous, small and many-jugate or large and 1-few-

jugate; stipules usually persistent, often crowded at the base of young shoots,

membranaceous to indurate, sometimes spinose; peduncles axillary or in terminal

racemes, solitary or fasciculate, the flowers in globose heads, 5-parted or rarely

6-parted, polygamous; calyx campanulate, dentate or lobate; corolla funnelform

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 19

or campanulate, lobate to about the middle, the segments valvate; stamens numer-

ous (10-100), connate at the base or higher, long-exserted, often greatly elongate

and showy, the anthers minute, usually glandular-pubescent, sometimes glabrous;

ovary sessile, many-ovulate, the style filiform, the stigma terminal, obtuse or

capitate; legume linear, straight or nearly so, narrowed at the base, flat-com-

pressed, with thickened margins, 2-valvate, the valves elastically dehiscent from

the apex to the base, continuous within; seeds obovate or orbicular, compressed,

the funicle short.

Species 150 or more, one in India, the others in tropical America,

a few extending to southwestern United States. A few additional

ones occur in southern Central America.

Leaflets 7 or fewer, mostly 2-10 cm. long, coriaceous; plants woody throughout;

stamens usually purple-red.

Leaflets 6-7, acute or acuminate, the larger ones 10-17 cm. long.

C. rhodocephala.

Leaflets 3-4, mostly obtuse, smaller.

Leaflets abundantly pilose beneath with spreading hairs C. mexicana.

Leaflets glabrous or nearly so, sometimes puberulent on the nerves or with a

few short scattered hairs on either surface C. emarginata.

Leaflets generally more than 7, often very numerous, usually small.

Flower heads in terminal racemes or panicles.

Stipules large, rounded; leaflets mostly oval and 15 mm. wide. . . .C. Quetzal,

Stipules small and narrow.

Pinnae only 1 pair C. Wendlandii.

Pinnae 5-25 pairs.

Leaflets somewhat cultriform, acute, the costa conspicuously ex centric;

corolla brown-strigose C. Houstoniana.

Leaflets straight or nearly so, mostly obtuse, the costa central or nearly

so.

Flowers glabrous; legume glabrous or nearly so C. confusa.

Flowers densely strigose or pilose; legume densely pilose or strigose.

C. grandiflora.

Flower heads all or mostly axillary, solitary or few-fasciculate.

Leaflets chiefly obovate to oval, mostly 7-15 mm. wide or even wider.

Leaflets abundantly pilose beneath C. penduliflora.

Leaflets glabrous or nearly so.

Leaflets 3-7 pairs, membranaceous, not lustrous C. capillata.

Leaflets 7-11 pairs, subcoriaceous, very lustrous C. carcerea.

Leaflets linear-oblong or narrowly oblong, 5 mm. wide or narrower.

Leaves with 2-7 pairs of pinnae.

Branches 4-angulate C. tetragona.

Branches terete.

Flower heads long-pedunculate, the bracts minute . . . . C. portoricensis.

Flower heads sessile or nearly so, the bracts large, ovate-lanceolate,

indurate, persistent C. belizensis.

20 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Leaves with only 1 pair of pinnae.

Legume glabrous; leaflets 5-6 mm. long, rounded at the base.

C. Caeciliae.

Legume strigose; leaflets 8-18 mm. long, obliquely truncate at the base.

C. Tonduzii.

Calliandra belizensis (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus. Bot.

4: 309. 1929. Anneslia belizensis Britt. & Rose in Standl. Trop.

Woods 11: 19. 1927.

Upland Achras forest, 200 meters or less; Pete"n (Carmelita,

F. E. Egler 42-245). British Honduras, at low elevations, the type

from Hillbank, Orange Walk District, H. W. Winzerling VII .4.

A shrub or small tree with very hard wood, the branchlets appressed-hispid;

leaves short-petiolate, the pinnae usually 2 pairs, the rachis hispidulous; leaflets

about 20 pairs, coriaceous, linear-oblong, 8-12 mm. long, acute, glabrous, sparsely

appressed-ciliate, lustrous above, pale beneath; heads 1 or more at the ends of the

branches, sessile or nearly so, large, excluding the stamens almost 2 cm. in diameter,

the bracts very conspicuous, large, striate, persistent, ciliate with long white hairs,

the outer ones somewhat pilose dorsally; calyx 5-6 mm. long, the tube glabrous,

striate, the teeth pubescent; corolla 1 cm. long, glabrous except on the puberulent

lobes; stamens very numerous, 3-6 cm. long; legume 9-10 cm. long, 9 mm. wide

near the apex, attenuate to the base, subacute, densely white-lanate.

Local names are "capulin de corona" and "barba de viejo."

The inflorescences, with their numerous, hard, persistent bracts,

are very unlike those of any other Central American species.

Calliandra Caeciliae Harms, Repert. Sp. Nov. 17: 89. 1921.

C. densifolia Harms, loc. cit., nomen nudum. Anneslia Caeciliae

Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 61. 1928. Sue, Tepehuac (Huehue-

tenango).

Dry, rocky, brushy or forested mountain slopes, 800-1,400

meters; Jutiapa; Huehuetenango (type from Guaxacana, C. & E.

Seler 3006). Southern Mexico.

A stiff shrub 2-4 meters high, sometimes a small tree, the young branchlets

appressed-pilose; leaves often densely clustered on short lateral branches, short-

petiolate or almost sessile; stipules ovate, acute, striate, persistent; pinnae 1 pair,

the leaflets 20-40 pairs, linear-oblong, 5-6 mm. long, acute or obtuse, subcoria-

ceous, ciliate, appressed-pilose beneath or glabrous, conspicuously reticulate-veined ;

heads small and few-flowered, on very short peduncles; calyx 2 mm. long, glabrous,

or puberulent on the short teeth; corolla glabrous, purplish, twice as long as the

calyx; stamens purple and white or pink, elongate, the tube often long-exserted ;

legume 6-8 cm. long, 7-8 mm. wide, rounded and apiculate at the apex, glabrous.

Calliandra capillata Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3: 98. 1844.

Acacia gracilis Mart. & Gal. Bull. Acad. Brux. 10, pt. 2: 311. 1843.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 21

Anneslia Cookii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 68. 1928 (type

collected between Yaxmuxan and Yaxja, Pete"n, 0. F. Cook & R. D.

Martin 209). A. salvadorensis Britt. & Rose, loc. cit. (type from

San Salvador, Salvador). A. izalcoensis Britt. & Rose, op. cit. 69.

1928 (type from Izalco, Salvador). C. gracilis Standl. Field Mus.

Bot. 4: 309. 1929, not Griseb. 1861. C. Cookii Standl. op. cit. 3:

277. 1930.

Chiefly in wet thickets, 1,800 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz;

Santa Rosa; Sacatepe"quez; Chimaltenango. Western and southern

Mexico; British Honduras; Salvador; probably extending to Costa

Rica.

A slender shrub or a small tree, sometimes 6 meters high, glabrous throughout

or with sparse hairs on the branches and leaves; stipules oblong-lanceolate, per-

sistent, 3-5 mm. long, obtuse or acute; leaves long-petiolate, the pinnae 1-3 pairs;

leaflets 3-7 pairs, membranaceous, mostly 1-2 cm. fong, broadly oblong to broadly

obovate, rounded to subacute at the apex, obtuse and oblique at the base, glabrous

or practically so, green above, paler beneath; peduncles axillary, solitary or fascicu-

late, very slender, 2-5 cm. long or longer; heads rather few-flowered; calyx 1-2

mm. long, glabrous; corolla pale green, twice as long as the calyx, glabrous;

stamens numerous, white, 1.5-2 cm. long; legume 5-10 cm. long, 6-10 mm. wide,

glabrous, obtuse or rounded at the apex, attenuate to the base, containing numer-

ous seeds, straight or slightly falcate.

As here treated, the species includes several of those recognized

by Britton and Rose, all based upon variable and inconsequential

characters. Several additional species that they recognized are

reducible to its synonymy.

Calliandra carcerea Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus. Bot. 23:

161. 1944. Tamarindo de montana.

Known only from the type, El Progreso, slopes of quebradas,

between Calera and middle slopes of Volcan Siglo, 2,000-2,200

meters, Steyermark 42985.

A shrub or small tree, the branches slender, subterete, ochraceous, densely

hirtellous when young; stipules small, lanceolate, rather rigid, persistent, attenuate-

acuminate, brown-hirtellous; leaves on petioles 10-14 mm. long, the pinnae 1 pair,

4.5-7.5 cm. long; leaflets 7-11 pairs, unequal in size and often oblique, coriaceous,

very lustrous, oblong-elliptic to ovate, 12-23 mm. long, mostly 4-8 mm. wide,

obtuse or subacute, obtuse or rounded at the oblique base, glabrous, ciliate,

penninerved, the nerves and veins prominulous on both surfaces and laxly reticu-

late; peduncles axillary, solitary, slender, about 2 cm. long, hirtellous, the heads

rather few-flowered; bracts 2 mm. long, linear-lanceolate, puberulent; calyx

glabrous, puberulent on the lobes, 3 mm. long, striate, the teeth very short;

corolla 7-8 mm. long, glabrous, the limb pubescent on the teeth; stamens much

elongate, dark bright red; legume borne on a stipe 2.5-3 cm. long, linear, straight,

22 FIELD IANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

7-7.5 cm. long, 7-8 mm. wide, obtuse and apiculate, attenuate at the base,

glabrous.

Calliandra confusa Sprague & Riley, Kew Bull. 371. 1923

(type from Coban, Alta Verapaz, Tuerckheim 690). Anneslia con-

fusa Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 70. 1928. Cabello de angel;

Canilla.

Dry to wet thickets, often on steep open slopes, 300-1,800 meters;

Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Sacate-

pe"quez; Solola; Retalhuleu; Quezaltenango. Chiapas; British Hon-

duras; Costa Rica; Panama.

Usually a shrub of 2-3 meters but sometimes a small tree 6 meters high,

sparsely branched or often simple, the young branches and leaves more or less

appressed-setulose or strigose with ferruginous hairs, glabrate in age; leaves

petiolate, the pinnae about Impairs; leaflets commonly 25-30 pairs, linear, acute

or obtuse, sometimes appressed-ciliate, the costa almost central; inflorescence

terminal, consisting of a short or elongate raceme of few or numerous heads;

peduncles fasciculate, short; calyx 1.5-2 mm. long; corolla 5-6 mm. long, glabrous,

green, the lobes subacute; stamens purple-red, 4 cm. long, very numerous; legume

commonly 8-11 cm. long and 12 mm. wide, glabrous or nearly so, long-attenuate

to the base, brownish, the margins strongly thickened.

The Maya name "ichumpich" is reported from British Honduras.

When in bloom the shrub is a showy and rather handsome one, the

large heads with their very numerous, hair-like stamens being highly

colored in purple-red.

Calliandra emarginata (Humb. & Bonpl.) Benth. Lond. Journ.

Bot. 3: 95. 1844. Inga emarginata Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd. Sp.

PI. 4: 1009. 1806. (T)Inga semicordata Bertol. Fl. Guat. 441. 1840

(type from Guatemala, Velasquez). Anneslia centralis Britt. &

Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 52. 1928. A. yucatanensis Britt. & Rose, op.

cit. 53. 1928. A. cruziana Britt. & Rose, op. cit. 54. 1928. A.

juchitana Britt. & Rose, op. cit. 55. 1928. C. rivalis Lundell, Bull.

Torrey Club 64: 549. 1937 (type from Rio Frio, San Agustin, El

Cayo District, British Honduras, C. L. Lundell 6610).

Dry, open, often rocky slopes or plains, often in pine forest,

1,600 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; El Progreso; Izabal;

Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Huehuetenango. Southern Mexico; British

Honduras; Honduras.

Usually a dense gnarled shrub a meter high or less, or in wet regions some-

times becoming a small tree of 6 meters or less, the branches short-pilose or

glabrate; stipules small and inconspicuous, subulate; leaves petiolate, the pinnae

1 pair, the leaflets 11-2 pairs (that is, each pinna with 3 leaflets), oblong to broadly

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 23

obovate, rounded to subacute, sometimes subemarginate, 1-5 cm. long or some-

what larger, reticulate- veined, glabrous or nearly so, at least in age; peduncles

axillary or subpaniculate at the ends of the branches, 1-3 cm. long; heads mostly

rather few-flowered; calyx 1.5-2 mm. long, glabrous or almost so; corolla 5-7 mm.

long, glabrous or nearly so; stamens bright red, 2.5 cm. long; legume 8-10 cm.

long, 8-12 mm. wide, attenuate to the base, glabrous.

This has been reported from Guatemala as C. tergemina Benth.

It is probably the plant reported from Guatemala by Hemsley as

C. Seemanni Benth., which is a Panama species, perhaps not distinct

from C. emarginata. Britton and Rose multiplied inordinately the

species of this group, as is obvious upon mere examination of their

key to species and much more evident when a large series of speci-

mens is examined. Several additional Mexican synonyms of the

species could be cited. The leaflets, even on specimens from the

same locality, vary so much in texture, shape, and size that it is

evident these characters do not afford a basis for separating closely

related species, and no better means of segregating them are appar-

ent. Dwarf plants of this species with numerous heads of bright

red flowers are very pretty and can be recognized from a long dis-

tance in the often sparse vegetation where they occur. Where

more abundantly supplied with moisture, the plants sometimes

produce paler flowers, and those of some collections are described

as having even white stamens.

Calliandra grandiflora (L/He'r.) Benth. in Hook. Journ. Bot. 2:

139. 1840. Mimosa grandiflora L'He'r. Sert. Angl. 30. 1788. Anneslia

Conzattiana Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 72. 1928. C. grandiflora

f. pubescens Micheli ex Bonn. Smith, Enum. PI. Guat. 4: 51. 1895,

nomen. Cabellos de angel; Barbasol; Barba de ledn; Senorita de monte;

Guajito real (fide Aguilar) ; Cola de tijereta.

Dry or moist, brushy or open hillsides, often in pine or oak forest,

frequently in rocky places, 1,000-2,700 meters; Alta Verapaz;

Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Guatemala; Sacatepe*quez; Chimal-

tenango; Solola; Quiche"; Huehuetenango; Quezaltenango. Southern

Mexico.

Commonly a shrub of 1-2 meters, simple or with few branches, sometimes a

small tree of 5-6 meters, the branchlets and leaf rachises more or less short-pilose

with brownish or whitish hairs; leaves petiolate, the pinnae 8-20 pairs; leaflets

20-40 pairs, linear-oblong, straight, 4-7 mm. long, acute or obtuse, ciliate, glabrous

or sparsely appressed-pilosulous beneath; racemes short and dense or often

elongate, with a thick rachis, the peduncles of the heads short, the flowers short-

pedicellate; calyx 2-4 mm. long, strigose; corolla strigose, 10-12 mm. long; stamens

purple-red or bright red, 5 cm. long, numerous; legume 6-9 cm. long, 12-15 mm.

24 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

wide, densely hispid, obtuse or rounded and rostrate at the apex, containing usually

3-5 seeds.

This is a handsome plant, in general appearance much like the

more common C. confusa.

Calliandra Houstoniana (Mill.) Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat.

Herb. 23: 386. 1922. Mimosa Houstoniana Mill. Gard. Diet. ed. 8.

No. 16. 1768. C. Houstoni Benth. in Hook. Journ. Bot. 2: 139. 1840.

Vainillo.

Brushy or open, moist or dry slopes, often on faces of cliffs,

sometimes in pine-oak forest, 2,200 meters or less; Peten; Alta

Verapaz; Izabal; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Guatemala;

Chimaltenango; Huehuetenango. Southern Mexico; British Hon-

duras; Honduras; Salvador.

A shrub 1-3 meters high, simple or with few branches, the stems densely

pilose or hirsute; pinnae 7-12 pairs, the leaflets 30-40 pairs, oblong-linear, some-

what cultriform, 4-7 mm. long, acute, coriaceous, glabrous and lustrous above,

paler beneath and strigose; racemes short or elongate, the heads few or numerous,

short-pedunculate, the flowers short-pedicellate; calyx 2 mm. long, ferruginous-

strigose; corolla 8-10 mm. long, densely strigose; stamens purple-red, 4-5 cm.

long, very numerous; legume 8-12 cm. long, 1.5-2 cm. wide near the apex, densely

brown-hispid, obtuse and apicate, attenuate to the base, the valves very thick.

Called "charamusco" in Tabasco and "hierba de burro" in

Chiapas. According to the U. S. Dispensatory, the root bark

(probably also of other related species), under the name "pambotano

bark," has been highly recommended in Europe as an antiperiodic.

It is said also to contain an alkaloid that produces death by systolic

arrest of the heart.

Calliandra mexicana Brandeg. Univ. Calif. Publ. Bot. 10:

183. 1922. Anneslia Deamii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 56.

1928 (type from Gualan, Zacapa, C. C. Deam 6258). Calliandra

Deamii Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 4: 309. 1929. Pata de venado;Barba

de cabro (fide Aguilar).

Generally on rather dry, rocky, brushy or open slopes, 200-1,500

meters; Pete"n; Baja Verapaz; El Progreso; Zacapa; Chiquimula;

Jalapa; Jutiapa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Huehuetenango. Yucatan.

Usually a low, gnarled, often depressed shrub a meter high or less, but some-

times taller and as much as 4.5-9 meters high, the branches short-pilose; stipules

minute, lanceolate; leaves petiolate, the pinnae 1 pair, the leaflets \}4 or 2 pairs,

oblong or broadly obovate, mostly 1-2.5 cm. long, sometimes larger, obtuse or

rounded at the apex, obtuse at the base, rather densely pilose on both surfaces,

more densely so beneath, reticulate-veined; peduncles mostly axillary, solitary or

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 25

fasciculate, about equaling the petioles, the heads few-flowered; calyx tubular-

campanulate, 2-2.5 mm. long, short-pilose; corolla 6 mm. long, pubescent; stamens

purple-red; legume 5-11 cm. long, 6-7 mm. wide; densely and finely pubescent,

acute or obtuse, long-attenuate to the base.

This species exhibits about the same variation in shape and size

of leaflets that is found in C. emarginata, and is probably no more

than a pubescent variety of that. It is quite probable, also, that the

proper and older name for the species is C. tetraphylla (Don) Benth.

Calliandra penduliflora Rose, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 5: 193.

1899. Anneslia penduliflora Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 69.

1928. A. chapaderoana Britt. & Rose, loc. cit. (type from Chapadero,

Santa Rosa, Heyde & Lux 3740). C. chapaderoana Standl. Field

Mus. Bot. 4: 309. 1931. Chichipil; Chipilin de monte.

Moist or dry, brushy or open slopes, 250-1,800 meters; Baja

Verapaz; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Guatemala; Chimaltenango; Solola;

Quiche* ; Huehuetenango. Southern Mexico.

A slender shrub 3-4.5 meters high with pale stems, the branchlets densely

short-pilose, in age glabrate; stipules lance-oblong, 6-10 mm. long, striate; pinnae

1-3 pairs, the leaflets 4-6 pairs, broadly oblong to broadly obovate, mostly 2-3 cm.

long, sometimes larger, rounded at the apex, obtuse and oblique at the base,

appressed-pilose on both surfaces, sometimes glabrate above; peduncles mostly

axillary and solitary, often greatly elongate, sometimes paniculate at the ends of

the branches; flowers glabrous, the calyx short; corolla pale green, 4 mm. long;

stamens white or pinkish, 2-4 cm. long; legume 5-8 cm. long, 6-10 mm. wide,

glabrous, obtuse to broadly rounded at the apex, short-attenuate at the base.

Called "barbon montaneY' in Salvador.

Calliandra portoricensis (Jacq.) Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3:

99. 1844. Mimosa portoricensis Jacq. Coll. Bot. 4: 143. 1790.

Tamarindo de monte'.

Moist or wet thickets, rarely on dry hillsides, often in second

growth, 1,500 meters or less; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Chiquimula;

Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez ; Quiche*;

Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu; Quezaltenango; San Marcos; Huehue-

tenango. Southern Mexico; British Honduras; Salvador to Costa

Rica and Panama; West Indies.

A shrub of 2-4 meters, sometimes herbaceous almost throughout, occasionally

weak and subscandent, the branchlets puberulent or glabrate, sometimes short-

pilose; pinnae 2-6 pairs, the leaflets 10-30 pairs, oblong-linear, 8-16 mm. long,

straight or nearly so, thin, ciliate, obtuse or rounded at the apex, glabrous or

nearly so; peduncles axillary, 3-10 cm. long, solitary or fasciculate, the heads

usually many-flowered; calyx 2 mm. long or shorter, glabrous; corolla pale green,

26 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

3-4 mm. long; stamens very numerous, white, 1.5-2 cm. long; legume 4-10 cm.

long, 6-11 mm. wide, obtuse or rounded at the apex, attenuate to the base, gla-

brous or nearly so, usually with numerous seeds.

The name "riverain shrub" is reported from British Honduras;

"guacamaya months" (Salvador). The species has been reported

from Guatemala as C. caracasana (Jacq.) Benth., a South American

species doubtfully distinct from C. portoricensis. The flower heads

with their crowded long white stamens are pretty and graceful when

the flowers first open, reminding one of powder puffs, but they

quickly become bedraggled by dew and showers.

Calliandra Quetzal Bonn. Smith, Enum. PI. Guat. 8: 36. 1907.

Anneslia Quetzal Donn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 13: 28. 1888.

Quich4 ; Baja Verapaz, the type from Santa Rosa, 1,500 meters,

Tuerckheim 1324.

A low glabrous shrub; stipules rounded or reniform, 1.5-3.5 cm. wide, per-

sistent; leaves petiolate, the pinnae 1-3 pairs; leaflets 6-8 pairs, mostly oval,

2.5-3.5 cm. long, rounded or very obtuse at the apex, rounded or subcordate at

the base, coriaceous, paler beneath; inflorescence terminal, elongate, 10-20 cm.

long, the peduncles fasciculate, 1-2 cm. long; flowers 4-5 in each head or umbel,

the pedicels 4-6 mm. long; calyx 4-6 mm. long, the lobes very obtuse; corolla

12-15 mm. long, the lobes lance-oblong, acute, venose; stamens 5-7 cm. long;

legume 10 cm. long, 1.5 cm. wide near the apex, attenuate to the base, the valves

coriaceous, their margins much thickened.

The species seems to be a very local and rare one. We have

observed but not collected what is probably the same plant, in

flower at the end of the dry season, on dry rocky hills above Salama.

The specific name is that of the national bird of Guatemala.

Calliandra rhodocephala Donn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 49: 454.

1910 (type from Puerto Barrios, Izabal, C. C. Deam 6015). Anneslia

rhodocephala Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 56. 1928.

Wet thickets or forest, at or near sea level; Izabal. British

Honduras.

A shrub or small tree, sometimes 3-5 meters high but usually lower, with few

branches, glabrous almost throughout but often with a few weak hairs on the

young branchlets, leaf rachis, and peduncles; stipules lance-ovate, about 8 mm.

long, striate, persistent, crowded at the bases of the branchlets; leaves on very

short petioles, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 3 or 3% pairs, lance-oblong to elliptic-

lanceolate, 3-13 cm. long, 1.5-4.5 cm. wide, the lower ones much smaller than the

upper ones, acute to long-acuminate, subcoriaceous, very lustrous, the venation

conspicuous; peduncles solitary or fasciculate, mostly at the ends of the stout

branches, 1-3 cm. long, the heads many-flowered; calyx 3 mm. long; corolla

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 27

8 mm. long; stamens bright red, 2.5 cm. long, very numerous, the tube slightly

longer than the corolla.

A handsome and very showy shrub, occasional about Puerto

Barrios, in pastures just back of the town, and collected also at

Entre Rios.

Calliandra tetragona (Willd.) Benth. in Hook. Journ. Bot. 2:

139. 1840. Acacia tetragona Willd. Sp. PI. 4: 1069. 1806. Anneslia

tetragona Bonn. Smith, Enum. PI. Guat. 1: 10. 1889. C. portoricensis

var. multijuga Micheli in Donn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 20: 285. 1895

(type from Casillas, Santa Rosa, Heyde & Lux 4148).

Moist or wet thickets, 200-1,500 meters; Alta Verapaz; Chi-

quimula; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Retalhuleu. Southern Mexico;

British Honduras; Honduras; Costa Rica; northwestern South

America.

A shrub 2-3 meters high, often herbaceous almost throughout, the branches

tetragonous, usually densely short-pilose; stipules lanceolate, striate, greenish,

6-8 mm. long; pinnae 4-7 pairs, the leaflets 15-25 pairs, oblong-linear, thin, 6-12

mm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex, ciliate; peduncles axillary, solitary or

fasciculate, 4-7 cm. long, the heads dense, many-flowered; calyx 3 mm. long,

glabrous; corolla pale green, 6 mm. long, glabrous; stamens 4 cm. long, white,

very numerous; legume 6-12 cm. long, 7-12 mm. wide, rounded at the apex,

glabrous, containing numerous seeds, the valves rather thin, much thickened on

the margins.

Distinguished from all other Guatemalan species by the con-

spicuously 4-sided stems.

Calliandra Tonduzii (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus. Bot.

4: 309. 1929. Anneslia Tonduzii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 61.

1928 (type from Costa Rica). A. chiapensis Britt. & Rose, loc. cit.

(type collected near Tapachula, Chiapas).

Most often on rocky stream banks, growing close to the water,

600 meters or less; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Suchitepe"quez; Retal-

huleu; Quezaltenango. Oaxaca and Chiapas; Honduras; Costa

Rica; Panama.

A shrub or small tree 4-7 meters high, with a depressed spreading crown, the

branchlets sparsely pubescent or glabrate; stipules lanceolate, striate, persistent,

3-4 mm. long; petioles 1 cm. long or shorter, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 10-17

pairs, oblong or lance-oblong, 8-18 mm. long, acute or acutish, subcoriaceous,

reticulate- veined, lustrous, glabrous or nearly so, ciliate; peduncles axillary, very

short, the heads few-flowered; calyx 2 mm. long, glabrous or nearly so; corolla

white, glabrous, 8 mm. long; stamens 4 cm. long, the filaments purple-red; legume

8-14 cm. long, 6-10 mm. wide, densely strigose with brownish or blackish hairs,

the valves thick, the margins greatly thickened.

28 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Britton and Rose are in error in describing the fruit as glabrous,

although it does appear so to the naked eye. A specimen collected

by Skutch (the specimen in the Herbarium of Chicago Museum bears

an erroneous label) shows a curious abnormality, presumably

teratological. While most of the flowers are normal, in a few the

stamen tube is greatly elongate, about 2 cm. long, and trumpet-

shaped, being dilated above to a breadth of about 8 mm., with the

free filaments widely spaced along its margin. This is probably the

species reported from Guatemala (Patulul) as C. magdalenae Benth.

Galliandra Wendlandii Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 30: 556. 1875.

Feuilleea Wendlandii Kuntze, Rev. Gen. 1: 189. 1891. Anneslia

Wendlandii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 73. 1928.

Type said to have been collected in Guatemala by Wendland.

Similar in habit, pubescence, flowers, and fruit to C. Houstoniana, velutinous-

villous; petioles 4-6 mm. long, the pinnae 1 pair, the leaflets numerous, linear,

falcate, 4-6 mm. long; racemes elongate, thyrsiform, the flowers pedicellate,

strigose-sericeous; stamens numerous, purple-red, 6-7.5 cm. long; legume thick,

densely villous.

Known apparently only from the original collection, and we

have seen no representation of the species, which should be easy of

recognition. There is no certainty that it really is a Guatemalan

plant.

DESMANTHUS Willdenow

Plants unarmed, herbaceous or suffrutescent, the branches angulate-striate;

leaves bipinnate, the leaflets small and narrow, a gland present on the petiole

between the lowest pair of pinnae; flowers capitate, small, the heads usually few-

flowered, the peduncles axillary, solitary; flowers all perfect or the lowest sterile,

sometimes apetalous, 5-parted, sessile; calyx campanulate, short-dentate; petals

free or slightly coherent, valvate; stamens 10 or 5, free, exserted, the anthers

eglandular; ovary subsessile, glabrous, many-ovulate, the style subulate or thick-

ened above, the stigma terminal, small, concave; legume linear, straight or falcate,

acute, compressed and flat, membranaceous-coriaceous, 2-valvate, continuous

within or septate between the seeds; seeds longitudinal or oblique, ovate, com-

pressed.

Bentham and Hooker estimated the number of species at 8,

while Britton and Rose record 26 for North America, a rather exces-

sively optimistic number. All are American, but one has become

naturalized in tropical Asia. Only the following species is known

from Central America.

Desmanthus virgatus (L.) Willd. Sp. PL 4: 1047. 1806.

Mimosa virgata L. Sp. PI. 519. 1753. D. depressus Humb. & Bonpl.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 29

ex Willd. Sp. PL 4: 1046. 1806. Acuan virgatum Medic. Theod. 62.

1786. A. latum Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 132. 1928. Frijolillo.

Moist or dry thickets, often in sandy fields or waste ground,

sometimes along beaches or about salt flats, 800 meters or less;

Pete*n; Zacapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Suchitepe'quez;

Retalhuleu. Florida; Texas; Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador

and Panama; West Indies; South America; naturalized in tropical

Asia.

Plants herbaceous or suffrutescent, variable in habit, often decumbent but

frequently stiffly erect and a meter high, the stems glabrous or sparsely pubescent,

often much branched; stipules setiform, 3-4 mm. long; leaves small, petiolate,

the pinnae 1-7 pairs; leaflets 8-20 pairs, linear or linear-oblong, 3-9 mm. long,

thin, usually glabrous, rounded and apiculate at the apex; peduncles 1-5 cm. long,

glabrous or nearly so, the flowers whitish; stamens 10; calyx and corolla almost

minute, glabrous; legumes few or several in each head, linear, straight or slightly

curved, 3-8 cm. long, 3-5 mm. wide, acute or acuminate, the seeds oblique.

An inconspicuous weedy plant, often plentiful during the wet

months. D. depressus has often been recognized as a distinct species,

but we are in agreement with Fawcett and Rendle (Fl. Jam.), who

were unable to find satisfactory characters for separating it from

D. virgatus. Britton and Rose refer the forms we have placed here

to three species, but the characters by which they attempt to key

them are inconstant and untenable.

ENTADA Adanson

Woody vines, unarmed or aculeate; leaves bipinnate, sometimes tendril-

bearing at the apex, the leaflets large or small, numerous, the petioles without

glands; stipules small, setaceous; flowers 5-parted, sessile, spicate, the spikes

usually paniculate; calyx campanulate, shallowly dentate; petals free or slightly

coherent, valvate; stamens 10, free, short-exserted, the anthers tipped with a

deciduous gland; ovary subsessile, many-ovulate, the style filiform, the stigma

terminal, truncate, concave; legume straight or arcuate, often gigantic, thin to

coriaceous or ligneous, the sutures thickened, the valves articulate between the

seeds; seeds orbicular.

Perhaps 15 species, in the tropics of both hemispheres, most of

them in Africa. Only the following are known from continental

North America. Britton and Rose placed each of the following

species in a separate genus. It must be admitted that here as else-

where in the Leguminosae some defense can be made of the generic

segregations, but if the same process were applied throughout the

family in all parts of the world, the number of minor genera would

soon reach fantastic figures, and no practical advantage is to be

gained by such a procedure.

30 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Stems and leaves densely armed with recurved prickles E. patens.

Stems and leaves unarmed.

Legume ligneous; leaves often ending in tendrils; flower spikes solitary or 2-3

together, extra-axillary E. phaseoloides.

Legume chartaceous; leaves without tendrils; flower spikes in dense terminal

racemes E. polystachia.

Entada patens (Hook. & Am.) Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb.

23: 349. 1922. Inga patens Hook. & Am. Bot. Beechey Voy. 419.

1840. Piptadenia patens Benth. Bot. Voy. Sulph. 89. 1844. Mimosa

gualanensis Rob. & Bartl. Proc. Amer. Acad. 43: 53. 1907 (type from

Gualan, Zacapa, C. C. Deam 224). Pseudoentada patens Britt. &

Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 192. 1928. Cola de iguana.

Usually in dry thickets on plains or hillsides, 700 meters or less;

Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Suchitepe"quez; Retal-

huleu; San Marcos. Southern and western Mexico; Salvador;

Nicaragua.

A small or large vine, the stems and leaf rachis densely armed with short

recurved prickles, the young branches puberulent or glabrate; pinnae 2-4 pairs,

the leaflets 3-6 pairs, orbicular to obovate, 1-5 cm. long, rounded at each end,

glabrous above, paler beneath, usually pilose along the costa; inflorescence 20-30

cm. long, puberulent, the slender spikes racemose, 4-10 cm. long, the flowers

creamy white, glabrous, 1.5 mm. long; stamens twice as long as the petals; legume

flat and thin, 8-14 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, glabrous, the margins undulate and

armed with small recurved prickles, the fruit stipitate.

Known in Salvador by the names "zarza de garrobo," "zarza

diente de garrobo," and "gusanillo." The vine is abundant in

thickets of the dry Pacific plains, where during the verano the many

large pods are conspicuous. The plant is viciously armed and

makes impenetrable the jungles in which it grows.

Entada phaseoloides (L.) Merrill, Philip. Journ. Sci. Bot. 9:

86. 1914. Lens phaseoloides L. in Stickm. Herb. Amboin. 18. 1754.

Mimosa gigas L. Fl. Jam. 22. 1759. M. scandens L. Sp. PI. ed. 2.

1501. 1763. E. scandens Benth. in Hook. Journ. Bot. 4: 332. 1841.

Wet lowland forest, at or little above sea level; Izabal. British

Honduras to Panama; West Indies; South America; Old World

tropics.

A large vine, often climbing to the tops of tall trees, glabrous almost through-

out; leaves with 1-2 pairs of pinnae, often terminated by a tendril, especially on

young branches; leaflets usually 4-5 pairs, oblong to oblong-obovate, asymmetric,

2-8 cm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex and often emarginate; flowers fragrant,

cream-colored, the spikes very long and dense, 1 cm. thick, short-pedunculate;

calyx 1.5 mm. long; petals oblong, 3-4 mm. long; stamens 6-8 mm. long; legume

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 31

commonly 1-2 meters long and 8-10 cm. wide, blackish, curved, 10-12-seeded;

seeds compressed, rounded, dark brown, smooth, 3-5 cm. in diameter.

This vine has probably the largest fruits of all Central American

Leguminosae, being approached only by some Inga species. The

large seeds are heavy but they contain a median air space that

enables them to float. They are one of the so-called sea-beans,

which sometimes are transported by ocean currents to very distant

shores, a fact that doubtless explains the present wide distribution

of the species, which is almost pantropic.

Entada polystachia (L.) DC. Me"m. Le"g. 434. 1825. Mimosa

polystachia L. Sp. PL 520. 1753. Entadopsis polystachia Britton, N.

Amer. Fl. 23: 191. 1928. Lengua de buey.

Dry to wet thickets or forest, 900 meters or less; Izabal; Zacapa;

Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Retalhuleu; San

Marcos. Western and southern Mexico; British Honduras to Sal-

vador and Panama; West Indies; South America.

Usually a large vine, the stems ochraceous, the young branches glabrous;

pinnae 2-6 pairs, the leaflets 6-8 pairs, broadly oblong to obovate, 2-4 cm. long,

rounded at the apex and base, subcoriaceous, green and lustrous above, glabrous,

slightly paler beneath, glabrous or appressed-pilose on the nerves; flowers small

and greenish, arranged in dense spikes 8-10 cm. long, these forming a very large

and often dense raceme; calyx truncate, glabrous, 0.5 mm. long; petals 1 mm. long,

glabrous; legume oblong, 20-40 cm. long, 5-8 cm. wide, very thin, lustrous, many-

seeded, the exocarp separating in age as a thin papery sheet; seeds compressed,

1 cm. long.

Known in Salvador as "quiamol" and "cola de zorrillo"; "be-

juco de amole," "bejuco de mondongo" (Tabasco). Pieces of

the roots and stems macerated in water give a lather like that of

soap. In Salvador and probably also in eastern Guatemala it is

used for washing the hair, there being a popular belief that this makes

the hair curly or wavy. The local name of Guatemala refers to the

form of the large thin pods. The vine is extremely abundant on

the Pacific plains, and conspicuous during the dry season because

of the numerous dry pods that wave and rattle in the wind.

ENTEROLOBIUM Martius

Unarmed trees; leaves bipinnate, the pinnae and leaflets numerous pairs;

stipules small and inconspicuous; peduncles solitary or subfasciculate, axillary

or the upper ones forming a short raceme; flowers small, whitish, sessile in globose

heads, 5-parted; calyx campanulate, shallowly dentate; corolla funnelform, the

petals connate to the middle, valvate; stamens numerous, connate into a tube at

32 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

the base, exserted, the anthers small; ovary sessile, many-ovulate, the style fili-

form, the stigma small, terminal; legume broad, compressed, coiled or incurved-

reniform, hard, indehiscent, septate within between the seeds; seeds transverse,

compressed, on a filiform funicle.

The number of species is uncertain, but there are perhaps 4-5,

the following in Mexico and Central America, the others South

American.

Leaf rachis and peduncles glabrous or sparsely puberulent; leaflets 8-15 mm.

long; legume 8-10 cm. broad E. cyclocarpum.

Leaf rachis and peduncles densely ferruginous-puberulent; leaflets 3-5 mm. long;

legume 5 cm. broad E. Schomburgkii.

Enterolobium cyclocarpum (Jacq.) Griseb. Fl. Brit. W. Ind.

226. 1860. Mimosa cydocarpa Jacq. Fragm. Bot. 30. 1801. Cona-

caste; Guanacaste (sometimes written Huanacaste); Pit (Petatan,

Huehuetenango) .

Common on the Pacific plains, in forest or pastures, also plentiful

in the lower Motagua Valley, on dry hillsides or along streams,

chiefly at 300 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Baja Verapaz;

El Progreso; Izabal; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa;

Escuintla; Guatemala; Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu; San Marcos.

Western and southern Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and

Panama; Jamaica and Cuba; northern South America.

A giant tree, often 30-35 meters high, the trunk thick, sometimes 2-3 meters

in diameter, the crown broad and spreading, the trunk often supported by but-

tresses, the bark light greenish brown or brown with lighter-colored excrescences;

petiole usually bearing a sessile gland, the pinnae 5-15 pairs; leaflets 20-30 pairs,

linear-oblong, mostly 8-15 mm. long, acute, glabrous or sparsely appressed-pilose,

pale beneath; peduncles slender, 1.5-4 cm. long, the heads dense and many-

flowered, 1-1.5 cm. in diameter; calyx 2.5 mm. long, densely puberulent; corolla

twice as long as the calyx, whitish, puberulent or glabrate; stamen tube included,

the filaments long-exserted; legume 3-4 cm. wide, curved to form an almost

complete circle 8-10 cm. in diameter, dark brown, very lustrous.

Called "tubroos" in British Honduras; "pich" (Yucatan, Maya);

"piche" (Tabasco). The name of this tree gives its name to the

Province of Guanacaste in Costa Rica. In Guatemala the usual

name for Enterolobium is "conacaste." The term "orejas de cona-

caste" is sometimes applied there to very large human ears. El

Conacaste is the name of a caserio in El Progreso and of another in

Escuintla. The term is of Nahuatl derivation, signifying "ear-tree."

This is one of the four or five largest trees of all Central America

and one of the best known. Many individual trees are true giants,

rivaling the ceibas. The conacaste is abundant over the Pacific

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 33

plains, but it rarely if ever extends into the hills. It sometimes grows

in forests, although seedlings appear rather intolerant of shade and

seem to develop better in the open. The leaflets fold together at

night. Wherever there are cattle pastures, the trees are sure to be

found, and the cattle and other stock seem to show a preference for

the shade of the tree, probably on account of the fallen foliage and

pods, both of which they eat greedily. Although extremely broad,

the crown of the tree is not dense. The foliage is graceful and fern-

like and pleasing in appearance, especially when the fresh new leaves

are developing toward the end of the dry season. A few trees have

been planted in Guatemala City, and there doubtless are others in

localities where the species is not native. There is a tree in the park

at Puerto Barrios. The pulp of the pods is sometimes used in Guate-

mala as a soap substitute, especially in washing textiles. The pulp

is said to be eaten sometimes in Honduras and elsewhere in time of

famine. In Salvador it is forbidden to throw sawdust from the wood

into streams, because it kills cattle and fish. Throughout the range

of the tree, apparently, the gum produced on its trunk is employed

as a remedy for affections of the chest.

The wood of the conacaste is walnut-brown or often with vari-

ous shadings, sometimes with a reddish tinge, with a rather high

luster; sap wood dull white, merging gradually into the heartwood;

without distinctive odor or taste; very light, soft and spongy to

moderately hard and firm, the specific gravity 0.35-0.60; weight

22-37 pounds per cubic foot; grain straight to somewhat roey;

texture medium to coarse; very easy' to work; the harder kinds

take a good polish; readily seasoned without warping or checking;

fairly durable. Some conacaste timber reaches the United States.

The heavier material resembles walnut (Juglans) in general appear-

ance, and is a fairly satisfactory substitute for it. It has been used

to a considerable extent in California cities for interior trim in

residences and office buildings. In Central America the wood is

highly esteemed for all sorts of construction purposes and for fuel.

From it are made the mortars used for hulling rice and coffee, the

omnipresent washboards or trays, and dugout canoes, often very

large ones. For construction purposes it is considered about as good

as cedro (Cedrela), and it is valued especially because it is little

injured by dampness and is not attacked by comejen (termites).

Enterolobium Schomburgkii Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 30:

599. 1875. Pithecolobium Schomburgkii Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot.

3: 219. 1842. Guanacaste.

34 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Known in Guatemala only from Rio Die"guez, Dept. Guate-

mala, 1,200 meters, Heyde &Lux 4470. Oaxaca; Panama; Guianas

and Brazil.

A tall tree, 12-20 meters high, the crown broad and spreading, the trunk not

buttressed, 50 cm. or more in diameter, the bark moderately smooth or fissured,

exuding a small amount of translucent yellow sap when cut, slightly scaly, grayish ;

branchlets, petioles, leaf rachis, and peduncles densely f erruginous-puberulent ;

petioles 2-4 cm. long, bearing a sessile cupular gland; pinnae 10-20 pairs; leaflets

40-60 pairs, linear-falcate, crowded, 2-4 mm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex,

lustrous on the upper surface, glabrous or nearly so; peduncles 2.5 cm. long or

shorter; calyx 2 mm. long, the corolla twice as long; legume about 5 cm. broad,

somewhat ligneous, ferruginous, glabrous.

Called "guanacastillo" in Oaxaca. The sapwood is oatmeal

color, the heartwood hard and durable. The wood is used in Oaxaca

for railroad ties, posts, and bridge and house construction. The tree

must be rare in Guatemala for we have not seen it anywhere. In

Panama and Oaxaca this is a lowland tree, and it would not ordinarily

be expected at such a high elevation as that reported for Guatemala.

We should be inclined to suspect that the tree was planted in Guate-

mala if it were not for a recent collection of the species that has been

made in Oaxaca.

INGA Willdenow

References: Henry Pittier, Preliminary revision of the genus

Inga, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 173-223. pis. 81-105. 1916. The

Middle American species of the genus Inga, Journ. Dept. Agr.

Porto Rico 13: 117-177. pis. 13-31. 1929.

Unarmed shrubs or large trees; stipules small and caducous, or sometimes large,

lanceolate, and persistent; leaves even-pinnate, the leaflets usually few and large,

the petiole and rachis often winged, large glands usually present on the rachis

between each pair of leaflets; flowers large for the Mimoseae, mostly white or

whitish, in globose heads or umbels or in short or elongate spikes, the inflorescences

axillary or paniculate at the ends of the branches; flowers 5-parted; calyx tubular

or campanulate, dentate or shallowly lobate; corolla tubular or funnelform, the

petals united to the middle or higher, valvate; stamens numerous, long-exserted,

connate only at the base, or much higher to form an elongate tube, the anthers

small; ovary sessile, few-many-ovulate, the style subulate, the stigma terminal,

small or capitate; legume linear, straight or somewhat curved, compressed and

flat, tetragonous, or subterete, woody to coriaceous, tardily if at all dehiscent, the

sutures often thickened or dilated and sulcate; seeds usually surrounded by juicy

white pulp.

Species 150 or probably more, in tropical America. Numerous

others occur in southern Central America.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 35

Rachis of the leaf not winged or marginate.

Flowers capitate or umbellate.

Flowers short-pedicellate or almost sessile; calyx and corolla glabrous or

nearly so /. Paterno.

Flowers long-pedicellate; calyx and corolla densely pilose. . . ./. Roussoviana.

Flowers in short or elongate spikes.

Leaflets 5-6 pairs, densely pubescent beneath.

Legume broad, flat, compressed; leaflets very lustrous on the upper surface,

not softly pubescent beneath /. Recordii.

Legume subterete or tetragonous, as thick as broad; leaflets not lustrous

on the upper surface, densely soft-pubescent beneath ..../. multijuga.

Leaflets 1-4 pairs, often almost glabrous, sometimes abundantly pubescent.

Leaflets densely pubescent, even in age; legume densely hirsute.

/. pinetorum.

Leaflets glabrous or glabrate; legume not hirsute.

Calyx only 1-1.5 mm. long /. belizensis.

Calyx usually 2.5-4 mm. long.

Calyx and corolla glabrous; flower spikes very slender, elongate, lax.

/. laurina.

Calyx and corolla densely pubescent; flower spikes dense, stout, short.

Leaflets 2 pairs /. punctata.

Leaflets 3 pairs /. leptoloba.

Rachis of the leaf winged or marginate, usually very broadly so.

Leaflets glabrous or nearly so; calyx 1 mm. long; spikes very lax and interrupted.

7. marginata.

Leaflets abundantly pubescent, usually densely so; calyx more than 1 mm. long,

usually much longer; flower spikes usually dense, rarely lax and interrupted.

Peduncles and young branchlets densely hirsute with long spreading hairs;

leaflets 2-3 pairs.

Flowers pedicellate, racemose /. Cookii.

Flowers sessile, spicate.

Leaflets cuneately narrowed to the base; corolla about 8 mm. long.

/. subvestita.

Leaflets rounded at the base; corolla 20 mm. long /. Lindeniana.

Peduncles and young branches not hirsute, usually densely brownish-tomen-

tose.

Flowers small, the calyx usually 4-7 mm. long.

Corolla 15-18 mm. long; leaflets 4-6 pairs /. edulis.

Corolla 10-13 mm. long; leaflets 3-4 pairs /. Micheliana.

Flowers larger, the calyx 10-30 mm. long.

Calyx 2-3 cm. long; leaflets 5-7 pairs.

Leaflets 7 pairs /. Donnell-Smithii.

Leaflets 5-6 pairs /. fissicalyx.

Calyx 1-1.5 cm. long.

Corolla 2.5-3 cm. long; bracts persistent, conspicuous.

/. Rodrigueziana.

Corolla 13-20 mm. long; bracts deciduous, inconspicuous. . ./. spuria.

36 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Inga belizensis Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 4: 307. 1929.

Wet forest, at or little above sea level; Izabal. British Hon-

duras, the type from Mullins River road, W. A. Schipp 24.

A tree of 12-17 meters, the trunk 15 cm. or more in diameter, the branchlets

puberulent at first; leaves short-petiolate, the rachis naked or obscurely marginate;

leaflets 3 pairs, subsessile, lance-oblong to oblanceolate-oblong or obovate-oblong,

5.5-8 cm. long, 2-3.5 cm. wide, abruptly acuminate, with an obtuse or acute tip,

cuneately narrowed to the base, glabrous, at least in age; flowers spicate, the spikes

fasciculate in the leaf axils, 1-2 cm. long, dense and many-flowered, head-like,

long-pedunculate; bracts minute, shorter than the calyx; calyx minutely puberu-

lent, 1-1.3 mm. long, minutely dentate; corolla 5 mm. long, glabrous or puberulent

only at the apex; stamens white, 12 mm. long; legume 11-14 cm. long, 2 cm. wide,

strongly compressed and flat, glabrous, sessile, broadly rounded at the apex, the

margins strongly thickened.

Inga Cookii Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 203. 1916;

Journ. Dept. Agr. Porto Rico 13: 148. pi. 31. 1939. Chochoc; Paterno;

Macheton; Cujiniquil; Palat (Coban, Quecchi).

Moist or wet forest, often in open pine forest, 200-1,500 meters;

endemic; Alta Verapaz (type from Finca Sepacuite", 0. F. Cook &

R.F.GriggsZQZ); Izabal.

A shrub or small tree, sometimes 6 meters high and probably attaining a

greater size, the branchlets densely hirsute with long spreading brown hairs;

petiole and rachis broadly winged, hirsute; leaflets 3 pairs, sessile, ovate to oblong-

lanceolate, 5-21 cm. long, acuminate or narrowly long-acuminate, rounded or

obtuse at the base, very lustrous above when fresh, sparsely or densely long-

hirsute, in age sometimes glabrate, somewhat paler beneath, brownish when

dried, sparsely or densely brown-hirsute; racemes axillary, solitary, long-peduncu-

late, slender, the bractlets lanceolate, 2-4 mm. long; flowers few and remote, on

pedicels 2.5 mm. long; calyx tubular, 4 mm. long, hirtellous; corolla 11 mm. long,

hirsute, the lobes short and narrow; stamen tube included; ovary glabrous; fruit

strongly compressed, 2-ridged along each margin, glabrous, about 21 cm. long and

3.5 cm. wide.

Inga Donnell-Smithii Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18:

211. 1916.

Type from Guarda Viejo, Guatemala City, 1,500 meters, J. D.

Smith 2316; not definitely known otherwise.

Branchlets densely brownish-tomentose; leaves almost sessile, the rachis

broadly winged; leaflets 7 pairs, coriaceous, subsessile, lance-oblong, 5-14 cm.

long, 1-3 cm. wide, sparsely appressed-pilose on both surfaces, paler beneath,

the costa ruf ous-tomentose ; flowers spicate, the spikes axillary, solitary, few-

flowered, the flowers sessile; bracts ovate, acute, 6-10 mm. long, deciduous; calyx

stout, densely rufous-tomentose, 19-21 mm. long; corolla densely rufous-pilose,

22 mm. long, the lobes ovate, acute; stamen tube included; ovary villous at the

base; legume unknown.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 37

The status of this species is questionable. In the end it probably

will be found synonymous with some of the older Mexican ones.

The type collection was once reported from Guatemala as /. erio-

carpa Benth.

Inga edulis Mart. Flora 20, Beibl. 113. 1837. Quijinicuil (fide

Aguilar); Uatop, Bitze (Pete"n, fide Lundell).

Moist, wet, or sometimes rather dry forest, or in open places,

1,500 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Retalhuleu; Quezal-

tenango. Southern Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and

Panama; southward to Brazil.

A tree with spreading crown, sometimes 20 meters high, the branchlets fer-

ruginous-tomentose; leaf rachis narrowly or rather broadly winged, the glands

large, sessile, the petiole naked; leaflets 3-6 pairs, usually 4 pairs, subcoriaceous,

sessile, ovate to elliptic or lance-oblong, 5-19 cm. long, 2-10 cm. wide, acute or

acuminate, rounded at the base, scaberulous or velutinous above, sparsely or

densely short-pilose beneath; flowers spicate, the spikes axillary, solitary or fascicu-

late, on peduncles 2-6 cm. long, usually dense; bracts ovate or lanceolate, shorter

than the calyx, deciduous; calyx appressed-pilose with mostly grayish pubescence,

6-7 mm. long; corolla sericeous-villous, 15 mm. long; stamen tube short-exserted ;

legume subterete or somewhat tetragonous, 15-60 cm. long, 1.5-2 cm. thick or

more, densely brown-tomentulose, on a short thick peduncle or almost sessile.

Known in Salvador as "pepeton"; "guama," "guama pachona,"

"guajiniquil" (Honduras); "guamo," "bribri" (British Honduras).

In Salvador this species is much planted for coffee shade, but it

seems to be used little if at all for that purpose in Guatemala. The

specific name edulis alludes to the fact that the pulp about the seeds

is edible, but in Central America it is eaten much less that that of

the species having large flat pods, which yield a pulp of greatly

superior quality.

Inga fissicalyx Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 213. 1916.

Cuje (Zacapa).

Wet forest or along streams, 600 meters or less; Alta Verapaz;

Izabal; Zacapa. Southern Mexico.

A tree with spreading crown, seldom more than 10 meters high, the branchlets

densely brown-tomentose, likewise the inflorescence; leaves short-petiolate, the

petiole naked, the rachis narrowly winged; stipules ovate, 10-12 mm. long, cadu-

cous; leaflets 5-6 pairs, subsessile, subcoriaceous, lance-oblong or oblanceolate,

5-11 cm. long, 1.5-3.5 cm. wide, acute or short-acuminate, somewhat narrowed

to the obtuse or narrowly rounded base, short-pilose above with spreading or sub-

appressed, yellowish hairs, densely and rather softly pilose beneath; flowers

spicate, the spikes axillary, geminate, on peduncles 5-7 cm. long, dense, few-

flowered; bracts lanceolate, 1 cm. long, caducous; calyx 20-28 mm. long, very

38 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

densely brownish-pilose or tomentose, the teeth long and narrow; corolla softly

villous, 18-23 mm. long, the lobes short and broad; legume 15 cm. long, 1 cm. thick,

subterete and costate, densely brown-tomentose, the sides somewhat flattened.

Known in Tabasco by the names "bitze," "chelele," and "gua-

tope." Like most of the species that have been described in recent

years in this group with subterete or tetragonous pods, this one is

of very doubtful standing. When ampler material is available from

Guatemala and southern Mexico, it is probable that most of the

recent species can be reduced conveniently to synonymy under the

older ones described from Mexico. /. fissicalyx is known in Vera-

cruz by the name "acotope." The pulp surrounding the seeds is

edible. The sapwood is creamy white, the heartwood pale brown,

often with a pinkish tinge after exposure. It is utilized only for

firewood.

Inga laurina (Swartz) Willd. Sp. PI. 4: 1018. 1906. Mimosa

laurina Swartz, Prodr. Veg. Ind. Occ. 85. 1788. Palal (fide Aguilar).

Dry rocky thickets or thin forest, 700 meters or less; Escuintla;

Retalhuleu. Western Mexico; Salvador; Panama; West Indies.

A small tree, commonly 8-9 meters high, with a broad crown, glabrous

throughout or nearly so; leaf rachis naked, with small cupular glands between

each pair of leaflets, slender; leaflets 1-3 pairs, subcoriaceous, obliquely ovate or

obovate, sometimes elliptic, 4-14 cm. long, 1.5-4.5 cm. wide, acute or obtuse,

usually with an obtuse tip, cuneately narrowed at the base; flowers spicate, the

spikes axillary or terminal, solitary or geminate, 4-15 cm. long, lax and rather

remotely flowered; flowers sessile or subsessile, white, fragrant; calyx tubular,

glabrous or nearly so, 4-5 mm. long; corolla tubular-campanulate, 4-5 mm. long,

the stamen tube long-exserted; legume flat and strongly compressed, glabrous or

almost so, 7-15 cm. long, 2-3.5 cm. wide, sessile, broadly rounded at the apex,

the margins strongly thickened.

Called "cujincuil" and "paternillo" in Salvador. In this species

and related ones, with small, strongly compressed pods, there is no

edible pulp about the seeds.

Inga leptoloba Schlecht. Linnaea 12: 560. 1838. Nacaspiro;

Paternillo (Pete"n); Cuje (Alta Verapaz); Pepeto; Paterno (Huehue-

tenango); Cerel, Cerelillo (Izabal) ; Bitze (Pete"n, Maya).

Moist forest or on rather open hillsides, 1,500 meters or less;

Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Chimaltenango;

Suchitepe'quez ; Huehuetenango; Quezaltenango; San Marcos.

Southern Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and Panama.

A tree with spreading or rounded crown, sometimes 18 meters high with a

trunk 60 cm. in diameter, the bark light brown, the branchlets glabrous or nearly

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 39

so; stipules subulate, deciduous, 3-4 mm. long; petiole and rachis of the leaf naked,

the glands obsolete or sometimes present and large; leaflets 3 pairs, short-petiolu-

late, coriaceous, ovate-elliptic to lance-oblong, mostly 5-10 cm. long and 1-4.5

cm. wide, sometimes larger, acute to long-acuminate, usually cuneate at the base,

glabrous or sparsely strigose; flowers spicate, the spikes axillary and fasciculate or

terminal and paniculate, 2-6 cm. long, dense, on peduncles 1.5-5 cm. long or more;

bracts subulate, less than half as long as the calyx; calyx tubular, 4.5-6 mm. long,

pubescent; corolla 6.5-10 mm. long, sericeous; stamens white, the tube equaling

the corolla or slightly exserted; ovary glabrous; legume compressed and flat, 6-18

cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, glabrous, rounded at the apex, stipitate, cuneate at the

base, the edges thickened; seeds 3-20, immersed in scant pulp.

Called "pepeto" and "pepeto negro" in Salvador; "acotope"

(Veracruz). It is questionable whether this is distinct from /.

punctata. It is much planted for coffee shade in Guatemala and

elsewhere in Central America.

Inga Lindeniana Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 4: 608. 1845.

Paterno.

Quezaltenango, in forest, 1,200-1,300 meters; probably also Hue-

huetenango, 1,500 meters. Type from Teapa, Tabasco; Honduras(?).

Branchlets densely rufous-hirsute; leaf rachis broadly winged, the wings

attenuate at each end, hirsute; leaflets 3 pairs, membranaceous, sessile, ovate to

broadly elliptic, somewhat oblique, as much as 25 cm. long and 12 cm. wide,

abruptly short-acuminate, rounded at the base, setose-hirsute on both surfaces;

flowers spicate, the spikes oblong, rather lax and few-flowered, pedunculate;

bracts linear-lanceolate, caducous; calyx tubular, conspicuously striate, pubescent,

1 cm. long; corolla sericeous-villous, 23 mm. long; legume strongly compressed

and flat at first, 15-30 cm. long or more, 5-6.5 cm. wide, twisted when ripening,

densely rufous-villous.

The Guatemalan collections are sterile and their determination

therefore is somewhat uncertain, but they agree better with this

species than with any other of which we have seen material.

Inga marginata Willd. Sp. PI. 4: 1015. 1806.

Moist forest, or in coffee plantations, 1,400 meters or less;

Suchitepe"quez; Quezaltenango. Costa Rica; Panama; Colombia.

A small or medium-sized tree, glabrous almost throughout; petiole marginate

or narrowly winged, the rachis short, narrowly winged; leaflets usually 2 pairs,

sessile, coriaceous or thick-membranaceous, oblong-lanceolate or obovate-oblong,

6-12 cm. long, 2-4 cm. wide, generally long-acuminate, cuneate at the base;

flowers spicate, the spikes slender, lax, interrupted, 5-10 cm. long, short-peduncu-

late, the flowers sessile or nearly so; calyx 1.5 mm. long, almost glabrous; corolla

white, campanulate, 4 mm. long, the stamen tube long-exserted; legume sessile,

compressed, thickened about the seeds, 5-12 cm. long, about 1.5 cm. wide, glabrous.

40 FIELD IANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

This is sometimes planted for coffee shade, as at Finca Pirineos

in Quezaltenango.

Inga Micheliana Harms, Repert. Sp. Nov. 13: 525. 1915

(type from Rio Negro, Quiche1, 1,080 meters, Heyde & Lux 3319).

I. cobanensis Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 188. 1916 (type

from Coban, Alta Verapaz, 1,450 meters, Tuerckheim 1214). /.

Tuerckheimii Pittier, op. cit. 192. 1916 (based on the same collection

as I. cobanensis}. Cushin; Chalum; Shalum; Chochoc (Coban,

Quecchi).

Moist or wet forest, sometimes in thickets or open fields, often

planted for coffee shade, chiefly at 800-1,800 meters; Alta Verapaz;

Izabal(?); Escuintla; Sacatepe"quez ; Chimaltenango ; Solola; Que-

zaltenango; perhaps endemic, but to be expected in Chiapas.

A tree with spreading crown, commonly 6-10 meters high, sometimes larger,

the branchlets densely tomentose or velutinous with short rufous hairs; petiole

naked, the rachis broadly winged, the glands large and cupular; leaflets 3-4 pairs,

subsessile, rather thick, lanceolate to oblong, elliptic, or obovate, 5-20 cm. long,

acute or obtuse and apicate, rounded at the base, softly pilose above, densely so

on the costa, or in age glabrate, often lustrous, brownish beneath when dried,

densely short- villous; flowers spicate, the spikes fasciculate, pedunculate, short,

dense, few-many-flowered; calyx 4-5 mm. long, rufous- villous; corolla 10-11 mm.

long, densely villous, the stamen tube included; legume 12-21 cm. long or longer,

subterete, twisted, densely brown-tomentulose, appearing multicostate, the valves

very narrow, their margins greatly dilated and longitudinally striate.

This species has been listed from Guatemala as /. disticha Mart.

It is much planted in Guatemala as shade for coffee. Inga trees are

considered throughout Central America the best trees for coffee

shade and several species of them are used. They have on their roots

nitrogen-fixing bacteria that enrich the soil and promote the growth

of the coffee bushes. A large, clean cafetal with shade wholly of

one species of Inga is a handsome sight, viewed from above or from

the ground ; the trees, of approximately the same height, form a dense

canopy of green some distance above the tops of the coffee bushes.

The vernacular names of the Inga species are none too well fixed in

Guatemala, but this is probably the one most generally known by

the name "cushin." Its leaflets are much used at Coban for wrap-

ping the small tamales or tamalitos, imparting to them a purple

color that is much admired. The flowers are said to give a good

grade of honey, and many stands of bees may be seen about cafetales

provided with Inga shade. Large amounts of excellent honey are

produced in Guatemala, and in recent years substantial quantities

have been exported to Europe.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 41

Inga multijuga Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 30: 615. 1875. Nacas-

piro; Cuje.

Wet forest, most often along stream banks, 350 meters or less;

Alta Verapaz; Izabal. Honduras; Panama.

A tree with spreading crown, commonly 10 meters high or less, the branchlets

densely rufous-tomentose; petiole and rachis naked, densely rufous-tomentose, the

glands small, subsessile; leaflets rather thick, 5-10 pairs, short-petiolulate, ovate

to oblong or oblong-elliptic, 5-17 cm. long, 1.5-6 cm. wide, acute or acuminate,

sometimes obtuse and apicate, rounded or obtuse at the base, densely rough-

pubescent above, densely velutinous-pubescent beneath; flowers spicate, the

peduncles axillary, usually geminate or fasciculate, 2-3 cm. long or longer, the

spikes short, ovoid; calyx 5-8 mm. long, striate, brownish-tomentulose; corolla

sericeous, 2.5 cm. long; legume 15-25 cm. long, 1 cm. thick, densely brown-tomen-

tulose, subterete, sessile, twisted in age, the valves very narrow, their edges

greatly thickened, expanded, and costate.

Called "guamo" in Honduras. This term and "guavo," applied

commonly to Inga species along the Atlantic coast of Costa Rica

and Panama, are believed to be of Antillean origin.

Inga Paterno Harms, Repert. Sp. Nov. 13: 419. 1914. Paterno;

Paterna.

Wet to rather dry forest, sometimes in thickets, frequently

planted as coffee shade, 2,000 meters or less; Pete'n; Alta Verapaz;

El Progreso; Santa Rosa; Guatemala; Quiche*; Suchitepe'quez;

Quezaltenango; San Marcos. Southern Mexico; Salvador; Costa

Rica.

A small or medium-sized tree, the branchlets glabrous; leaves glabrous or

nearly so, the petiole and rachis naked; stipules obovate to oblong, 1.5-2 cm. long,

sometimes persistent; leaflets 3-5 pairs, petiolulate, elliptic to ovate-lanceolate

or oblanceolate-oblong, 5-17 cm. long, 2-6 cm. wide, acute or obtusely acuminate,

rounded to narrowly cuneate at the base; peduncles glabrous, slender, 3-7 cm.

long, mostly terminal and paniculate, the flowers pedicellate, umbellate; calyx

tubular, 1-2.5 mm. long, somewhat pubescent; corolla glabrous, 3.5-7.5 mm. long;

stamen tube included; legume rather long-stipitate, asymmetric, 9-12 cm. long,

4-5 cm. wide, strongly compressed and flat, rounded at the apex, glabrate.

Sometimes called "guama" in Salvador. The origin of the name

"paterno" is unknown. A caserio of Jalapa is called El Paterno,

and this species probably grows in that department. The pulp

surrounding the seeds is eaten commonly. In Salvador the cotyle-

dons are removed from the seeds, cooked, blanched, salted, and eaten

as a salad. It is stated that the cotyledons only of this species are

treated thus. The species has been reported from Guatemala as

I. Jinicuil Schlecht., a Mexican species, I. stipularis DC., and I.

cordistipula Benth.

42 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Inga pinetorum Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 185.

pi. 90. 1916.

British Honduras, the type from Manatee Lagoon, on pine

ridge, M.E. Peck 343; Tabasco.

A shrub or small tree, 5 meters high or less, the branchlets densely ferruginous-

hispidulous; petiole and leaf rachis naked, densely ferruginous-hispidulous, the

glands very small, urceolate; leaflets 2 pairs, almost sessile, obovate to elliptic-

oblong, 4-12 cm. long, 2-6.5 cm. wide, rounded or very obtuse at the apex and

apicate, cuneate at the base, subcoriaceous, hispidulous or velutinous-pilose on

both surfaces, often densely so, the pubescence fulvous or brownish; flowers

spicate, the peduncles 4-6.5 cm. long, geminate or fasciculate in the leaf axils, the

spikes short and dense; calyx tubular, densely pilose with ascending hairs; corolla

12 mm. long, densely sericeous, the lobes short, narrow, acute; stamen tube slightly

exserted; legume very small (in the specimens seen), 4.5-5 cm. long, 2.5 cm. wide,

strongly compressed, densely hirsute or hispidulous with fulvous stiff hairs, broadly

rounded at the base, sessile, obliquely rounded at the apex, the margins of the

valves somewhat thickened; seeds about 5.

Inga punctata Willd. Sp. PI. 4: 1016. 1806. Caspiro; Nacas-

piro; Cuajiniquil; Cuajiniquil bianco; Ixcapirol; Bitze (Pete"n,

Maya).

Moist or rather dry forest, or on brushy plains, 1,150 meters or

less; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Solola; Retalhuleu; Huehuetenango;

Quezaltenango; doubtless also in San Marcos. Chiapas; Tabasco;

British Honduras to Salvador and Panama; Venezuela.

A tree with broad crown, usually 10 meters high or less, the branchlets glabrous

or nearly so; petiole and leaf rachis naked, glabrate; leaflets 2 pairs, short-petiolu-

late, subcoriaceous, obliquely oblong or elliptic-lanceolate to elliptic or elliptic-

obovate, mostly 7-12 cm. long, subacute to abruptly acuminate, cuneate at the

base, sparsely pubescent when young but in age glabrous or nearly so; stipules

subulate, 6 mm. long; flowers spicate, the spikes solitary or fasciculate, about 3 cm.

long, the peduncles sparsely pubescent, 1-2 cm. long; calyx tubular, puberulent,

2.5-3.5 mm. long; corolla sericeous-pilose, 6.5-7.5 mm. long, the stamen tube

slightly exserted; legume sessile or short-stipitate, straight or somewhat curved,

rounded at each end, strongly compressed, 6-18 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, pubes-

cent at first but in age glabrate, the margins strongly thickened.

Sometimes called "pepeto" in Salvador; "guama" (Honduras).

Inga Recordii Britt. & Rose in Standl. Trop. Woods 7: 5. 1926.

Guamo macho.

Wet forest, often in wooded swamps, 300 meters or less; Alta

Verapaz; Izabal. British Honduras (type from Stann Creek Dis-

trict, S. J. Record}.

A tree of 6-12 meters with spreading crown, the trunk often 15 cm. or more

in diameter, the branchlets densely puberulent; petiole and leaf rachis naked,

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 43

puberulent-tomentulose, the glands large, cupular; leaflets 5-6 pairs, short-

petiolulate, subcoriaceous, oblong-lanceolate or the lowest oblong-ovate, 5-13 cm.

long, acute or acuminate, obliquely rounded at the base, lustrous above and white-

punctate, pubescent along the nerves, paler beneath, pubescent with very short,

subappressed, yellowish hairs; flowers spicate, the spikes fasciculate in the

leaf axils or forming terminal panicles, 2-4 cm. long, dense and many-flowered,

on peduncles 1-2 cm. long; bracts minute; calyx 4-5 mm. long, strigose; corolla

about 18 mm. long, strigose, the stamen sheath included; legume straight or some-

what curved, strongly compressed, about 12 cm. long and 2 cm. wide, rounded at

the base, sessile, short-rostrate at the apex, densely fulvous-puberulent, the

margins strongly thickened.

Known in British Honduras by the names "bribri," "bribri

macho," and "tamatama." The wood is brownish gray or somewhat

pinkish, hard, heavy, straight-grained, rather fine-textured, not

durable. As in other species of the genus, the wood is used only for

firewood.

Inga Rodrigueziana Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 209.

1916. Shalum; Cushin (Chimaltenango) ; Paterna (Sacatepe'quez) ;

Guamo, Cujinicuil (North Coast).

Wet to dry forest, sometimes in open fields, abundantly planted

for coffee shade; 300-1,800 meters (probably only planted above

1,000 meters); Alta Verapaz; El Progreso; Izabal; Santa Rosa;

Guatemala; Sacatepe'quez; Chimaltenango; Quezaltenango. Chiapas.

A medium-sized or large tree with flat spreading crown, often 12 meters high

or more, the branchlets densely hirtellous with fulvous or ferruginous hairs; stipules

ovate, 7 mm. long, deciduous; petiole usually naked, the rachis narrowly or rather

broadly winged, the glands large and conspicuous; leaflets 3-4 pairs, large and

rather thin, almost sessile, elliptic-ovate to lance-elliptic or elliptic, mostly 10-20

cm. long and 5-10 cm. wide, acute or acuminate, rounded at the base, pilose or

glabrate above, densely soft-pilose beneath; flowers spicate, the spikes mostly

solitary in the leaf axils, 3-5 cm. long, on peduncles 2-5 cm. long; bracts linear-

lanceolate, 1-2 cm. long, conspicuous, somewhat persistent, often green; calyx

striate, pale, short-pilose, about 1.5 cm. long; corolla 2 cm. long, sericeous-pilose,

the stamen tube slightly exserted; legume 12-30 cm. long or often longer, 3-3.5

cm. broad or more, compressed but in cross section oblong-quadrangular, the

margins deeply sulcate and costate, the edges of the valves almost wing-like,

the whole pod glabrous or nearly so, green, rounded and often short-rostrate

at the apex, sessile.

Called "bribri" and "tamatama" in British Honduras; "chalum

Colorado" (Chiapas). This species has been reported from Guate-

mala as I. insignis Kunth and /. Pittieri Micheli. The shalum tree

is well known in central Guatemala and along the Pacific foothills,

where it is abundantly planted as coffee shade. It also makes good

shade for cacao, and has been planted for that purpose in Izabal.

44 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

It is probably the species most grown in Guatemala to shade coffee,

especially in the Pacific bocacosta, where there are countless thou-

sands of the trees. In the central uplands it is planted but little, but

some of the cafetales about Antigua and in Chimaltenango are shaded

with it. The pods are larger than those of other local species, and

they contain a rather large amount of crisp, juicy, sweetish, white

pulp about the large seeds. They are used much more than those of

any other species, and very large numbers of them are consumed.

When the pods are ripe, the opened and stripped ones may be found

anywhere along the roadsides through the coffee regions, and in

greater quantities in the cafetales. They are carried up to the high-

lands in large numbers for sale in the markets, and may even be

seen at times placed upon the table in the smaller hotels at noon

as a dessert fruit. The proper vernacular name for this species is

"shalum," probably of Mayan origin but, as with other species,

local people seem to have almost as much difficulty as botanists in

distinguishing the species (this one is easily recognized by its fruits),

and at Quezaltenango the fruits of /. Rodrigueziana are offered

also under the names "cushin" or "cuxin," "caspirol," and

"paterna."

Inga Roussoviana Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 175.

pi. 82. 1916. /. Schippii Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 11: 132. 1932

(type from Banana Bank, base of Cockscomb Mountains, W. A.

Schipp 538).

Moist or wet forest, 650 meters or less; Pete"n. Southern Mexico;

British Honduras; Honduras; Costa Rica; Panama.

A tree as much as 12 meters high, the trunk to 25 cm. in diameter, the branch-

lets and inflorescence ferruginous-tomentose; petiole and leaf rachis naked, tomen-

tulose or glabrate; leaflets 3-4 pairs, obovate to oblong, short-petiolulate, 5-15

cm. long, 2.5-8 cm. wide, acute or subobtuse, cuneate at the base, in age glabrous

or nearly so; flowers umbellate, the umbels paniculate, many-flowered, on pedun-

cles 1-3.5 cm. long, the pedicels slender, densely pubescent, 4-10 mm. long;

calyx narrow, 5 mm. long, densely sordid-pubescent; corolla 9-11 mm. long, densely

pilose, the stamen tube included or slightly exserted; legume compressed, 11-17

cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, ferruginous-pubescent, rounded at the base, apiculate,

the margins thickened.

Inga spuria Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd. Sp. PL 4: 1011. 1806.

Cuajinicuil; Cujinicuil; Cojinicuil; Cuje; Guamo (Izabal) ; Shalum;

Chalum; Abitz (Pete"n, Maya) ; Cushe.

Moist to wet or dry forest, sometimes in wooded swamps or in

open fields, frequent along stream banks, 1,600 meters or less,

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 45

mostly at 900 meters or lower; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Chiqui-

mula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Suchi-

tepe"quez; Retalhuleu; Huehuetenango; Quezaltenango. Southern

Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and Panama; northern South

America.

A small or medium-sized tree, frequently 15 meters high, sometimes flowering

when only a shrub of 2 meters, the branchlets short-pilose or somewhat tomentose

with grayish or fulvous hairs; petiole very short or almost none, the leaf rachis

rather broadly winged, the glands orbicular, sessile, large and conspicuous;

leaflets 5-7 pairs, almost sessile, oblong-ovate to elliptic-oblong or lance-oblong,

5-15 cm. long, 2-8 cm. wide, subacuminate to obtuse, rounded or obtuse at the

base, somewhat lustrous above, hirtellous or glabrate, densely and softly pubescent

beneath or rarely glabrate; flowers spicate, the spikes axillary, mostly geminate,

2-4 cm. long, dense and few-many-flowered, the peduncles 2-4 cm. long; bracts

small, ovate, deciduous; calyx 1.5 cm. long, appressed-pilose; corolla 2 cm. long,

sericeous-pilose, the stamen sheath scarcely exserted; legume subterete or some-

what tetragonous, densely fulvous-tomentulose, 5-30 cm. long, 1-1.5 cm. in

diameter, the valves very narrow, the margins much thickened, sulcate, expanded

over the sides of the valves.

Known in Salvador by the names "nacaspilo," "pepeto,"

"pepetillo," "cujin," "pepete," and "pepito"; "bribri" (British

Honduras). This has been reported from Guatemala as /. vera

Willd. Pittier reports from Guatemala (Lago de Amatitlan) /.

xalapensis Benth., but all related material that we have seen can

be referred quite satisfactorily to I. spuria, of which I. xalapensis

is quite possibly a synonym. This species sometimes is planted

for coffee shade, but less frequently than some of the species pre-

viously mentioned. The pulp about the seeds is edible. The name

Cuje has been given to a caserio of Jutiapa. The cabecera of Santa

Rosa, Cuilapa, also owes its name to this species of Inga. Its name

was formerly Cuajiniquilapa, meaning "place where Inga trees

grow," but the government, with some reasonable basis, decided

that the name was too long, and shortened it to Cuilapa, which

has no significance at all, etymologically. The name cuajinicuil

and its variants are of Nahuatl derivation. Britton and Rose key

out this species as having pedicellate flowers, but ordinarily it

requires a good imagination. to find the pedicels. Most often the

flowers are quite sessile but they sometimes are short-pedicellate,

especially the lowest flowers of each spike.

Inga subvestita Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 22: 27. 1940.

. Wet mixed forest, 1,100 meters or less; endemic; Alta Verapaz

(type collected above Finca Transvaal, C. L. Wilson 315); Izabal.

46 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

A shrub or small tree, the branches often tortuous, densely hispid with long

spreading hairs; petiole and leaf rachis broadly winged, hirsute; leaflets usually

2-3 pairs, sometimes only 1 pair, membranaceous, oblong-obovate or elliptic-

oblong, 5-9 cm. long, 2-4 cm. wide, mostly acute or acuminate, cuneate-acute

and oblique at the base, sparsely hispid above, long-ciliate, mostly densely hispid

beneath; flowers spicate, the spikes axillary, lax, with few or numerous flowers,

about 3.5 cm. long, the peduncles 2-3.5 cm. long, the flowers sessile, the rachis

densely brown-hispid; bracts linear-subulate, 2-3 mm. long, persistent; calyx

3 mm. long, hispid with long spreading rufous hairs; corolla striate, 12 mm. long,

rather sparsely hispid; legume unknown.

It is questionable whether this is distinct from /. Cookii, but

the flowers are clearly sessile, while in L Cookii they are described as

pedicellate.

LEUCAENA Bentham

Unarmed trees or shrubs; leaves bipinnate, the leaves small and very numerous

or large and few, the petiole usually with a gland; stipules setaceous or small;

flowers capitate, white, the heads globose, many-flowered, the peduncles axillary

and fasciculate or the upper ones in terminal naked racemes; peduncle bearing

2 bracts at or below its apex; flowers 5-parted, sessile; calyx tubular-campanulate,

dentate; petals free, valvate; stamens 10, free, exserted, the anthers ovate, oblong,

or globose, often pilose, eglandular; ovary stipitate, many-ovulate, the style

filiform, the stigma small, terminal; legume stipitate, broadly linear, compressed

and flat, rigid-membranaceous, 2-valvate, continuous within; seeds transverse,

usually oblique, ovate, compressed.

About 50 species have been described, almost 40 of them from

North America. The true number occurring in tropical North

America is probably less than half as many.

Leaflets oblong, mostly 1.5-2 cm. long and 5-8 mm. wide L. Shannoni.

Leaflets linear-oblong, mostly less than 1.5 cm. long and 4 mm. wide.

Leaflets mostly 8-14 mm. long, glaucescent L. glauca.

Leaflets mostly 4-7 mm. long, not glaucescent.

Leaflets densely pubescent beneath and usually also on the upper surface.

L. guatemalensis.

Leaflets ciliate, otherwise glabrous or nearly so.

Bracts inserted at the apex of the peduncle; pinnae 10-25 pairs.

L. brachycarpa.

Bracts inserted below the apex of the peduncle; pinnae mostly fewer than

10 pairs L. diversifolia.

Leucaena brachycarpa Urban, Symb. Antill. 2: 265. 1900.

L. Standleyi Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 128. 1928. Guaje.

Brushy, rocky slopes, 400-1,500 meters; Chiquimula; Jalapa;

Jutiapa; Huehuetenango. Southern Mexico; Salvador.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 47

A tree of 5-8 meters, the branches ferruginous, the young branchlets and leaf

rachis sparsely puberulent; gland of the petiole large and conspicuous, oval or

orbicular, depressed or cupular; leaves large, short-petiolate, the pinnae 10-25

pairs; leaflets 25-50 pairs, linear, 4-5 mm. long, ciliate, when young puberulent

but quickly glabrate, acute, the costa central or somewhat ex centric; peduncles

solitary or fasciculate, 1-2 cm. long, the bracts inserted at the apex, appressed;

flowers strigillose, the calyx 2 mm. long; petals 4 mm. long; legume 6-12 cm. long,

1.5-1.8 cm. wide, apiculate, puberulent or glabrate, narrowed at the base to a

stipe 6-10 mm. long.

Known in Salvador as "guaje," a term derived from the Nahuatl

name, huaxin, from which it is believed that Oaxaca, Mexico,

derives its name.

Leucaena diversifolia (Schlecht.) Benth. in Hook. Journ. Bot.

4: 417. 1842. Acacia diversifolia Schlecht. Linnaea 12: 570. 1838.

Brushy, rocky hillsides, 200-400 meters; Zacapa; Chiquimula.

Southern Mexico.

A tree 15 meters high, the branchlets and leaf rachis puberulent; stipules

triangular-subulate, 5 mm. long; petiolar gland suborbicular, cupular, inserted

just below the lowest pinnae; petiole short, the pinnae 15 pairs or usually 10 or

fewer; leaflets 20-50 pairs, linear, 4-6 mm. long, ciliate but otherwise glabrous or

nearly so, subacute or obtuse, subfalcate; peduncles solitary or geminate, 1-2 cm.

long, the involucre inserted 3 mm. below the apex; flowers glabrous, the corolla

slightly longer than the calyx; legume linear, puberulent, 7-14 cm. long, obtuse

or acute, 1-1.5 cm. wide, the stipe 6-8 mm. long.

The single Guatemalan collection is in fruit, and its determination

is not altogether certain.

Leucaena glauca (L.) Benth. in Hook. Journ. Bot. 4: 416. 1842.

Mimosa glauca L. Sp. PL 520. 1753. Barba de leon (Huehuetenango).

Moist thickets, often in second growth, 1,400 meters or less;

Huehuetenango (Cumbre Papal, Steyermark 50928). British Hon-

duras; southern Florida; southern Mexico; West Indies; northern

South America; naturalized in the Old World tropics.

A shrub or small tree, sometimes 10 meters high, the branchlets and leaf

rachis whitish-puberulent; leaves petiolate, the pinnae 3-10 pairs, the petiole with

a gland or eglandular; leaflets 10-20 pairs, very pale, linear-oblong or lanceolate,

8-15 mm. long, acute, glabrous or nearly so; peduncles axillary and terminal,

usually fasciculate, 2-3 cm. long, the heads 1.5-3 cm. in diameter; calyx puberu-

lent, 1 mm. long, the teeth obtuse; petals pubescent; legume linear, 10-15 cm.

long, 1.5 cm. wide, densely puberulent, abruptly acute or mucronate, attenuate

below to a stout stipe.

Called "wild tamarind" in British Honduras; "uaxim," "guaje"

(Yucatan). There is a prevalent belief in tropical America that if

48 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

horses, mules, or pigs eat any part of the tree, their hair will fall

out, but that cattle and goats are not affected. The wood is hard,

close-grained, and light brown.

Leucaena guatemalensis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 126.

1928. Yaje; Quiebrahacha.

Chiefly on dry, brushy, often rocky slopes or plains, 200-2,100

meters; Zacapa; Guatemala (type collected on plains near Guate-

mala, Sutton Hayes 23); Sacatepe'quez; Quezaltenango; endemic.

A large shrub or a small tree, usually 5-12 meters high, the branchlets, pedun-

cles, and leaf rachis densely puberulent; stipules subulate from a triangular base,

6-8 mm. long; petiolar gland cupular, suborbicular, borne below the lowest pinnae,

the pinnae 12-15 pairs; leaflets 25-35 pairs, linear, 3-5 mm. long, subacute,

puberulent above, densely pubescent beneath; peduncle 1-2.5 cm. long, the bracts

inserted at its apex, the flowers glabrous; bractlets peltate, long-stipitate, puberu-

lent; legume 7-12 cm. long, 1.5-2 cm. wide, rounded to subacute at the apex,

narrowed below to a stipe 1 cm. long or shorter, lustrous, puberulent or glabrate.

Britton and Rose describe the pubescence as "villous," which is

highly misleading. The pubescence on all parts consists of very

short hairs that by no stretching of the term can be called villous.

Leucaena Shannon! Donn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 57: 419. 1914

(type from Cojutepeque, Salvador). L. Salvador ensis Standl. ex

Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 125. 1928 (type from Jocoro, Mora-

zan, Salvador). Guaje.

Dry, brushy plains or rocky hillsides, 900-1,000 meters; Chi-

quimula; Jutiapa. Chiapas; Honduras; Salvador; Nicaragua.

A tree of 7-12 meters, the branchlets and leaf rachis sparsely puberulent or

glabrate; petiolar gland oblong; pinnae 4-6 pairs; leaflets 9-17 pairs, oblong to

elliptic-obovate, 12-22 mm. long, 5-8 mm. wide, obtuse or rounded at the apex,

glabrous or sparsely pilose, reticulate- veined; peduncles 1-2.5 cm. long, usually

forming long racemes, the heads globose, very dense, the bractlets orbicular-

peltate, long-stipitate, puberulent; flowers glabrous, the calyx 2 mm. long; petals

3 mm. long; legume linear, 10-18 cm. long, 1.5-2.5 cm. wide, acute at the base and

short-stipitate, densely velutinous-puberulent.

Called "guaje" in Salvador.

LYSILOMA Bentham

Unarmed shrubs or trees; leaves bipinnate, the leaflets generally small and

very numerous, the petiole usually with a conspicuous gland; flowers small, in

globose heads or in spikes, 5-parted, polygamous; calyx campanulate, shallowly

dentate; corolla funnelform-campanulate, the lobes valvate; stamens numerous,

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 49

mostly 12-30, rather long-exserted, connate at the base into a short tube, the

anthers minute; ovary sessile or short-stipitate, many-ovulate, the style subulate,

the stigma small, terminal; legume linear or broader, generally straight, compressed

and flat, almost membranaceous, the valves separating at maturity from the per-

sistent continuous margin, not septate within; seeds transverse, ovate, compressed.

Perhaps 30 species, in tropical America. One or two other species

may occur in Central America.

Flowers spicate or racemose.

Spikes very short, oval or subglobose, but the flowers scattered along an evident

rachis L. auritum.

Spikes much elongate, almost linear.

Flowers sessile L. desmostachys.

Flowers pedicellate L. acapulcense.

Flowers capitate, the flowers all attached at the end of the rachis.

Leaflets 8-15 mm. long L. bahamense.

Leaflets mostly 3-7 mm. long.

Leaflets pubescent, at least on the lower surface L. Kellermami.

Leaflets glabrous, but more or less ciliate L. multifoliolatum.

Lysiloma acapulcense (Kunth) Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3:

83. 1844. Acacia acapulcensis Kunth, Mimos. 78. 1819.

Only one Guatemalan collection seen definitely referable here,

Dept. Guatemala, Ignacio Aguilar 413; reported from other depart-

ments, perhaps incorrectly, but to be expected anywhere along the

Pacific foothills. Central and southwestern Mexico.

A tree of 8-12 meters, the branchlets densely short-pilose or glabrate; stipules

apparently very small or caducous; petiole bearing a depressed, oval or orbicular,

rather large gland; pinnae about 9 pairs, the rachises velutinous-pilosulous;

leaflets 35-45 pairs, linear-oblong, 4-7 mm. long, obtuse or acute, glabrous, ciliate,

sometimes paler beneath; spikes solitary or clustered, often very numerous,

pedunculate, 2-5 cm. long, dense, many-flowered, the flowers conspicuously

pedicellate; calyx minute, puberulent; corolla glabrous or sericeous, 2-3 times as

long as the calyx; ovary glabrous; legume glabrous, 12-22 cm. long, 2.5-3 cm. wide,

blackish.

Known in Salvador by the names "quebracho Colorado" and

"sicahuite." A decoction of the bark is employed there as a domestic

remedy for dysentery.

Lysiloma auritum (Schlecht.) Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3:

83. 1844. Acacia aurita Schlecht. Linnaea 12: 572. 1838. Sare

bianco.

Moist thickets or often on dry, rocky, or thinly forested hillsides,

sometimes in open pine forest, 1,800 meters or less; Alta Verapaz;

50 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Baja Verapaz; Jalapa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez ; Chi-

maltenango; Solola. Southern Mexico; Honduras; Salvador;

Nicaragua.

A tree of 6-12 meters or reported as sometimes 25 meters high, the crown flat

or open, the bark light brown, sometimes curling up in large scales, the trunk

sometimes with small buttresses, the young branchlets densely short-pilose;

petioles short, bearing a conspicuous elevated gland; stipules large, thin, obliquely

ovate, 1-3 cm. long, acute or obtuse, deciduous, very conspicuous; pinnae 10-25

pairs; leaflets 25-50 pairs, oblong-linear, 4-5 mm. long, obtuse, glabrous but usually

ciliate, often conspicuously so; peduncles axillary, solitary or fasciculate, 3 cm.

long or shorter; racemes very short, 1-1.5 cm. long, oval, the flowers distinctly

pedicellate, densely puberulent; calyx 2 mm. long, the white corolla 3-4 mm.

long; legume short-stipitate, 12-16 cm. long, 3-3.5 cm. wide, blackish or dark

ferruginous, glabrous, rostrate.

Called "sicahuite" or "sicagiiite" in Salvador; "chicharron"

(Veracruz). The sapwood is described as thick and whitish, the

heartwood almost black with broad grayish bands. In Mexico the

wood is used locally for house construction, but it is said to be sus-

ceptible to attacks of termites. In Salvador the bark is used for

tanning hides, but it is reported to impart to them an unpleasant

butyric odor.

Lysiloma bahamense Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3: 82. 1844.

Tzalam (Pete"n, fide Lundell).

Along lake shores, 300 meters or less; Pete"n. Southern Florida;

West Indies; Yucatan; British Honduras.

A tree, sometimes 15 meters high with a trunk 50 cm. in diameter, the bark

at first smooth and gray, splitting into scales, the branchlets slender, glabrous;

stipules ovate, caducous; leaves large, the petiole bearing a large gland below the

lowest pinnae, these 2-5 pairs; leaflets 10-30 pairs, oblong, sessile, 8-15 mm. long,

obtuse, glabrous; flowers whitish, in dense globose heads, these long-pedunculate,

racemose; calyx campanulate, 1 mm. long, the corolla twice as long, with reflexed

lobes, puberulent; legume linear-oblong, 8-15 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, glabrous;

seeds dark brown, lustrous, flat, 12 mm. long.

Called "salom" in British Honduras, presumably of Maya

derivation; "tzucte" (Yucatan, Maya).

Lysiloma desmostachys Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3: 84. 1844.

Acacia desmostachys Benth. PL Hartweg. 13. 1839. Acacia usuma-

cintensis Lundell, Contr. Univ. Mich. Herb. 4: 8. 1940. Zupte

(Pet£n, Maya, fide Lundell).

Chiefly on dry, often rocky, brushy or thinly forested hillsides,

100-1,400 meters; Pete"n; Baja Verapaz; Izabal; Chiquimula; Jalapa;

Jutiapa. Southern Mexico; British Honduras; Salvador.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 51

A tree of 15 meters or less, the branchlets and leaf rachis densely short-pilose;

stipules small or caducous; petiole bearing one or more elevated glands, the pinnae

7-15 pairs; leaflets 40-60 pairs, linear-oblong, 3-5 mm. long, obtuse or subacute,

glabrous or nearly so, ciliate; flowers spicate, the spikes axillary, solitary or fascicu-

late, often very numerous, dense, slender-pedunculate, the flowers sessile, white;

calyx densely pubescent, 1-1.5 mm. long; corolla densely pubescent, twice as

long as the calyx; legume linear-oblong, glabrous, stipitate, 12-20 cm. long, 3-3.5

cm. wide, ferruginous, acute at the base.

Known in British Honduras by the names "wild tamarind" and

"hesmo."

Lysiloma Kellermanii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 81.

1928. Guaje; Pisquin de rio (fide Aguilar).

Wooded rocky stream banks or on dry brushy hillsides, 300-

1,700 meters; Baja Verapaz; El Progreso (type from El Rancho,

W. A. Kellerman 7745); Zacapa; Jalapa; Guatemala; Chimalte-

nango; Quiche". Chiapas.

A tree of 8-12 meters with spreading crown, the branchlets and leaf rachises

densely short-pilose or almost glabrous; stipules apparently early caducous;

petiole bearing a large cupular gland above the middle, the pinnae commonly

4-5 pairs; leaflets about 25 pairs, linear-oblong, 3-5 mm. long or slightly larger,

obtuse or rounded at the apex, rather densely pubescent on both surfaces; pedun-

cles 2-3 cm. long in an thesis, more or less elongate in fruit; legume linear-oblong,

11-16 cm. long, 2-2.8 cm. wide, glabrous, ferruginous, acute or obtuse, acute at

the base and stipitate.

Lysiloma multifoliolatum Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 84.

1928. Zorro.

Thinly forested hillsides, 1,300-1,500 meters; Quezaltenango

(southern slopes of Volcan de Santa Maria, between Finca Pirineos

and Los Positos, Steyermark 33778). Chiapas; Salvador (type from

Zacatecoluca).

A tree of 6-15 meters with broad spreading crown, the young branchlets,

petioles, leaf rachises, and peduncles densely short-pilose; stipules lanceolate,

1-1.5 cm. long, caducous; petiole bearing a rather large, elevated gland, the pinnae

15-25 pairs; leaflets 40-50 pairs or sometimes fewer, oblong-linear, 2.5-4 mm. long,

obtuse, glabrous, ciliate; peduncles solitary or geminate, 1.5-3 cm. long, the heads

globose, the flowers short-pedicellate, white, densely puberulent; calyx 1 mm. long,

the corolla 2.5 mm. long; legume ferruginous, 9 cm. long or more, 2-2.5 cm. wide,

acute at the base, long-stipitate, glabrous, lustrous.

This is probably the species that has been noted by the writers

as common in the bocacosta of San Marcos, where some of the

larger trees must be 30 meters tall.

U. OF ILL LIB.

52 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

MIMOSA L.

Herbs, shrubs, or trees, sometimes woody vines, usually aculeate; leaves

bipinnate, often sensitive, the petioles usually eglandular; flowers 4-5-parted or

sometimes 3- or 6-parted, perfect or polygamous, small, in globose heads or

cylindric spikes, the peduncles axillary, solitary or fasciculate, the upper ones

sometimes racemose; calyx generally minute, short-dentate; petals more or less

connate, valvate; stamens as many as the petals or twice as many, free, long-

exserted, the anthers small, eglandular; ovary sessile or rarely stipitate, 2-many-

ovulate, the style filiform, the stigma small, terminal; legume oblong or linear,

usually compressed and flat, membranaceous or coriaceous, the 2 valves separating

from the persistent continuous margin, commonly transverse-articulate, sometimes

continuous, continuous or subseptate within; seeds compressed, ovate or orbicular.

About 400 species, most abundant in tropical and warmer regions

of America, but extending also to Africa and Asia. Additional ones

are known from southern Central America.

Valves of the legume continuous, not separating into joints, usually densely

aculeate or hispid on the margins.

Plants erect; legume 1.5-2 cm. wide M. platycarpa.

Plants scandent; legume about 1 cm. wide or narrower.

Leaflets 15-25 pairs, 1 mm. wide M. Donnell-Smithii.

Leaflets 7-11 pairs, mostly 6-8 mm. wide M. canahuensis.

Valves of the fruit separating at maturity into joints.

Flowers spicate M. guatemalensis.

Flowers capitate.

Pinnae 1 pair, the leaflets 1-2 pairs, large.

Branches densely pubescent M. albida.

Branches glabrous or nearly so.

Leaflets obtuse or rounded at the apex, or some of them acute; petioles

with only a few weak prickles M. sesquijugata.

Leaflets acute or usually acuminate; petioles densely armed with stout

recurved prickles.

Legume densely pilose and setose-aculeate M. Maxonii.

Legume setose-aculeate but otherwise glabrous M. Velloziana.

Pinnae 1-many pairs, the leaflets 3-many pairs, large or small.

Legume broadly winged on both margins, the wings lacerate; tree of the

Peten region M. hemiendyta.

Legume not winged.

Leaflets large, all or most of them 1 cm. wide or often 4-5 cm. wide;

woody vines, the branches and petioles densely recurved-aculeate;

petiole usually bearing 1 or more glands.

Leaflets usually 3 pairs, sparsely granular-resiniferous beneath, mostly

2-4 cm. wide M. resinifera.

Leaflets 5-many pairs, usually not granular-resiniferous, often smaller.

Leaflets acute, glabrous on the upper surface or nearly so.

M. hondurana.

Leaflets rounded or very obtuse at the apex, often copiously pubes-

cent on the upper surface.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 53

Leaflets usually 3 pairs, the upper ones mostly 2-3.5 cm. wide.

M. Watsonii.

Leaflets mostly 6 or more pairs, little more than 1 cm. wide.

M. Recordii.

Leaflets small, less than 1 cm. wide and often only 1-3 mm. wide; plants

various in habit; petiole always or nearly always eglandular.

Plants unarmed; a tall tree, cultivated M. Bracaatinga.

Plants usually aculeate, never trees; native species.

Stems conspicuously 4-6-angulate, sparsely or usually very densely

beset with short recurved prickles.

Branches glabrous M. pinetorum.

Branches densely pilose or puberulent.

Leaflets 7-9 mm. long; a large, woody vine M. scalpens.

Leaflets 3-5 mm. long; plants chiefly herbaceous, procumbent

or scandent M . invisa.

Stems terete or nearly so, not acutely angulate, armed with straight

or recurved prickles or sometimes unarmed.

Plants densely pubescent with long spreading gland-tipped hairs.

M. somnians.

Plants without gland-tipped hairs.

Plants herbaceous or suffrutescent; stamens as many as the

corolla lobes; pinnae 1-3 pairs.

Leaflets obovate or oval, setose-hirsute M . Skinneri.

Leaflets linear-oblong, not hirsute.

Pinnae remote on the leaf rachis M. teledactyla.

Pinnae crowded at the end of the leaf rachis . . . M. pudica.

Plants conspicuously woody shrubs or trees; stamens as many

as the corolla lobes or twice as many; pinnae often many

pairs.

Pinnae 1 pair M. zacapana.

Pinnae numerous pairs.

Joints of the legume numerous M. pigra.

Joints of the legume 2-3 M. dormiens.

Mimosa albida Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd. Sp. PL 4: 1030.

1806. Zarza viva; Zarza; Sensitiva; Calarcuac, Cuarakix (Coban,

Quecchi).

Moist or dry, often rocky thickets, often on brushy or open

hillsides or in fields or pastures, frequently in oak forest, frequent

in second growth, 2,100 meters or less; Alta Verapaz; Zacapa; Chi-

quimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala;

Sacatepe'quez ; San Marcos. Mexico; Honduras; Costa Rica;

ranging southward to Peru.

An erect shrub, 3 meters high or less, sometimes depressed and prostrate,

abundantly armed on stems and petioles with stout recurved prickles, the branches

densely hispidulous or pilose, the pubescence variable in quality; leaves petiolate,

54 FIELD IANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 2 pairs, the lower inner one much smaller, the others

variable in shape, obovate to oblong, very asymmetric, 3-8 cm. long, acute to

rounded at the apex, usually mucronate, obliquely rounded or obtuse at the base,

covered on both surfaces with slender fine soft whitish hairs, often also setose-

strigose beneath; flowers pink or pale pink, in dense globose heads, these axillary

or in terminal racemes, on peduncles 1-3 cm. long; calyx minute, the corolla

puberulent on the lobes; stamens as many as the corolla lobes; legume narrowly

oblong, 1-3 cm. long, 5-7 mm. wide, subsessile, densely pubescent and short-

setulose, the joints usually 3-6.

Sometimes called "zarza blanca" and "comida de venado" in

Salvador. This plant in its various forms is one of the most common

and widely distributed shrubs of Central America, and it probably

occurs in all the departments of Guatemala. It is of a decidedly

weedy nature, and often occurs abundantly on overgrazed land,

forming dense thickets that are all but impassable because of the

abundance of hooked prickles. The species is a highly variable one,

especially in pubescence, and several of the forms have been described

in the past as species. All these are reduced by Britton and Rose to

synonymy under M. albida, but they were recognized as varieties by

Robinson in his more critical account of the group, and are so treated

here. At first glance the differences between the varieties — chiefly

variations in pubescence — are so striking that one would be inclined

to consider them distinct species, but there are occasional inter-

grading forms, making such segregation impractical.

Mimosa albida var. floribunda (Willd.) Robinson, Proc. Amer.

Acad. 33: 311. 1898. M. floribunda Willd. Sp. PI. 4: 1031. 1806.

Moist or dry thickets or open forest, frequent in pine or oak

forest, often in second growth, 1,000-2,400 meters; Zacapa; Chi-

quimula; Sacatepe"quez; Chimaltenango; Quiche"; Huehuetenango;

Quezaltenango; San Marcos. British Honduras; distribution like

that of the species.

Distinguished by having the leaflets glabrous or practically so

on the upper surface, covered beneath with closely appressed setae;

corolla puberulent or tomentulose; stems densely pubescent.

Mimosa albida var. glabrior Robinson, Proc. Amer. Acad. 33:

311. 1898.

Type from Malpais, Santa Rosa, 1,200 meters, Heyde & Lux

4133.

Branches almost glabrous; leaflets glabrous above, sparsely

setose beneath; corolla glabrous. We have seen no collections refer-

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 55

able to this variety. It was reported by Captain Smith as M. Vel-

loziana Benth.

Mimosa albida var. strigosa (Willd.) Robinson, Proc. Amer.

Acad. 33: 311. 1898. M. strigosa Willd. Sp. PL 4: 1030. 1806.

Zarza negra; Zarza casco de vaca.

Moist or wet thickets, sometimes in savannas, 1,400 meters or

less; Pete"n; Izabal; Jalapa; Huehuetenango. British Honduras;

Costa Rica; South America.

Leaflets densely setose-strigose on both surfaces, the hairs usually

rather long and closely appressed, those of the upper surface some-

times very short. The Maya name of Yucatan is reported as

"heech-beech."

Mimosa Bracaatinga Hoehne, A Bracaatinga ou Abaracaatinga

23. ill 1930.

Native of southern Brazil; cultivated occasionally in Guatemala,

as in Guatemala and near Quezaltenango, and planted as coffee

shade in one or more fincas of Escuintla (Finca El Zapote).

A tall shrub or a slender tree, sometimes 15 meters high, with a rather sparse,

broad crown, the trunk branching shortly above the base, the bark whitish;

young branchlets densely lepidote, unarmed; leaves small, the pinnae mostly 5-7

pairs; leaflets 25-35 pairs, oblong-linear, obtuse, stellate-tomentulose, especially

beneath; peduncles subterminal or axillary, solitary or fasciculate, 1.5 cm. long;

flowers white, in globose heads, these 7 mm. in diameter; calyx glabrous, 1.2 mm.

long; corolla 4-lobate, stellate-tomentulose, 3.5 mm. long; stamens 4 ; legume sessile,

oblong-linear, obtuse, densely verrucose-tomentose, 2-2.5 cm. long, 5-6 mm.

wide, with 2-4 joints; seeds castaneous, 3-4 mm. long.

The bracaatinga has been much advertised in tropical America

in recent years as a tree suitable for reforestation. Its principal

virtue seems to be that it grows rapidly and could be used to reforest

land temporarily until better trees could take its place. Its wood is

much used in its native region for firewood, especially for railway

locomotives, and it might be valuable for paper-making. In Guate-

mala it grows rapidly under as different conditions as those on the

Pacific foothills and the bleak plains of Quezaltenango (at 2,400

meters). The coffee plantations shaded by bracaatinga are very

handsome, for the trees are uniform in height, their crowns far

above the coffee bushes. We have no information as to whether

the tree has been found satisfactory in other respects as coffee shade.

Mimosa canahuensis Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus. Bot. 23:

163. 1944.

56 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Known only from the type, El Progreso, Montana Canahui,

between Finca San Miguel and summit of mountain, near upper

limits of Finca Caieta, 1,600-2,200 meters, Steyermark 43758.

A woody vine, the branches obtusely angulate, densely pilosulous and his-

pidulous, abundantly armed with short recurved brownish broad-based prickles;

leaves large, 15-20 cm. long, the rachis densely aculeolate and sordid-pubescent,

the pinnae 4-6 pairs, 4.5-7.5 cm. long; leaflets 7-11 pairs, thick-membranaceous,

oval-oblong or suboval, 14-19 mm. long, 5-8 mm. wide, rounded or very obtuse

at the apex, obliquely rounded at the base, deep green and puberulent on the upper

surface, paler beneath and softly pilosulous, penninerved; peduncles axillary,

bearing a single head of flowers, stout, 1.5 cm. long, aculeolate above; legumes

several in each head, sessile or nearly so, about 2 cm. long and 8-9 mm. wide,

rounded at base and apex, densely setose, the bristles pale yellowish, 2-3 mm. long,

the margins thickened, densely setose, the valves continuous, not articulate.

Mimosa Donnell-Smithii (Britt. & Rose) Standl. & Steyerm.

Field Mus. Bot. 23: 163. 1944. Neomimosa Donnell-Smithii Britt.

& Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 173. 1928.

Type from Cubilgiiitz, Alta Verapaz, 350 meters, Tuerckheim

8197.

A woody vine, the branches angulate, pubescent, bearing numerous small

reflexed prickles; leaves large, the petiole and rachis pubescent and aculeate, the

pinnae 5-8 pairs; leaflets 15-25 pairs, linear-oblong, 6-8 mm. long, 1 mm. wide,

pubescent on both surfaces; inflorescence paniculate, the peduncles 1-2 cm. long,

pubescent; legume oblong, 5-6 cm. long, 1 cm. wide, long-stipitate, puberulent

when young, attenuate at the apex, the margins and stipe aculeate.

We have seen no representation of this species.

Mimosa dormiens Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd. Sp. PL 4: 1035.

1806.

Collected in Chiapas at Tapachula, and doubtless to be found

in San Marcos or elsewhere in Guatemala; Chiapas to Costa Rica;

South America.

A usually prostrate shrub, forming large dense mats, the branches strigose,

bearing numerous straight prickles; stipules ovate, acuminate, long-ciliate; petiole

and leaf rachis strigose, bearing numerous slender straight prickles; pinnae 3-6

pairs, the leaflets 6-20 pairs, oblong, obtuse, 4-8 mm. long, 1 mm. wide; peduncles

axillary, 2 cm. long or shorter; flowers pink, capitate, 4-parted; stamens 8; legume

obovate, about 12 mm. long and 8 mm. wide, obliquely truncate, pubescent and

setose, the articulations only 2 or 3.

Mimosa guatemalensis (Hook. & Arn.) Benth. Bot. Voy.

Sulph. 89. 1844. Inga guatemalensis Hook. & Arn. Bot. Beechey

Voy. 419. 1841.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 57

Reported rather vaguely from Guatemala, and to be expected

there. Western Mexico; Nicaragua, the type from Realejo.

A shrub or small tree, 5 meters high or less, the branches densely pilose-

tomentose with whitish hairs, usually armed with numerous coarse broad-based

prickles; pinnae 3-6 pairs; leaflets 3-6 pairs, elliptic to obovate, 1-2 cm. long,

4-18 mm. wide, densely pilose on both sides with soft appressed hairs, paler

beneath, rounded or obtuse and apiculate at the apex, rounded at the base;

spikes axillary or in large terminal panicles, dense, many-flowered, 5-7 cm. long,

8 mm. thick, the flowers apparently pink; calyx and corolla densely pubescent;

flowers 5-parted, the stamens 10; legume linear-oblong, 3-5 cm. long, velutinous-

pilose, the margin aculeate or unarmed.

There is no proof that this species, in spite of its name, ever has

been collected in Guatemala. The type came from Nicaragua, and

the specific name must have been the result of a slip of the pen.

Britton and Rose, for no obvious reason, cite the type locality

incorrectly as Tepic.

Mimosa hemiendyta Rose & Robinson ex Rose, Contr. U. S.

Nat. Herb. 8: 32. 1903. Pteromimosa hemiendyta Britton, N. Amer.

Fl. 23: 172. 1928.

Swamp forest, 200 meters or less; Pete"n. British Honduras and

Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.

A large shrub or a tree, reported to attain a height of 20 meters but usually

lower, the trunk 60 cm. or less in diameter, the branches sparsely recur ved-aculeate,

the young branches and inflorescence densely ferruginous-tomentose; leaves small,

the pinnae 2-4 pairs; leaflets 4-8 pairs, broadly oblong or almost oval, 6-7 mm.

long, broadly rounded at the apex, tomentulose when young but in age glabrous

or nearly so, paler beneath; peduncles axillary or in terminal racemes, about 1 cm.

long, the flowers in dense globose heads, pink; corolla glabrous, 4-5-lobate; stamens

8 or 10; legume oblong, 4-7.5 cm. long, 12-15 mm. wide, brown-tomentulose, thin,

acute or acuminate, rather long-stipitate, each margin with a broad, thin, serrate

and often cleft wing.

Known in British Honduras as "logwood brush," "bastard log-

wood," and "catseem logwood"; "zaccatzim" (Yucatan, Maya);

also called "boxcatzim" in Yucatan. The species is easy of recogni-

tion by its winged fruit, quite unlike that of any other Central

American Mimosa. A similar species is found in Cuba.

Mimosa hondurana Britton, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 169. 1928.

M. pseudopaniculata Britton, loc. cit.

Moist forest or thickets 1,300 meters or less; Pete"n; Santa Rosa;

Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez. Chiapas; British Honduras; Honduras.

A large woody vine, sometimes 9 meters long or more, the branches, petioles,

and leaf rachis armed with numerous small recurved prickles, puberulent; glands

58 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

of the petiole minute or wanting; stipules filiform, 5-6 mm. long; pinnae 2-4 pairs,

the leaflets 5-9 pairs, rhombic or very obliquely ovate or ovate-lanceolate, 1-3 cm.

long, obliquely acute and mucronate, very oblique at the base, subsessile, puberu-

lent or almost glabrous above, softly pubescent or appressed-pilose beneath ; flowers

white, fragrant, globose-capitate, the heads disposed in large lax panicles, the

peduncles filiform, solitary or fasciculate, 5-13 mm. long; calyx and corolla gla-

brous; stamens twice as many as the corolla lobes; legume 8 cm. long or shorter,

1 cm. wide, dark red, lustrous, glabrous, rounded and short-rostrate at the apex,

recurved-aculeate on the margins, the seeds about 8 or fewer.

This has been reported from Guatemala as M. costaricensis

Benth., a distinct species not found in northern Central America.

Called "rabo de iguana" in Honduras.

Mimosa invisa Mart. Flora 20, Beibl. 2: 121. 1837.

Moist or dry thickets or in open places, sometimes in oak forest,

1,650 meters or less; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa

Rosa; Guatemala; Retalhuleu. Southern Mexico; Honduras to

Panama; West Indies; tropical South America.

Plants scandent or procumbent, branched, the stems often 2 meters long,

angulate, densely armed with short sharp recurved prickles, usually rather densely

short-pilose; leaves small, the petiole and rachis densely aculeate, the pinnae 4-8

pairs; leaflets many pairs, oblong-linear, 3-5 mm. long, 1 mm. wide, glabrous,

ciliate, paler beneath; peduncles axillary and in terminal racemes, about 1 cm.

long, the flowers deep rose-pink, in dense globose heads; calyx and corolla glabrous;

stamens 8, purplish; legume linear-oblong, 1-2.5 cm. long, 5-6 mm. wide, short-

pilose, abundantly aculeolate on the sides and margins, sessile, 3-5-articulate.

Called "rabo de iguana" in Honduras; "zarza," "zarza zonza"

(Salvador). The plant sometimes invades cultivated ground,

especially banana plantations, and is a most pernicious and offensive

weed. The prickles are so sharp and abundant that it is impossible

to touch the plant without receiving lacerations.

Mimosa Maxonii Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 17: 432. 1914.

Moist or dry thickets, 300-1,200 meters; endemic; Escuintla;

Sacatepe'quez; Suchitepe"quez (type collected near Mazatenango,

W. R. Maxon & Robert Hay 3497); Retalhuleu; San Marcos.

A small woody vine, clambering over shrubs or prostrate on the ground, the

stems glabrous, densely armed with rather long and slender, recurved prickles;

leaves long-petiolate, the petiole densely aculeate, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 2

pairs, elliptic-lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, very inequilateral, mostly 3-4 cm.

long, acute or acuminate, rounded or obtuse and very asymmetric at the base,

glabrous above, glabrous beneath or very sparsely setose-strigose ; peduncles

axillary, 1-2.5 cm. long, solitary or fasciculate, the flowers glabrous, in dense

globose heads 5-6 mm. in diameter; corolla 2 mm. long; stamens 10; legume oblong

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 59

or narrowly oblong, 2-2.5 cm. long, 6-8 mm. wide, obtuse or abruptly acute, sub-

sessile, 2-4-seeded, setose-aculeate on the margins, the valves densely short-

pilose.

This is probably no more than a variety or local race of M. Vel-

loziana, which occurs in the same general region.

Mimosa pigra L. Cent. PL 1: 13. 1755. M. asperata L. Syst.

Nat. ed. 10. 1312. 1759. Sinverguenza; Zarza. ,

Brushy marshes or wet fields, often in low sandy areas along

streams, frequent in upland fields or pastures, often in second

growth, 1,300 meters or less; Pete"n; Izabal; Zacapa; El Progreso;

Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Guatemala; Suchitepe"quez ;

Retalhuleu; San Marcos. Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador

and Panama; West Indies; South America; Old World tropics.

A stout stiff erect shrub, commonly 1-2 meters high, the branches setose with

appressed or spreading setae, also sparsely or densely pubescent or tomentose,

armed with numerous stout, broad-based, more or less recurved prickles; leaves

rather large, the petiole and rachis armed with numerous long prickles, the pinnae

7-15 pairs; leaflets many pairs, linear, 5-8 mm. long, pubescent on both surfaces,

setulose-ciliate; peduncles axillary, 2-5 cm. long, the flowers pink, in dense, globose

or oval heads; calyx 2 mm. long, the corolla 4-lobate, minutely setulose or his-

pidulous; stamens 8; legume narrowly oblong, 3-8 cm. long, 10-12 mm. wide,

densely setose-hispid with brownish hairs, 10-13-articulate, sessile or short-

stipitate.

Called "sensitive weed" in British Honduras; "carbon" (Hon-

duras). This is a characteristic shrub of lowland marshes and, in

such situations, can be found almost anywhere in Central America.

The leaves are almost as sensitive as those of M. pudica, the pinnae

drooping immediately after being touched.

Mimosa pinetorum Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 11: 131. 1932.

British Honduras; known only from the type, H. H. Bartlett

11629, in ravine, Mountain Pine Ridge, El Cayo District.

A procumbent herb 1.5 meters long, the slender stems quadrangular, armed

with a few slender recurved prickles 1 mm. long, glabrous; leaves slender-petiolate,

the petioles aculeolate, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets about 8 pairs, oblong, 10 mm.

long, 3 mm. wide, rounded at the apex, glabrous; stipules filiform, 2.5 mm. long;

peduncles axillary, solitary, slender, glabrous, 1.5-2.5 cm. long; legume linear,

3-4.5 cm. long, 4-5 mm. wide, short-stipitate, cuspidate, glabrous, the margins

densely setulose-aculeate, the articulations 7-11.

Mimosa platycarpa Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 30: 417. 1875.

Neomimosa platycarpa Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 173. 1928.

Espinita.

60 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Dry, brushy, often rocky plains and hillsides, 200-1,200 meters;

type collected in Guatemala by Skinner, the locality not indicated;

endemic; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Guatemala (Fiscal).

A shrub or small tree, sometimes 6 meters high, the branches armed with

small or rather large, very stout, broad-based, spreading or somewhat recurved

prickles, the branchlets almost glabrous; stipules small, setaceous; leaves small, the

pinnae 6-10 pairs; leaflets mostly 9-20 pairs, linear-oblong, 3-5 mm. long, obtuse,

when young sparsely and minutely pilose beneath or almost wholly glabrous, often

ciliate; flowerl white or pink, spicate, the spikes slender, about 2.5 cm. long, lax,

the flowers 5-parted; stamens 10; legume slender-stipitate, compressed and thin,

3-6.5 cm. long, 1.5-2.5 cm. wide, acute to rounded at the apex, acute or obtuse

at the base, glabrous, the valves continuous, the margins sparsely or densely armed

with short or long, straight, spreading prickles, or sometimes unarmed.

The shrub is a common and characteristic one of the dry Zacapa

region. It exhibits much variation in the size and prickliness of

the fruits.

Mimosa pudica L. Sp. PI. 518. 1753. Sensitiva; Cac-kix

(Quecchi) ; Puta vieja; Cierra tus puertas; Dormilona. Sensitive plant.

Common in moist or wet thickets or open places, often in savan-

nas, abundant in the lowlands in waste ground and about dwellings,

often plentiful along paths, 1,550 meters or less, and mostly below

1,000 meters; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Zacapa; Chiquimula;

Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Sacatepe"quez ; Suchite-

pe"quez; Retalhuleu; Quezaltenango; San Marcos. Southern Mexico;

British Honduras to Salvador and Panama; West Indies; South

America; naturalized in the Old World tropics.

Plants essentially annual, erect or spreading, rarely suffrutescent, the stems

long-pilose or glabrate, seldom more than 60 cm. long, sparsely or densely armed

with stout, spreading or recurved prickles; stipules lanceolate, striate, 3-6 mm.

long; leaves long-petiolate, small, the pinnae 1-2 pairs, inserted at or near the end

of the rachis; leaflets 15-25 pairs, oblong or linear-oblong, 5-10 mm. long, very

obtuse to acute and mucronate at the apex, obliquely rounded at the base, gla-

brate, often setulose-ciliate; peduncles 1-2 cm. long, axillary, the flowers pink;

calyx minute; petals 4; stamens 4; legume linear-oblong, 1-1.5 cm. long, 3 mm.

wide, 2-5-articulate, glabrous or nearly so, the margins densely armed with long

spreading setae.

Sometimes called "zarza" and "zarza dormilona" in Salvador;

"xmuts," "xmumuts" (Yucatan, Maya). In Guatemala the plant

is abundant throughout the lowlands, but it is absent or rare in the

mountain regions. In Guatemala City it sometimes is planted as a

curiosity, just as it is grown in hothouses of North America and

Europe. This is the best known of the sensitive plants, its leaflets

folding together and the leaves drooping immediately when they are

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 61

disturbed. Looking back after crossing a pasture where the plant

abounds, one can easily trace one's steps by the different appearance

of the Mimosa plants that have been touched in passing; but after

a few minutes the leaves resume their normal position. The plants

behave also in much the same manner upon the approach of darkness,

or when disturbed by rain. Many other species of Mimosa and many

plants of other genera of the Mimoseae of course act in the same

manner. Wisdom states that in the Jocotan. region sleep is induced

in infants by bathing them in a decoction of this or some related

species, a most curious attempt to utilize an obvious property of the

plant, but probably not a very efficacious remedy.

Mimosa Recordii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 170. 1928.

M. Rekoana Britton, loc. cit. (type from Oaxaca). Zarza.

Moist or wet thickets or forest, often in second growth, 1,500

meters or less; Sacatepe'quez; Chimaltenango; Quezaltenango; San

Marcos. Southern Mexico; British Honduras (type from Middlesex,

Stann Creek District, S. J. Record).

A small or large, woody vine, sometimes climbing over medium-sized trees,

the branches angulate or in age subterete, densely pubescent, densely armed with

small recurved prickles, like the petioles and leaf rachises; petiole and rachis

bearing large sessile cupular glands, the pinnae 4-6 pairs; leaflets 4-9 pairs,

broadly oblong to rhombic or rounded, mostly 1-2 cm. long, rounded or obtuse

at the apex, very asymmetric at the base, densely pilose with short, spreading

or subappressed hairs, paler beneath; flowers white, fragrant, in small globose

heads, these on peduncles 4-8 mm. long, very numerous and forming large open

panicles, the branches densely short-pilose; flowers glabrous, the calyx subtrun-

cate; corolla 4-5-lobate; stamens 8 or 10; legume 6-10 cm. long, about 1.5 cm.

wide, with 10 or fewer articulations, glabrous or nearly so in age, the margins

armed with a few minute prickles or unarmed.

Called "haulback" in British Honduras.

Mimosa resinifera Britton, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 169. 1928.

Wet thickets or forest, at or near sea level; Izabal. Atlantic

lowlands of Honduras, the type from Tela.

A large woody vine, the branches angulate at first, subterete in age, hirtellous

or subtomentose, densely armed with short recurved prickles; petiole and rachis

densely aculeate, bearing elevated short-cylindric glands, the pinnae 2-3 pairs;

leaflets 2-3 pairs, large, rhombic-ovate to broadly obovate, mostly 3-7 cm. long,

obtuse, very oblique at the base, rather thin, sparsely short-pilose or puberulent

on the veins, sparsely resin-dotted beneath; flowers white, in globose heads, the

peduncles 5-10 mm. long, disposed in large terminal panicles; flowers 4-parted, the

calyx minute; corolla 1.5 mm. long; stamens 8; legume unknown.

62 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Mimosa scalpens Standl. Carnegie Inst. Wash. Publ. 461:

58. 1935.

Wet thickets or forest, 370 meters or less; Alta Verapaz; Izabal.

British Honduras, the type from Jacinto Hills, W. A. Schipp S497.

A small or large, woody vine, sometimes 12 meters long, the branches subterete,

striate-angulate, densely short-pilose, densely covered with small recurved prickles;

leaves rather large, the petiole and rachis aculeolate, the pinnae 3-10 pairs;

leaflets about 15 pairs, oblong, 7-11 mm. long, 2.5-5 mm. wide, apiculate-acumi-

nate, obliquely rounded at the base, pilosulous above with appressed or spreading

hairs, paler beneath and densely appressed-pilose; flowers white, capitate, the

peduncles axillary and solitary or forming small panicles; calyx 1.5 mm. long,

glabrous except on the lobes; corolla 5-parted, 3 mm. long, glabrous; stamens 10;

legume linear-oblong, about 6 cm. long and 1.5 cm. wide, rounded and mucronate

at the apex, strongly compressed, short-stipitate, glabrous, lustrous, about 8-articu-

late, the margins recurved-aculeate or sometimes unarmed.

Mimosa sesquijugata Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 13: 74. 1888.

Moist thickets or in clefts of exposed cliffs, 200-1,500 meters;

endemic; Baja Verapaz (type from Santa Rosa, Tuerckheim 1327);

Zacapa.

An erect shrub 2 meters high or less, the branches glabrous or nearly so,

unarmed or with sparse small recurved prickles; stipules linear, striate, 3 mm. long;

leaves slender-petiolate, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 2 pairs, the lower ones much

reduced, the upper ones very inequilateral, oblong-ovate, 1.5-3.5 cm. long, obtuse

or subacute, semicordate at the base, glabrous and green above, pale beneath and

densely appressed-setulose, setulose-ciliate; flowers 4-parted, pinkish white, in

dense globose heads, the peduncles slender, often equaling the petioles; calyx

minute; corolla glabrous, 2 mm. long; stamens 4; legume unknown.

Mimosa Skinneri Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 5: 85. 1846 (type

from "Cuesta de Leon," Baja Verapaz(?), Guatemala, Skinner).

M. tetraneura Brandeg. Univ. Calif. Publ. Bot. 6: 52. 1914. Guachi-

mos; Dormilona.

Dry, rocky thickets or open plains or hillsides, sometimes in

open pine forest, frequently in open fields or in dried mud, 1,700

meters or less; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla;

Guatemala. Chiapas; Salvador; Costa Rica.

Plants annual, usually much branched from the base, erect or prostrate, the

stems hirsute or hispid, mostly 50 cm. long or less, armed with pale straight

infrastipular prickles; stipules lanceolate, long-ciliate; leaves small, the pinnae 1-2

pairs, approximate; leaflets 4-8 pairs, obovate or oval, mostly 7-9 mm. long,

rounded at the apex, glabrous above, setose-hispid beneath with few or numerous

long hairs; peduncles axillary, equaling or longer than the petioles, hispid, the

flowers capitate, purplish rose, 4-5-parted; stamens 4-5; legume oblong, 1.5-2 cm.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 63

lo»g, 4 mm. wide, about 4-articulate, the valves glabrous or short-pilose and some-

times setose, the margins densely setose.

Sometimes called "charqueta" and "zarza" in Salvador.

Mimosa somnians Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd. Sp. PI. 4: 1036.

1806. Dormilona.

Chiefly on brushy, rocky hillsides or in pine-oak forest, sometimes

in sand along stream beds, 1,400 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz;

Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala; San

Marcos. Southern Mexico; British Honduras; Salvador; Costa

Rica; Panama; southward to Paraguay.

Plants erect and frutescent, 1.5 meters high or less, or often almost wholly

herbaceous, sometimes procumbent, usually densely glandular-pilose but occasion-

ally almost glabrous, usually armed with numerous spreading prickles; petioles

and leaf rachis aculeate or unarmed, the pinnae 2-8 pairs; leaflets 12-18 pairs,

linear-oblong, 2-4 mm. long, rounded at the apex, glabrous or nearly so, with

prominent venation; flowers pink, 4-parted, in dense globose heads, the peduncles

mostly axillary; corolla conspicuously striate, glabrous; stamens 8; legume linear,

4-7 cm. long, 2-4 mm. wide, glandular-pilose or glabrous, long-stipitate, acute,

often conspicuously constricted between the seeds, with numerous articulations,

the margins glandular-setulose or naked.

Ordinarily the species is easily recognized by the dense gland-

tipped hairs, but in some forms the stems and foliage are almost

wholly glabrous.

Mimosa teledactyla Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 56: 57. 1913.

Dry, rocky plains and hillsides, 300-1,000 meters; endemic;

Baja Verapaz (type from Santa Rosa, 0. F. Cook 234); Zacapa;

Chiquimula.

Plants annual, the stems 1 meter long or shorter, setulose and aculeate;

petiole and rachis aculeolate or unarmed, the pinnae 2-3 pairs; leaflets 8-10

pairs, oblong, rounded at each end, 8-12 mm. long or shorter, glabrous or pubes-

cent, the margins often setulose-ciliate; peduncles axillary, slender, 5 cm. long or

shorter, setulose, the flowers 4-parted, in globose heads; calyx minute, the corolla

3 mm. long, pink; stamens 4; legume oblong, about 2-seeded, 8 mm. long, 3-4 mm.

wide, short, pilose and abundantly setose.

Mimosa Velloziana Mart. Herb. Fl. Bras. 185. 1837.

Dry or moist thickets, often along rocky stream banks, 1,500

meters or less, mostly at 500 meters or lower; Santa Rosa; Escuintla;

Suchitepe'quez; Retalhuleu; San Marcos. Southern Mexico; Costa

Rica; Panama; southward to Paraguay.

A small or large, woody vine, the stems angulate or subterete, scandent or

sprawling over the ground, green, glabrous, densely armed with short recurved

64 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

prickles; stipules lanceolate; leaves long-petiolate, the petioles aculeate, the pinnae

1 pair; leaflets 2 pairs, ovate-oblong or oblong-lanceolate, mostly 3-4 cm. long,

the lowest ones much reduced, the upper ones acute, glabrous and bright green

above, appressed-setose beneath and on the margins or glabrate; peduncles short,

the flowers pink, 4-parted, in globose heads; stamens 4; legume oblong, 1.5-2.5

cm. long, 8 mm. wide, rounded and mucronate at the apex, glabrous, bearing on

the margins and often also on the valves numerous long spreading stramineous

straight prickles.

Wherever it grows, this shrub is a great pest because of its offen-

sive covering of sharp curved prickles that cause the branches and

leaves to cling tenaciously to clothing and rip and tear the flesh.

Mimosa Watsonii Robinson, Proc. Amer. Acad. 36: 473. 1901

(type Sereno Watson 323 and 185, probably from Izabal).

Wet forest or thickets, at or little above sea level; endemic;

Izabal.

A small or large, woody vine, the branches terete or at first angulate, densely

short-pilose or subtomentose, abundantly armed with very small, recurved prickles;

petiole and leaf rachis tomentulose and aculeate, bearing one or more large cupular

glands, the pinnae 1-3 pairs; leaflets 1-3 pairs, broadly obovate to rounded-

rhombic or rhombic-ovate, mostly 2-5 cm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex,

very oblique at the base, strigillose above, densely and softly short-pilose beneath ;

flowers 4-parted, glabrous, in small globose heads, these very numerous, forming

large terminal panicles, the peduncles 5-10 mm. long; stamens 8; legume 5-7 cm.

long, about 1 cm. wide, obtuse or rounded at the apex, strongly compressed, in

age glabrous or nearly so, about 10-articulate.

Mimosa zacapana Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus. Bot. 23: 57.

1944. Espinito; Motaspina.

Dry, rocky hillsides or plains, 200-900 meters; endemic; Zacapa

(type collected near Santa Rosalia, Steyermark 29018); Chiquimula;

Huehuetenango.

A shrub 1-1.5 meters high or sometimes a small, densely branched tree, the

branches sparsely hirtellous or glabrate, armed with few short, spreading, rather

stout prickles; stipules subulate; leaves short-petiolate, the petioles mostly 1-1.5

cm. long, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 6-9 pairs, oblong, 6-11 mm. long, 2.5-3.5 mm.

wide, obtuse or subacute, subapiculate, thick, appressed-setulose-ciliate, glabrous

above, sparsely short-setulose beneath and often sparsely pilosulous or almost

wholly glabrous, costa somewhat excentric; peduncles axillary, solitary, 3-4.5 cm.

long, very slender, glabrous or nearly so, the flowers in globose heads, pink, with

white filaments, glabrous or the corolla sparsely puberulent on the lobes, 2.5 mm.

long; stamens as many as the corolla lobes; legume about 3 cm. long, 7 mm. wide,

slightly constricted between the seeds, pubescent, bearing a few minute incon-

spicuous setae on the margins and sometimes on the valves, about 4-articulate.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 65

NEPTUNIA Loureiro

Perennial herbs or suffrutescent plants, sometimes aquatic; leaves bipinnate,

the leaflets numerous, small; stipules membranaceous, obliquely cordate; flowers

5-parted, in ovoid-globose heads, the upper flowers perfect, the lower often stami-

nate or neutral, the peduncles axillary, solitary; calyx campanulate, shallowly

dentate; petals coherent to the middle or free, valvate; stamens 10 or rarely 5,

free, exserted; anthers tipped with a stipitate gland; ovary stipitate, with numerous

ovules, the style filiform, the stigma terminal, small, concave; legume oblique-

oblong, often deflexed from the stipe, compressed and flat, membranaceous-

coriaceous, 2-valvate, subseptate within between the seeds; seeds transverse,

ovate, compressed.

About 10 species, chiefly in tropical regions of America, Asia,

and Australia. One other species has been reported from Panama.

Plants terrestrial, the stems slender, not inflated or spongy; petiole with a gland

near the apex N. plena.

Plants aquatic, floating, the stems thick and inflated, spongy; petiole eglandular.

N. prostrata.

Neptunia plena (L.) Benth. in Hook. Journ. Bot. 4: 355. 1841.

Mimosa plena L. Sp. PI. 519. 1753.

Brushy, grassy, dry or moist plains or hillsides, often in weedy

fields, sometimes on sand flats or salt flats, 800 meters or less;

Zacapa; Jutiapa; Retalhuleu; San Marcos. Western and southern

Mexico; Panama; West Indies; tropical South America.

Plants glabrous, usually much branched and prostrate, the stems a meter

long or usually much shorter; stipules ovate or lanceolate, 4-6 mm. long; leaves

petiolate, the pinnae 2-4 pairs; leaflets usually 12-20 pairs, linear-oblong, 4-10

mm. long, obtuse; peduncles mostly 6-14 cm. long, bearing 1-2 cordate bracts

at or below the middle; heads ovoid, the flowers yellow, the upper ones perfect,

the lower ones with long-exserted starriinodia; legume 2-5 cm. long, 8 mm. wide,

rounded and apiculate at the apex, long-stipitate, the margins narrowly thickened.

Neptunia prostrata (Lam.) Baill. Bull. Soc. Linn. Paris 1: 356.

1883. Mimosa prostrata Lam. Encycl. 1: 10. 1783. N. oleracea

Lour. Fl. Cochin. 654. 1790. Lechuga.

Floating in lakes or ponds, 450-1,000 meters; Chiquimula (La

Laguna, near Chiquimula); Jutiapa (Lago de Gtiija). Southern

Mexico; Cuba; Jamaica; tropical South America, Asia, and Africa.

Plants floating in quiet water, usually simple, glabrous throughout, the stems

very thick and spongy, zigzag, bearing large tufts of fibrous roots, also with hollow

swellings 1-2 cm. in diameter; stipules triangular-ovate, 5-7 mm. long; petioles

4-6 cm. long, eglandular, the pinnae 2-3 pairs; leaflets 8-20 pairs, oblong or linear-

oblong, 6-13 mm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex; peduncles axillary, solitary,

in fruit 12-30 cm. long, bearing 1-2 ovate or lanceolate bracts; heads subglobose,

66 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

many-flowered; perfect flowers white, the basal neuter flowers yellow, the calyx

2 mm. long; corolla 4 mm. long; legume 2-2.5 cm. long, 8-10 mm. wide, rounded

and mucronate at the apex, deflexed at a right angle from the stipe; seeds 5-8.

This is a remarkable member of the Leguminosae, for there are

few plants of the vast family that are true aquatics.

PIPTADENIA Bentham

Shrubs or trees, aculeate or unarmed; leaves bipinnate, the leaflets small,

numerous, the petiole and rachis usually glandular; flowers small, 5-parted, white,

yellowish, or greenish, spicate or in globose heads, the peduncles axillary, solitary

or fasciculate, sometimes forming terminal panicles; calyx campanulate, shallowly

dentate; petals usually connate to the middle, valvate; stamens 10, free, exserted,

the anthers tipped with a deciduous gland; ovary subsessile, 3-many-ovulate;

legume stipitate or sessile, broadly linear, compressed, membranaceous or coria-

ceous, 2- valvate, the valves straight or constricted between the seeds; seeds com-

pressed, the funicle filiform.

About 60 species, in the tropics of both hemispheres. Only the

following are known in Central America.

Leaflets linear, 1 mm. wide; fruit not constricted between the seeds P. flava.

Leaflets oval or rhombic, 3-10 mm. wide; fruit conspicuously constricted between

the seeds P. constricta.

Piptadenia constricta (Micheli & Rose) Macbride, Contr.

Gray Herb. 59: 18. 1919. Goldmania constricta Micheli & Rose ex

Micheli, Mem. Soc. Phys. Hist. Nat. Geneve 34: 274. pi. 20. 1903.

Pityrocarpa constricta Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 190. 1928.

Dry thickets on plains, 120 meters or less; Retalhuleu (between

Nueva Linda and Champerico, Standley 87647) ; probably in all the

Pacific coast departments. Pacific coast of Mexico; Salvador.

A tree of 10-12 meters, unarmed or with a few short spines, the branchlets

densely pubescent at first; stipules small, subulate; petiole bearing a large orbicular

gland near the middle; pinnae 3-5 pairs, the leaflets 5-9 pairs, rhombic to obovate,

6-17 mm. long, rounded at the apex, very oblique at the base, puberulent or gla-

brate, paler beneath; spikes short-pedunculate, solitary or geminate, slender, 5-8

cm. long; corolla yellowish green, 2 mm. long, glabrous; legume 10-15 cm. long,

6-8 mm. wide, very deeply constricted between the numerous seeds; seeds oblong,

5 mm. long.

Known in Salvador as "lengua de vaca" and "quebracho."

Piptadenia flava (Spreng.) Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 30: 371.

1875. Acacia flava Spreng. ex DC. Prodr. 2: 469. 1825.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 67

Rather dry, open hillsides, 300-875 meters; Zacapa; Chiquimula.

Southern Mexico; Panama; northern South America, southward to

Ecuador.

A shrub or small tree, 3-5 meters high, the branches usually with small

recurved prickles, puberulent when young; leaf rachis pubescent or glabrate,

sparsely aculeolate or unarmed, the pinnae 8-13 pairs; leaflets 12-25 pairs, linear,

5-10 mm. long, acute or subacute, glabrous; flower spikes axillary and forming

terminal panicles, 4-8 cm. long; flowers yellow, the corolla glabrous; legume oblong-

linear, 5-9 cm. long, 10-18 mm. wide, rounded and apiculate at the apex, acute

to rounded at the base, thin, glabrous, gland-dotted when young, the valves thin,

not constricted between the seeds.

PITHECOLOBIUM Martius

Shrubs or trees, unarmed or with spinescent stipules or axillary spines; leaves

bipinnate, the leaflets small and numerous or large and few; petioles and leaf

rachis usually glandular; stipules usually small and inconspicuous, sometimes

spinescent; flowers 5-parted, in globose heads or elongate spikes, mostly white or

pink, the peduncles solitary or fasciculate, supra-axillary, axillary, or terminal,

sometimes racemose; calyx campanulate or tubular, shallowly dentate; corolla

tubular or funnelform, the petals connate to the middle or higher, valvate; stamens

numerous, long-exserted, connate at the base or often much higher to form a tube,

the anthers small; ovary sessile or stipitate, usually many-ovulate, the style

filiform, the stigma terminal, small or capitate; legume exceedingly variable in

form, compressed or flat, straight or falcate or often much contorted, sometimes

terete, coriaceous or subcarnose, 2-valvate or indehiscent; seeds often imbedded

in pulp, ovate or orbicular, commonly compressed, the funicle filiform or often

expanded as an aril.

Probably almost or fully 200 species, in the tropics of both hemi-

spheres. Several other species are known from Central America.

The generic name appeared originally as Pithecellobium, and has

been written also Pithecollobium, but we prefer the form used here,

which has been adopted by practically all authors. The species

listed here were scattered by Britton and Rose (in North American

Flora) among seven genera. Some of these genera were based upon

fruit characters and have some basis for separation. Others were

based on shape and number of leaflets, which would scarcely be

considered generic characters by even not very conservative bota-

nists. What purpose is served by such splitting of the genus, other

than increasing the number of generic names to be remembered and

cluttering an overloaded synonymy with many new nomenclatural

changes and combinations, is not obvious.

Leaflets 1-2 pairs, rarely 4,-5 pairs but the pinnae then only 1 pair; leaflets usually

large, often 2 cm. wide or more; branches often armed with spines.

Flowers in dense elongate spikes, these in the leaf axils or in terminal panicles, not

arising from naked nodes; fruit narrow, usually contorted, somewhat fleshy.

68 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Leaflets conspicuously pubescent beneath.

Corolla about 3 mm. long; stamen tube not exserted P. saxosum.

Corolla 5-7 mm. long; stamen tube conspicuously exserted.

Calyx less than 1 mm. long; leaflets velutinous-pubescent, rounded at the

apex, the veins not conspicuous beneath P. Brownii.

Calyx 3 mm. long; leaflets sparsely hirsute beneath, acute or pointed

at the apex, the veins elevated and very conspicuous beneath.

P. Johanseni.

Leaflets glabrous or essentially so.

Calyx about 1 mm. long P. microstachyum.

Calyx 2-4 mm. long.

Legume terete, about 2 cm. thick P. pachypus.

Legume somewhat compressed or subterete, about 1 cm. thick.

Bractlets lanceolate or subulate, rather conspicuous P. insigne.

Bractlets deltoid, minute P. lanceolatum.

Flowers capitate or in short spikes, if spicate the spikes arising from naked

nodes on old wood; fruit often flat and not contorted, but sometimes con-

torted and fleshy.

Leaflets only 2 in each pinna.

Calyx and corolla puberulent; branches aculeate; leaflets chartaceous.

P. dulce.

Calyx and corolla glabrous; branches unarmed; leaflets coriaceous.

P. keyense.

Leaflets 3 or more in each pinna.

Branches aculeate; leaflets 1-2.5 cm. long P. platylobum.

Branches unarmed; leaflets larger.

Flowers in short spikes, these often head-like.

Legume glabrous; leaflets mostly 6-9 cm. wide, acute or obtuse; corolla

5 mm. long P. belizense.

Legume densely ferruginous-tomentulose, at least when young;

leaflets 2.5-5 cm. wide; corolla 9-10 mm. long .... P. Stevensonii.

Flowers in globose or short-oblong heads.

Inflorescences axillary; legume subterete, strongly constricted between

the seeds P. Standleyi.

Inflorescences arising from leafless branches; legume compressed, not

constricted between the seeds P. Recordii.

Leaflets numerous pairs, if few the pinnae more than 1 pair; leaflets often small

and linear or oblong; branches usually unarmed.

Flowers conspicuously pedicellate, umbellate.

Leaflets densely and softly pubescent P. Saman.

Leaflets glabrous or nearly so.

Leaflets 2-7 mm. wide.

Pedicels much longer than the calyx; leaflets 2-3 mm. wide . . P. halogenes.

Pedicels equaling or shorter than the calyx; leaflets 5-7 mm. wide.

P. Zollerianum.

Leaflets all or mostly 10-25 mm. wide P. leucocalyx.

Flowers sessile, capitate or spicate.

Flowers spicate.

Pinnae 10-15 pairs P. macrandrium.

Pinnae 2-4 pairs.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 69

Leaflets oval or oblong, rounded at the apex P. Peckii.

Leaflets oblong-lanceolate, tapering to the apex P. pistacii folium.

Flowers capitate.

Branches armed with spines.

Legume about 2 cm. wide, ferruginous-tomentulose; leaflets little more

than 1 mm. wide, with inconspicuous venation P. albicans.

Legume about 1 cm. wide, glabrous; leaflets 2.5-3 mm. wide, with con-

spicuous elevated venation P. leucospermum.

Branches unarmed.

Leaflets linear or oblong-linear, mostly 7-15 mm. long and 2-3 mm. wide.

Peduncle bearing a large curved dark gland near the apex; leaflets

falcate-linear P. Tuerckheimii.

Peduncle eglandular or the glands minute.

Leaflets oblong or linear-oblong, usually 15 or fewer pairs.

P. vulcanorum.

Leaflets linear or nearly so, mostly 20-40 pairs P. arboreum.

Leaflets mostly oblong or broader, 1.5-5 cm. long and 4-12 mm. wide

or even larger.

Leaflets broadly oblong to obovate, obtuse or even rounded at the

apex.

Peduncle bearing a conspicuous bract; leaflets usually copiously

pubescent beneath, sometimes glabrate in age. .P.erythrocarpum.

Peduncle not bracteate; leaflets glabrous or nearly so.

P. graciliflorum.

Leaflets mostly lance-oblong, acute or acutish.

Leaflets conspicuously palmate-veined at the base, the several

lowest veins ascending at a narrow angle far above the base of

the blade P. Tonduzii.

Leaflets penniveined, the veins all except sometimes one spreading

from the costa.

Bractlets linear, longer than the calyx, persistent.

P. Donnell-Smithii.

Bractlets small, usually much shorter than the calyx, often

deciduous P. tenellum.

Pithecolobium albicans (Kunth) Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 30:

592. 1875. Acacia albicans Kunth, Mimos. 87. pi. 27. 1821. Havardia

albicans Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 41. 1928.

British Honduras (Corozal District, P. H. Gentle 535); to be

expected in Pete'n. Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.

A tree, the trunk as much as 18 cm. in diameter; stipular spines short and stout,

sometimes absent; branchlets puberulent at first; petiole puberulent, bearing a

large sessile gland; pinnae 6-9 pairs, the leaflets 18-32 pairs, oblong, 3-10 mm.

long, glabrous above, paler and puberulent beneath, the costa somewhat excentric;

peduncles axillary or paniculate, puberulent; calyx 1.5 mm. long, puberulent;

corolla 3 mm. long, the stamens 7 mm. long, with a short tube; legume linear-

oblong, 10-12 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, rounded or acute at the apex and rostrate,

70 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

acute at the base, short-stipitate, densely ferruginous-tomentulose, flat, the valves

thin, their margins thickened.

Maya names of Yucatan are "chucum" and "chimay"; "hui-

sache" (Campeche). In the Yucatan region the bark is used for

tanning hides, and an infusion of it is a domestic remedy for diarrhea.

The tree produces a gum similar to that of mesquite (Prosopis). The

pods are reported to contain 18 per cent of tannin and to afford a

black dye.

Pithecolobium arboreum (L.) Urban, Symb. Antill. 2: 259.

1900. Mimosa arborea L. Sp. PI. 519. 1753. Cojoba arborea Britt.

& Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 29. 1928. PlumiUo (Quezaltenango) ;

Quebracho, Cola de mico, Cola de marrano (names reported from

Izabal).

Moist or wet forest, sometimes on limestone, 1,500 meters or less;

Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; reported from Izabal, perhaps in error; Hue-

huetenango; Quezaltenango; San Marcos. Southern Mexico;

British Honduras; Honduras; Costa Rica; Greater Antilles.

A small to very large tree, sometimes 35 meters high, the crown broad and

spreading, sometimes rounded, the trunk frequently a meter in diameter, some-

times supported by high narrow buttresses; bark dark brown or light greenish

brown, scaly or fairly smooth; branchlets, leaf rachis, and peduncles densely

pubescent with short spreading brownish hairs; leaves often very large and fern-

like, the pinnae 8-16 pairs, with a small brownish gland on the rachis between

each pair; leaflets 20-40 pairs, falcate-linear, 8-12 mm. long, acute, palmate-

veined at the base, glabrous, pale beneath; peduncles often very slender, mostly

5-10 cm. long; flowers in dense globose heads, white; calyx 2 mm. long, glabrous

or nearly so; corolla tubular, 6-8 mm. long, glabrous; stamen tube included;

legume subterete, somewhat fleshy, bright or dark red, in age coiled or twisted,

as much as 18 cm. long, 1 cm. or less in diameter, puberulent or glabrate, tardily

dehiscent; seeds large, oval, black.

Called "wild tamarind" in British Honduras; "barba de jolote"

(Honduras). The wood has the general appearance of mahogany

and sometimes is beautifully figured; it is dark red or reddish brown,

sometimes with darker stripes; not highly lustrous; sapwood grayish;

without distinctive odor or taste; moderately hard and heavy, the

specific gravity 0.74; weight about 46 pounds per cubic foot; grain

somewhat roey, the texture medium; not difficult to work, finishes

smoothly, is durable. The timber, known in the trade as "Bahama

sabicu," is exported principally from the West Indies. It was

introduced into England in 1878 for making bobbins used in cotton

mills. It is used in Central America for flooring, ceiling, and posts,

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 71

and for general construction and carpentry. In the United States

it has been employed for cabinetwork and furniture.

Pithecolobium belizense Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 4: 212. 1929.

Inga Peckii Robinson, Proc. Amer. Acad. 49: 502. 1913. Zygia

Peckii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 39. 1928.

Occasional in forest, 1,200 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz;

Izabal. British Honduras, the type M. E. Peck 673, from some

unspecified locality; Tabasco.

An almost glabrous, unarmed tree, 7-9 meters high, the trunk 20-40 cm. in

diameter; leaves large, sessile or nearly so, with a large gland between the single

pair of pinnae; leaflets 2-3 pairs, lance-oblong or elliptic-oblong, 9-20 cm. long,

6-9 cm. wide, acute or acuminate, oblique and more or less acute at the base,

subcoriaceous; inflorescences mostly clustered on old wood at leafless nodes, the

inflorescences short-pedunculate, capitate or very shortly spicate, few-flowered,

the flowers white, somewhat fragrant; calyx 2 mm. long, glabrous, the corolla

glabrous, 5 mm. long; stamen tube exserted; legume 11-18 cm. long, 2-3.5 cm.

wide, compressed and flat, somewhat falcate, rounded at each end, sessile or

nearly so, glabrous.

One collection reported from Pete*n as P. Englesingii Standl., a

Nicaraguan species, is probably referable here.

Pithecolobium Bertolonii Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 30: 588.

1875. Mimosa monilifera Bertol. Fl. Guat. 441. 1840, not P. monili-

ferum Benth. 1844. Feuilleea Bertolonii Kuntze, Rev. Gen. 187. 1891.

Type collected in Escuintla by Velasquez.

Branches pubescent; leaves petiolate, the petioles pubescent, the pinnae

2 pairs; glands urceolate, at the apex of the leaf rachis and between the leaflets;

leaflets 2 pairs, elliptic, obtuse, pilose; flowers capitate, racemose, the heads

pedunculate or subsessile; legume compressed, torulose, constricted between the

seeds, falcate, 3-4-seeded, red, velutinous; pubescence white.

This seems to be known only from the type, which apparently

no one but Bertoloni has seen. The proper position of the plant is

unknown, and it has not been included in the key to species presented

here. Bentham considered it probably related to P. sophorocarpum

Benth., but no Guatemalan species of that alliance has few leaflets.

The flora of Escuintla has been thoroughly collected, and one would

expect the plant to be found in recent collections. It is quite possible

that the plant may be related to. P. dulce, common in the Escuintla

region, although Bertoloni does not mention spines.

Pithecolobium Brownii Standl. Trop. Woods 18: 30. 1929.

British Honduras, at low elevations, along lagoons and rivers;

type from Hillbank, C. S. Brown 28.

72 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

A tree of 9 meters, the trunk 50 cm. in diameter, the branchlets densely veluti-

nous-hirtellous; spines stout, 2.5 mm. long; leaves petiolate, the pinnae 1 pair,

the leaflets 4, sessile, oval-oblong, 3-5 cm. long, 1.5-2.7 cm. wide, rounded or

very obtuse at the apex, sometimes emarginate, obliquely rounded at the base,

minutely hirtellous above, velutinous-pilosulous beneath; flowers spicate, the

spikes axillary, solitary or subpaniculate at the ends of the branches, 1-1.5 cm.

long, head-like, on peduncles 2-3 cm. long; bractlets minute, triangular; calyx

0.6 mm. long; corolla 5 mm. long, minutely sericeous; stamen tube exserted;

ovary sessile.

The local name is "red fowl." The sap wood is yellow, the heart-

wood brown, very hard, heavy, tough, and strong, of medium tex-

ture, probably durable; not utilized.

Pithecolobium Donnell Smithii (Britt. & Rose) Standl.

Field Mus. Bot. 12: 168. 1936. Cojoba Donnell-Smithii Britt. &

Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 30. 1928 (type from Izabal, Izabal, J. D.

Smith 1733). P. Gentlei Lundell, Contr. Univ. Mich. Herb. 6: 28.

1941 (type collected near Vaca, El Cayo District, British Honduras,

P. H. Gentle 2452). P. plumosum Lundell, op. cit. 30 (type from

Mountain Pine Ridge, El Cayo District, British Honduras, H. H.

Bartlett 11627). P. Schippii Lundell, op. cit. 31 (type from Temash

River, Toledo District, British Honduras, W. A. Schipp 1318).

Frijol de mico; Chalib (Alta Verapaz).

Moist or wet forest, sometimes in upland pine forest, 350 meters

or less ; Alta Verapaz ; Izabal . British Honduras ; C hiapas ; Honduras.

An unarmed shrub or tree, sometimes 9 meters high, with a slender trunk,

the young branchlets and peduncles densely ferruginous-pubescent; leaves mostly

large, the pinnae 2-7 pairs, with a small orbicular gland between each pair; leaflets

8-18 pairs, obliquely lanceolate or lance-oblong, mostly 1-2 cm. long but some-

times slightly larger, acute or subacute, green and glabrous above, paler beneath,

puberulent on the costa or almost glabrous; peduncles slender, 6 cm. long or

shorter; flowers in globose heads, white and green, the bractlets subulate, longer

than the calyx, persistent and often elongate in fruit; calyx minute, the teeth

ferruginous-puberulent; corolla slender-tubular, 9 mm. long, glabrous; stamen

tube included, the filaments elongate and conspicuous; legume subterete, 10-18

cm. long, 1 cm. in diameter, contorted, deeply constricted between the seeds,

bright red, puberulent or tomentulose; seeds usually numerous, black, lustrous.

Called "John Crow bead" in British Honduras. The species has

been reported from Guatemala as P. sophorocarpum Benth., a

Costa Rican plant. The wood is pale brown, of medium density,

coarse-textured, not durable. The several segregates from this

species are based upon slight differences of doubtful constancy or

systematic importance. It may be that further collections will

validate their segregation, but it is more probable that ample col-

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 73

lections will only accentuate the innumerable variations existing

in this group. Most of the 17 species of Cojoba recognized by Britton

and Rose are based on very "feeble" characters and it is doubtful

that all of those maintained here are really valid species.

Pithecolobium dulce (Roxb.) Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3:

199. 1844. Mimosa dulcis Roxb. PL Coromand. 1: 67. 1795. P. lit-

torale Britt. & Rose ex Record, Trop. Woods 11: 15. 1927 (type from

Gualan, Zacapa, S. J. Record 107). Jaguay; Shahuay; Madre de

flecha.

Dry, brushy or thinly forested plains or hillsides, often in coastal

thickets, 500 meters or less; Baja Verapaz; El Progreso; Zacapa;

Chiquimula; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu;

Quich^ ; Huehuetenango; San Marcos. Mexico; Honduras to Salva-

dor and Panama; northern South America; naturalized in the Old

World tropics, and originally based on material from Coromandel.

A shrub or small tree, seldom more than 10 meters high, often flowering when

only a shrub of 1-2 meters, the crown generally broad and spreading or rounded,

the trunk often crooked, the bark grayish, the branches armed with short stout

sharp spines; branchlets and leaves glabrous or nearly so; petiole bearing an orbic-

ular gland at the apex, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 1 pair, obovate to suborbicular,

oblique, subcoriaceous, 3-7 cm. long, rounded or emarginate at the apex, some-

times obtuse; peduncles slender, axillary, equaling or shorter than the leaves,

sometimes forming terminal panicles; flower heads 2-3 cm. in diameter, white or

pinkish; calyx 1.5 mm. long; corolla 3 mm. long, minutely sericeous; stamen tube

included; legume linear, curved or coiled, 8-12 mm. wide, somewhat compressed

and fleshy, often red, glabrate; seeds large, black, shining.

Called "tsuiche" (Maya), "piliil," and "chucum bianco" in

Yucatan; "mongollano," "mangollano," "mongollano bianco,"

"espino," "guachimol" (Salvador). This has been reported from

Guatemala as P. Unguis-cati (L.) Mart., a West Indian species

apparently unknown in continental North America. It is an abund-

ant tree on the dry hillsides and plains of the lower Motagua Valley

and on the Pacific plains. It is one of the common shade trees about

dwellings in the dry regions, since it withstands drought and heat

better than most trees, and one of the commonest sights of the

Pacific cattle country is a saddled horse or mule tied to a tree of

Pithecolobium dulce. The wood is reddish brown, the sapwood

yellowish; hard and heavy, the grain interwoven, fine-textured;

strong but brittle, not easy to work, takes a high polish, is durable.

It is used commonly for general construction, fence posts, and fuel.

The bark yields a yellow dye and is used for tanning skins. The gum

exuding from the trunk is transparent and deep reddish brown;

74 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

dissolved in water it makes a good mucilage. The flowers are much

frequented by bees and are said to yield a good quality of honey.

The fallen pods are eaten by stock of all kinds and by wild animals.

The whitish or reddish aril surrounding the seeds is acidulous, and

macerated in water it makes a beverage suggestive of lemonade.

The low plants make good hedges, since they withstand close pruning

and the browsing of animals. The commonest name for the tree in

Mexico is "guamuchil" (of which the name "guachimol" of Salvador

is probably a variant) ; it is derived from a Nahuatl name signifying

"snake jaws."

Pithecolobium erythrocarpum Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 12:

168. 1936. Cojoba Recordii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 31. 1928,

not P. Recordii Standl. 1929.

Moist thickets or forest at low elevations, British Honduras;

type collected near the Botanic Station, lower Belize River, S. J.

Record.

A shrub or small tree, 9 meters high or less, the trunk 15 cm. in diameter, the

branchlets and petioles densely brown-pubescent; glands of the petiole and rachis

very small; pinnae 2-3 pairs; leaflets 8-11 pairs, oblong, 1.5-4 cm. long, green

above and puberulent or glabrate, paler beneath, pubescent or glabrate, obtuse,

rounded and oblique at the base; peduncles axillary, slender, 5-7 cm. long, bearing

above the middle a linear bract 4 mm. long; bractlets much shorter than the calyx;

calyx 2.5-3 mm. long, glabrous except on the teeth; corolla white, slender-tubular,

10 mm. long, glabrous except on the teeth; stamen tube exserted; legume about

12 cm. long and 1 cm. thick or less, subterete, bright red, strongly constricted

between the seeds, puberulent, the seeds large, oval, black.

Pithecolobium graciliflorum Blake, Contr. Gray Herb. 52:

69. 1917. Cojoba graciliflora Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 31.

1928.

Known certainly only from the type; British Honduras, Toledo.

M. E. Peck 921. Probably also in Chiapas.

A shrub or small tree, the young branchlets, leaf rachis, and peduncles densely

short-pilose, the branches unarmed; pinnae 2-3 pairs, with a small orbicular gland

between each pair; leaflets 6-12 pairs, broadly oblong to obovate, obtuse, rather

thick and firm, 1-4.5 cm. long, glabrous above, pubescent beneath on the veins;

peduncles axillary, 2-9 cm. long, the bractlets 5 mm. long, pilose; calyx 4 mm.

long, pilose; corolla 10-12 mm. long, the tube glabrous, the teeth pilose; stamen

tube almost equaling the corolla; ovary glabrous; legume unknown.

P. escuintlense Lundell (Contr. Univ. Mich. Herb. 7: 15. 1942),

described from the region of Escuintla, Chiapas, is probably synony-

mous with this species.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 75

Pithecolobium halogenes Standl. Carnegie Inst. Wash. Publ.

461:59. 1935.

Wet forest, at or near sea level, sometimes in mangrove swamps;

Izabal (lower slopes of Cerro San Gil, Steyermark 39506). British

Honduras, the type from Punta Gorda, W. A. Schipp 1196.

A shrub or tree, sometimes 10 meters high, unarmed, the trunk 20 cm. or less

in diameter, the branchlets brown-tomentulose; pinnae 5-6 pairs, the glands disk-

like, depressed; leaflets about 20 pairs, oblong or linear-oblong, 7-11 mm. long,

2.5-4 mm. wide, rounded at the apex, lustrous and glabrous above, paler beneath

and glabrous or when young sparsely sericeous; flowers white, umbellate, the

umbels many-flowered, long-pedunculate, axillary, the slender pedicels 3-5 mm.

long, minutely puberulent or almost glabrous; calyx 1.3 mm. long, sparsely puberu-

lent or glabrate, shallowly dentate; corolla 5 mm. long, glabrous or glabrate;

stamen tube included; legume circinate, compressed, about 5-seeded, the valves

coriaceous, 1 cm. wide, twisted after dehiscence; seeds subglobose, 4 mm. broad,

smooth, gray and black.

Pithecolobium insigne Micheli in Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 20:

285. 1895 (type from San Pedro Sula, Honduras). P. calostachys

Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 20: 190. 1919.

Brushy or forested plains, 120 meters or less; Retalhuleu; San

Marcos. Southern Mexico; British Honduras; Honduras.

A shrub or tree, sometimes 10 meters high, the young branches puberulent or

glabrate, the stipular spines 7-10 mm. long; petiole bearing a small apical gland,

the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 1 pair, ovate to oblong-lanceolate, 3-12 cm. long, obtuse

to acuminate, pale green, glabrous or nearly so; flowers densely appressed-pilo-

sulous, white, spicate, the spikes pedunculate, 3-12 cm. long, the bractlets linear-

lanceolate or narrower, 2-3 mm. long; calyx 3-4 mm. long; corolla 5-7 mm. long,

the stamen tube slightly longer than the corolla or often long-exserted; ovary

sessile; legume curved or circinate, 1.5-2 cm. broad, compressed, glabrous or

nearly so.

Pithecolobium Johanseni Standl. Trop. Woods 16: 47. Dec. 1,

1928 (type from La Ceiba, Honduras). P. telense Britton, N. Amer.

Fl. 23: 192. Dec. 20, 1928 (type from Tela, Honduras).

British Honduras (Cocquericot, H. H. Bartlett 12070). Atlantic

lowlands of Honduras.

A shrub 3 meters high or sometimes a small tree, 10 meters high or less, the

branchlets hirsute; leaves short-petiolate, the petiole bearing a large orbicular

apical gland; stipular spines 3-4 mm. long or larger; pinnae 1 pair, the leaflets 1

pair, thick, obliquely obovate or broadly obovate, 3-7 cm. long, obtuse or subacute,

almost glabrous above, the veins somewhat impressed, hirsute beneath, at least on

the nerves, the veins prominent; flowers white, appressed-pilose, in short dense

head-like spikes about 2 cm. long; bractlets triangular-acuminate, 2-3 mm. long;

calyx 3 mm. long; corolla 8 mm. long, the stamen tube 2-3 cm. long; legume broadly

76 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

oblong, subterete, often slightly curved, 5-6 cm. long, 2.5 cm. broad, the valves

very hard and woody; seeds large, surrounded by orange-red juicy sweet pulp.

Pithecolobium keyense Britton ex Coker in Shattuck, Bahama

Isl. 255. 1905, hyponym; Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 22. 1928.

British Honduras: edge of mangrove swamp, All Pines, W. A.

Schipp 748. Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico; southern Florida;

Bahamas; Cuba.

A large shrub or small tree, usually unarmed, the bark gray, slightly fissured,

the branchlets and leaves glabrous; petiole bearing an orbicular gland at the apex,

the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 1 pair, cuneate-obovate or cuneate-oblong, subcoria-

ceous, 3-7 cm. long, obtuse to rounded or emarginate at the apex; peduncles slender,

glabrous, equaling or shorter than the leaves, the flowers salmon-pink, in dense

globose heads, these 2-3 cm. in diameter, sometimes paniculate; calyx glabrous,

1.5 mm. long; corolla glabrous, 3 mm. long; stamen tube included; ovary pubescent;

legume curved or circinate, brown, compressed, 6-15 cm. long, 8-10 mm. wide;

seeds black, lustrous.

The Maya name of Yucatan is "xiax caax." The flowers are

very fragrant and much visited by bees. The species has been

reported from the Yucatan region as P. guadalupense (Pers.) Chapm.

Pithecolobium lanceolatum (Humb. & Bonpl.) Benth. Lond.

Journ. Bot. 5: 105. 1846. Inga lanceolata Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd.

Sp. PI. 4: 1005. 1806. Mimosa ligustrina Jacq. Fragm. Bot. 29. 1801.

P. ligustrinum Klotzsch ex Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 30: 571. 1875,

not Benth. 1844. P. macrosiphon Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb.

20: 191. 1919 (type from Chiapas). P. Winzerlingii Britt. & Rose,

N. Amer. Fl. 23: 193. 1928 (type from Hillbank, British Honduras,

Winzerling 12). Guachimol; Guachimol bat.

Moist or wet to rather dry thickets or forest, chiefly on plains,

300 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Escuintla; Retalhuleu.

Mexico; British Honduras to Costa Rica; northern South America.

A small or medium-sized tree, sometimes 12 meters high, the branchlets

glabrous or nearly so, the bark smooth or rimose; stipular spines 2 cm. long or

shorter; petiole bearing a discoid apical gland, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 1 pair,

coriaceous or rather thin, pale, glabrous or nearly so, mostly oblong to ovate or

obovate and very oblique, 2-7 cm. long, acute or obtuse; flowers whitish, spicate,

the spikes dense, 4-12 cm. long, on puberulent peduncles 1-5 cm. long, often

forming terminal panicles; bractlets minute, deltoid; flowers puberulent, the calyx

2-3 mm. long; corolla 5-6 mm. long; stamen sheath little if at all exserted; ovary

sessile or short-stipitate; legume subterete, almost straight or curved, glabrous,

8-12 cm. long, 1 cm. broad; seeds black, surrounded by a juicy aril.

Called "tucuy" in Tabasco; "siemche" (Maya), "red fowl,"

"bastard bully tree," "chucum" (Maya), in British Honduras. The

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 77

aril surrounding the seed is edible and can be used like that of P.

dulce.

Pithecolobium leucocalyx (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus.

Bot. 4: 308. 1929. Samanea leucocalyx Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl.

23: 34. 1928.

Usually about lagoons or on stream banks, 200 meters or less;

Pete'n. Tabasco; British Honduras.

An unarmed tree of 15 meters, the trunk 45-60 cm. in diameter, the branchlets

brown-tomentulose; petioles puberulent or glabrate, bearing a small gland, the

pinnae 2-3 pairs; leaflets 4-6 pairs, broadly oblong to obovate or rhombic, 2-5

cm. long, rounded or obtuse at the apex, very unequal at the base, deep green

above and glabrous or nearly so, lustrous, paler beneath, puberulent on the nerves

or almost glabrous; peduncles slender, axillary or grouped at the ends of the

branches, 3-4 cm. long; flowers white, in dense umbels, the pedicels 6 mm. long

or shorter; calyx 3 mm. long, densely sericeous; corolla 7 mm. long, white-tomen-

tose; stamens 3-4 cm. long; legume 6-9 cm. long, 2.5 cm. wide, strongly com-

pressed, castaneous, glabrous, obliquely rounded at the apex, rounded and sessile

at the base, the valves thin but hard.

Called "wild tamarind" in British Honduras. This has been

reported in error from British Honduras as P. macradenium Pittier,

a species of Panama.

Pithecolobium leucospermum Brandeg. Univ. Calif. Publ.

Bot. 10: 182. 1922. Chloroleucon guatemalense Britt. & Rose ex

Record, Trop. Woods 10: 24. 1927, hyponym; N. Amer. Fl. 23: 37.

1928 (type from Olanchito, Honduras). C. leucospermum Britt. &

Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 37. 1928. Yax ec (Pete'n, Maya); Tinta

blanca (Pete'n).

Moist or dry plains or hillsides, in thickets or thin forest, 650

meters or less; Pete'n; Izabal(?); El Progreso; Chiquimula; doubtless

also in Zacapa; Jutiapa. Western and southern Mexico; Honduras.

A shrub or tree, usually 10 meters high or less, rarely as much as 15 meters,

the branches often flexuous, armed with stipular spines 2 cm. long or shorter,

sometimes unarmed, the branchlets somewhat pilose or glabrous; petioles slender,

bearing a gland near the middle, the pinnae 2-4 pairs; leaflets 5-10 pairs, oblong

or obovate, 8-13 mm. long, rounded to subacute at the apex, pilose or glabrate,

paler beneath; peduncles slender, 1-2 cm. long, axillary, the flowers yellowish

white, in dense globose heads; calyx 2 mm. long, sparsely pubescent, the corolla

3 mm. long; stamen tube shorter than the corolla; legume linear, compressed,

8-18 cm. long, 7-12 mm. wide, straight or slightly curved, glabrous, many-seeded.

Called "guayacan" in Honduras. This has been reported from

Pete'n as P. tortum Mart., a South American species that is closely

78 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

related and perhaps not different. The wood is bright yellow,

lustrous, hard, fairly heavy, easy to work, fine-textured, takes a

very high polish; probably durable; not utilized.

Pithecolobium macrandrium Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 40: 3.

1905. Motitta (Pete"n).

Moist or wet forest, often along stream beds, 350 meters or less;

Pete"n; Alta Verapaz (type from Cubilgiiitz, Tuerckheim 8193).

British Honduras.

A large or small tree, 8 meters high or less, the branches puberulent or glabrate,

the larger ones bearing slender-conic thick stipular spines as much as 1.5 cm. long,

the younger branches with stipular spines 4-10 mm. long, or these sometimes

wanting; leaves large, the petiole 3-8 cm. long, the pinnae 10-17 pairs; leaflets

1&-40 pairs, oblong, obtuse, apiculate, 9-18 mm. long, pubescent or glabrate, pale

beneath; peduncles solitary in the upper leaf axils, pubescent or glabrate, 5-12

cm. long, the flowers white, spicate, puberulent, the spikes dense, 4-8 cm. long;

bracts ovate, acuminate, persistent, 2 mm. long or less; calyx 2 mm. long; corolla

10 mm. long, the stamen tube long-exserted; ovary sessile, pubescent; legume

curved and coiled, the large seeds black, the aril red.

Called "prickle wood" in British Honduras.

Pithecolobium microstachyum Standl. Journ. Wash. Acad.

Sci. 13: 439. 1923.

Brushy rocky slopes, 500-650 meters; Zacapa (near divide on

road between Zacapa and Chiquimula, Standley 73800). Salvador

(type from La Union) and Honduras.

A small tree, commonly about 7 meters high, the young branchlets puberulent

or hirtellous, armed with stout straight spines 1-1.5 cm. long; petioles slender,

glabrous or puberulent, bearing at the apex a conspicuous short-columnar gland,

the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 1 pair, subcoriaceous, often very lustrous, oblong-

obovate or oval-obovate, asymmetric, 1.5-7 cm. long, obtuse or rounded at the

apex, very obliquely rounded at the base, glabrous or nearly so, the venation

prominulous and reticulate; flowers spicate, the spikes numerous, slender-peduncu-

late, forming small lax panicles, 1-3 cm. long, many-flowered, dense or often

interrupted below, the flowers closely sessile; bracts lanceolate, persistent, almost

as long as the calyx; calyx 1 mm. long, puberulent; corolla 2 mm. long, minutely

strigillose; stamen tube very short, not exserted, the filaments white; legume

short-stipitate, curved or coiled, glabrate, 8-10 mm. wide; seeds black.

Known in Salvador by the names "mongollano," "guayacan

negro," and "una de gato."

Pithecolobium pachypus Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 20:

457. 1922. Tucuy (Pet&i, Maya).

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 79

Moist or dry thickets, often in second growth, 200 meters or

less; Pete"n. Southern Mexico; British Honduras; Salvador, the

type collected near San Salvador.

A small tree, the bark brownish gray, the branchlets puberulent or glabrate;

stipular spines stout, 2 cm. long or less; petiole bearing a terminal sessile conic

gland, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 1 pair, ovate to lance-oblong, 3-7 cm. long, pale

green, acute to obtuse or emarginate, very asymmetric, glabrous or nearly so;

flowers white, spicate, the spikes dense or interrupted, 3-5 cm. long, pedunculate,

often somewhat paniculate; bractlets narrow, minute; flowers densely pubescent,

the calyx 3 mm. long; corolla 5-6 mm. long, the stamen tube twice as long; legume

turgid, subterete, 6-8 cm. long, 1.5-2 cm. thick, the valves very thick and woody,

glabrous, straight or curved; seeds 2-4, ovoid, black, lustrous, subtended by a

juicy aril.

Known in Salvador as "guachimol" or "nacascolo." The pods

formerly were used there for making ink. The species can be

separated with certainty from P. lanceolatum only when pods are

present, and it may be that it is more common and widely distributed

than has been supposed, since most available specimens of the group

are with flowers only.

Pithecolobium Peckii Blake, Contr. Gray Herb. 52: 71. 1917.

Known only from the type, M. E. Peck 738, from British Hon-

duras, the locality unknown.

A small gnarled tree with hard wood, growing in wet ground, the branchlets

and leaves glabrous or somewhat puberulent; stipular spines 2-3 mm. long; pinnae

2-3 pairs, the rachis bearing a clavate gland; leaflets 5-11 pairs, oval or oblong,

1-2.5 cm. long, truncate, rounded, or retuse at the apex, reticulate-veined on both

surfaces; flowers spicate, the spikes axillary in fascicles of 3, oblong, 2.5-3.5 cm.

long, sessile; bractlets deltoid, 1 mm. long or less; calyx 1.2 mm. long, strigillose;

corolla 6.5 mm. long, the tube glabrous, the teeth strigillose; stamen tube shorter

than the corolla; ovary stipitate, densely puberulent; legume circinate, 12 cm.

long, 12-17 mm. wide, subligneous, glabrous, about 11-seeded; seeds brownish

black, 7.5-15 mm. long, subtended by a large aril.

Pithecolobium pistaciifolium Standl. Carnegie Inst. Wash.

Publ. 461: 59. 1935.

Known only from the type: British Honduras, river bank, Rio

Grande, W. A. Schipp 1260.

A tree of 10 meters, the trunk 20 cm. in diameter, the branchlets glabrous,

unarmed; stipular spines 3-4 mm. long; pinnae 3-4 pairs, the rachis bearing large

clavate glands; leaflets 7-8 pairs, oblong-lanceolate, 1-3 cm. long, 5-8 mm. wide,

gradually narrowed to the obtuse apex, cuneate-obtuse at the base, glabrous except

along the costa; flowers white, spicate, the spikes arising from the older branches,

3 cm. long, dense, many-flowered, sessile; calyx 1 mm. long, glabrous, shallowly

dentate; corolla glabrbus, 5 mm. long; stamen tube exserted; fruit unknown.

80 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Pithecolobium platylobum (Spreng.) Urban, Symb. Antill. 5:

360. 1908. Acacia platyloba Spreng. Syst. 3: 144. 1826. P. serici-

florum Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 5: 105. 1846.

In forest or thickets on lake shores; Pete"n. Yucatan Peninsula

of Mexico; Colombia and Venezuela.

A woody vine or small tree, the branches glabrous, bearing short recurved

stipular spines; petiole glabrous, bearing an oblong sessile gland, the pinflae 2

pairs; leaflets 2-3 pairs, obovate or orbicular, obtuse or usually rounded at the

apex, 1-2.5 cm. long, glabrous; peduncles slender, axillary, 1-2 cm. long, the flowers

capitate; calyx 5-6 mm. long, glabrous; corolla 12-14 mm. long, pubescent, the

slender calyx tube long-exserted; legume 10-15 cm. long, 2-3 cm. wide, strongly

compressed and flat, short-stipitate, the valves thin.

The Maya name of Yucatan is "chacojo," and the plant is known

there also as "anzuelillo" and "sierrilla." Concerning its occurrence

in Yucatan, Dr. Roman S. Flores has supplied the following data:

"This tree is very curious because it is a climber, growing over

other trees and supporting itself upon them, ascending to a height

of 10-12 meters. The small branches by which it supports itself

are doubled at an acute angle. The wood is very hard, and the

arrieros use it to make hooks for the cinches of their pack saddles.

The tree is curious in another respect, that its lower trunk is more

slender than the parts above, for when the upper trunk passes over

another tree, it supports itself upon it and forms an angle and

becomes thicker. The wood is hard and when it is dry it is difficult

to cut it with a machete."

Pithecolobium Recordii (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus.

Bot. 4: 212. 1929. Zygia Recordii Britt. & Rose in Standl. Trop.

Woods 7: 6. 1926. P. disciferum Lundell, Contr. Univ. Mich. Herb.

6: 27. 1941 (type from Campeche).

Moist or wet forest, usually on stream banks, 300 meters or less;

Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Izabal (type from Los Andes region, S. J.

Record 5); Retalhuleu. Tabasco; British Honduras.

An unarmed tree, commonly 10 meters high or less, the crown low and spread-

ing, the trunk 20 cm. or less in diameter, the branchlets glabrous; leaves petiolate

or almost sessile, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 2, 3, or 4 in each pinna, oblong to ovate

or obovate, 4-9 cm. long, acute to obtuse or retuse, glabrous, bright green ; flowers

white or pinkish, fragrant, in short, sessile or short-pedunculate, head-like spikes,

these mostly arising from defoliate nodes, glabrous; calyx 1.5 mm. long or less;

corolla 5 mm. long; stamen tube long-exserted; legume compressed, linear, strongly

curved, 5-15 cm. long, 1 cm. wide, glabrous, usually dark red; seeds compressed,

orbicular, 1 cm. broad.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 81

Called "turtle bone" in British Honduras. It is by no means

certain that this species is distinct from P. longifolium (Humb. &

Bonpl.) Standl., which occurs from Nicaragua to Panama.

Pithecolobium Saman (Jacq.) Benth. Lond. Journ. Bot. 3:

216. 1844. Mimosa Saman Jacq. Fragm. Bot. 15. 1800. Samanea

Saman Merrill, Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 6: 47. 1916. Cenicero;

Algarrobo (Pete*n).

Dry to wet forest, chiefly on plains, often in second growth or in

pastures, 500 meters or less; Pete*n; Izabal; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa;

Escuintla; Suchitepe"quez ; Retalhuleu; doubtless in all the Pacific

coast departments. Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico; British Honduras

to Salvador and Panama; South America; planted and naturalized

in the West Indies and the Old World tropics.

A large tree, sometimes 30 meters high, with a broad dense spreading crown,

the trunk usually short and very thick, the bark pale, the branchlets unarmed,

densely short-pilose with usually yellowish hairs; leaves large, the pinnae 2-6

pairs, a small orbicular gland present on the rachis between each pair; leaflets

2-8 pairs, broadly oblique-oblong to obovate or rhombic, 2-4 cm. long, obtuse or

rounded at the apex, very oblique at the base, densely velutinous-pilose beneath,

in age glabrate and lustrous above, finely reti culate- veined ; peduncles axillary,

6-12 cm. long, the flowers in dense umbels, white or pink, the pedicels 2-5 mm.

long; calyx tubular-campanulate, yellowish-tomentulose, 6-8 mm. long; corolla

pilose, 10-12 mm. long, the stamens 4-5 mm. long, often pinkish, the tube included;

legume compressed, linear, straight or slightly curved, 10-20 cm. long, 1-2 cm.

wide, short-rostrate, acute at the base, glabrate, the valves rather thick; seeds

oblong, 5-8 mm. long.

Sometimes known in Salvador as "carreto" and "zorra"; "alga-

rrobo" (Yucatan). The most usual English name is "rain tree."

The tree is well known throughout the lowlands of Central America

and is abundant in many regions. The fallen leaves and pods are

much eaten by stock, and on this account the trees often are left

for shade in land cleared for pasture. The wood of young trees is

light and soft, easy to cut, and brown, but in old trees it is hard,

heavy, fibrous, very cross-grained, difficult to work, and deep

chocolate-brown or almost black. The timber is of little or no

commercial importance, but the wood has long been valued in

Central America for wheels of the two-wheeled oxcarts. Such wheels

sometimes are made from single cross sections of the thickest trunks,

and they are said to be very durable. The specific name is the

vernacular name used in Venezuela. The name "rain tree" is said

to be given because the leaflets fold together in cloudy or rainy

weather or at night.

82 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Pithecolobium saxosum Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus. Bot.

23: 163. 1944.

Brushy, usually rocky hillsides or plains, sometimes along arroyos,

200-660 meters; endemic; Zacapa (near Zacapa); Chiquimula (type

from Quebrada Shusho, above Chiquimula, on the road to Zacapa,

Standley 74367).

A small tree about 5 meters high, the branchlets short, irregular, densely

hirtellous, the stipular spines stout, rigid, 7-10 mm. long, straight; petioles 1.5-2.5

cm. long, slender, densely hirtellous, bearing at the apex a sessile crateriform

gland, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 1 pair, coriaceous, oval to broadly oblong-obo-

vate, 2.5-4.5 cm. long, 1.5-2.5 cm. wide, rounded at the apex and often emarginate,

rounded at the base or broadly and obtusely cuneate, usually lustrous above,

densely velutinous-puberulent, rather densely velutinous-pilosulous beneath, the

nerves and veins prominent and conspicuous beneath; flowers spicate, the spikes

forming small lax panicles, 1-2 cm. long, dense or usually interrupted below, 8

mm. thick, many-flowered, the flowers closely sessile; bracts oblong-lanceolate,

persistent, scarcely 1 mm. long, puberulent; calyx scarcely more than 1 mm. long,

densely whitish-puberulent; corolla 3 mm. long, minutely sericeous; legume

unknown.

Pithecolobium Standleyi (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus.

Bot. 18: 509. 1937. Cojoba Standleyi Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl.

23: 32. 1928.

Wet mixed forest, 300-900 meters; Izabal (Cerro San Gil,

Steyermark 41887). Mountains of Costa Rica.

A shrub or a sparsely branched tree as much as 8 meters high, the branches

slender, ferruginous-pubescent when young; leaves on short slender petioles, the

pinnae 1 pair, the rachis very slender, densely ferruginous-puberulent ; leaflets

usually 3 pairs, membranaceous, oblong to lance-oblong or oblong-obovate, 5-11

cm. long, acute or acuminate, oblique at the base, rounded to broadly obtuse-

cuneate, green above, puberulent on the nerves, slightly paler beneath, puberulent

on the nerves and veins; peduncles very slender, axillary, puberulent, 5 cm. long

or shorter, bearing a single head of greenish flowers; legume about 10 cm. long,

bright red, subterete, strongly constricted between the seeds, pendent; seeds

turgid, black and lustrous, 1 cm. long.

The single Guatemalan collection is in fruit, and flowering material

may show that it is a distinct species. It grows, however, under

much the same conditions as the Costa Rican tree, and the extension

of range is not an unnatural one.

Pithecolobium Stevensonii (Standl.) Standl. & Steyerm.

Field Mus. Bot. 23: 164. 1944. Inga Stevensonii Standl. Trop.

Woods 23: 7. 1930.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 83

Moist or wet, mixed forest, sometimes in Achras forest, 200

meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Izabal. British Honduras, the

type from Freshwater Creek, D. Stevenson 65.

A slender tree, unarmed, glabrous almost throughout, the trunk 15 cm. or

less in diameter; leaves subsessile, the pinnae 1 pair; leaflets 3-4 pairs, on petiolules

5-7 mm. long, subcoriaceous, oblong-lanceolate, 12-20 cm. long, 4-5 cm. wide,

short-acuminate or long-attenuate, acute or attenuate at the base, somewhat

paler beneath, lustrous above; flowers in short head-like spikes arising from old

wood, the spikes 4-6 mm. long, pedunculate, the peduncles ferruginous-puberulent;

calyx 1 mm. long, minutely puberulent; corolla sparsely puberulent, slender,

9-10 mm. long; immature legume linear, almost straight, compressed and flat,

about 12 cm. long and 1 cm. wide, densely ferruginous-tomentulose.

Called "turtle bone" in British Honduras. The sapwood is

yellow or slightly brownish, very dense, rather horn-like, fine-

textured, tough and strong.

Pithecolobium tenellum (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus.

Bot. 12: 216. 1931. Cojoba tenella Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

31. 1928.

In forest along streams, 300 meters or less; Izabal (Montana del

Mico near Bananera, Steyermark 38286). British Honduras (type

from Stann Creek, S. J. Record)', Chiapas; Atlantic lowlands of

Honduras.

An unarmed shrub or tree, sometimes 6 meters high but often flowering when

only a shrub, the branchlets densely brown-tomentose; petioles and rachis densely

brown-tomentose, the glands cupular, small, sessile, the pinnae usually 3 pairs;

leaflets 8-10 pairs, lance-oblong, acute or subacute, often subcordate at the base,

mostly 2.5-3 cm. long, puberulent beneath on the costa, elsewhere glabrous or

nearly so; peduncles axillary, very slender, 4-7 cm. long, bearing near the apex a

conspicuous bract 4 mm. long; flowers greenish white, in dense globose heads, the

bractlets about as long as the calyx, inconspicuous; calyx 2 mm. long, puberulent

on the teeth; corolla 7 mm. long, glabrous except on the lobes; legume 6-15 cm.

long, 1 cm. or less in diameter, subterete, deeply constricted between the seeds,

pendent, bright red, puberulent, the valves somewhat fleshy, usually with numer-

ous seeds, these large, black and shining.

Called "barba de jolote" in Honduras. The flowers are sweet-

scented.

Pithecolobium Tonduzii (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus.

Bot. 4: 308. 1929. Cojoba Tonduzii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

30. 1928. Utzche (Sacatepequez) ; Guanacadte (Huehuetenango).

Moist, thin or dense, usually mixed forest, 1,800 meters or less;

Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Guatemala (type from Volcan de Pacaya,

84 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

A. Tonduz 450); Sacatepe"quez ; Chimaltenango; Solola; Quezalte-

nango; San Marcos; Huehuetenango ; perhaps endemic but probably

also in Chiapas.

A large shrub or a tree, sometimes 20 meters high, unarmed, the young

branchlets puberulent or almost glabrous; leaves very large, with small cupular

glands on the rachis and petiole, the pinnae 5-8 pairs; leaflets about 12 pairs,

oblong or lance-oblong, 1.5-2 cm. long, obtuse or subacute, palmately several-

veined at the base, glabrous or nearly so, ciliate when young, paler beneath;

peduncles axillary or sometimes on old wood, often fasciculate, 4.5 cm. long or

shorter; flowers white, in dense globose heads, puberulent, the bractlets minute;

calyx 3 mm. long; corolla 5-6 mm. long, the stamens short; legume about 13 cm.

long and 1 cm. thick, pendent, subterete, red, the seeds numerous, large, black.

This is one of the most distinct of the Cojoba species described

by Britton and Rose. The bark is said to be employed in Huehue-

tenango for tanning leather.

Pithecolobium Tuerckheimii (Britt. & Rose) Standl. &

Steyerm. Field Mus. Bot. 23: 164. 1944. Cojoba Tuerckheimii Britt.

& Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 30. 1928.

Moist or wet, mixed forest, 1,500 meters or less; endemic; Alta

Verapaz (type from Coban, Tuerckheim 11.1769); Izabal.

An unarmed shrub or small tree, 6 meters high or less, the young branchlets

thinly brown-tomentulose; leaves rather large and fern-like, the rachis puberulent,

the glands cupular, sessile, small, the pinnae about 15 pairs; leaflets 20-30 pairs,

falcate-linear, 8-12 mm. long, glabrous, obtuse or subacute; peduncles axillary,

slender, often fasciculate, 3-5 cm. long, bearing a large curved gland near the apex;

flowers greenish white, in dense globose heads, the bractlets minute; calyx 1 mm.

long, the teeth puberulent; corolla 4 mm. long, with puberulent lobes; stamen

tube not exserted; legume unknown.

Pithecolobium vulcanorum Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus.

Bot. 23: 164. 1944. Cojoba guatemalensis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer.

Fl. 23: 30. 1928, not P. guatemalense Standl. 1929.

Moist mixed forest, sometimes in wooded barrancos, 1,300-1,800

meters; Sacatepe"quez (type from Volcan de Acatenango, J. D. Smith

2831). Salvador; Honduras.

A tall tree, sometimes 25 meters high, with spreading crown, the branchlets

densely brown-tomentulose, unarmed; pinnae 4-10 pairs; leaflets mostly 8-15

pairs, narrowly oblong, 8-15 mm. long, obtuse, glabrous, deep green above, pale

beneath; glands of the rachis small, orbicular, sessile; peduncles axillary, about

3 cm. long; flowers unknown; legume 8-11 cm. long, about 1 cm. in diameter,

subterete, slightly if at all constricted between the seeds, usually strongly curved,

dark red, brown-tomentulose, sessile or nearly so, the valves somewhat fleshy;

seeds large, black.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 85

Called "agiiijote" in Salvador. This was once reported from

Guatemala as P. floribundum Benth.

Pithecolobium Zollerianum Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus.

Bot. 22: 343. 1940. Plumillo.

Moist mixed forest, 1,300-1,800 meters; endemic; Quezaltenango;

San Marcos (type collected on southern slopes of Volcan de Taju-

mulco, above Finca El PorVenir, Steyermark 37440).

A tree of 15-18 meters, unarmed, the branchlets densely brown-to mentulose;

leaves large, the petiole bearing a small depressed gland below the apex, the pinnae

8-13 pairs; leaflets 8-18 pairs, oblong, 1.5-2 cm. long, 5-7 mm. wide, rounded or

very obtuse at the apex, very oblique at the base, green and lustrous above,

puberulent only on the costa, paler and yellowish beneath, glabrous or sparsely

appressed-pilosulouB; peduncles axillary, geminate, 8-12 cm. long, the flowers

umbellate, the umbels dense and many-flowered, the bracts minute, the pedicels

2 mm. long or less; calyx 2.5 mm. long, minutely puberulent or almost glabrous;

corolla 6-7 mm. long, sparsely puberulent or glabrate; stamens greenish white,

2.5 cm. long; legume coiled into a circle, 1.5 cm. wide, compressed, glabrous, the

valves coriaceous or lignescent; seeds compressed, oval-orbicular, brownish

ochraceous, 8 mm. long, lustrous.

This is a common tree along the road below Santa Maria de

Jesus, Quezaltenango, growing abundantly on inaccessible barranco

slopes. It is of handsome appearance, especially because of the

dense, rich green, fern-like foliage. The species was named for Mr.

Erich Zoller of Finca El Porvenir, who greatly facilitated the junior

author's explorations on the Volcan de Tajumulco.

PROSOPIS L.

Trees or shrubs, usually armed with stipular spines; leaves bipinnate, the

pinnae few, the leaflets small, few or numerous; stipules small or none, the glands

of the leaves small or none; flowers small, yellowish, 5-parted, in axillary spikes

or racemes; calyx campanulate, shallowly dentate; petals connate below the middle

or finally free, valvate; stamens 10, free, short-exserted ; anthers tipped with a

small deciduous gland; ovary sessile or stipitate, many-ovulate, the style filiform,

the stigma small, terminal; legume linear, compressed or turgid, indehiscent, the

exocarp thin or coriaceous, the mesocarp spongy or indurate, the endocarp cartila-

ginous or papyraceous; seeds usually ovate and compressed.

The number of species is uncertain, but probably less than 20,

in the warmer regions of both hemispheres but chiefly in America.

Britton and Rose recognized several segregates, one of which,

Strombocarpa, probably is a good genus. Only one species is known

from Central America.

Prosopis juliflora (Swartz) DC. Prodr. 2: 447. 1825. Mimosa

juliflora Swartz, Prodr. Veg. Ind. Occ. 85. 1788. Neltuma juliflora

86 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Raf. Sylva Tell. 119. 1838. N. Bakeri Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl.

23: 185. 1928. Nacascol, Nacascolote (Zacapa).

Dry hills and plains of the lower Motagua Valley, in thickets or

open forest, also along the Pacific coast, often on salt flats, 700

meters or less; Zacapa; El Progreso; Retalhuleu; San Marcos.

Southwestern United States; Mexico; Salvador to Panama; West

Indies; northern South America.

A shrub or small tree, sometimes 12 meters high but usually lower, the crown

spreading and depressed, the branches armed with stout straight spines 1-4 cm.

long, the branchlets glabrous or short-pilose; leaves petiolate, the pinnae 1-3

pairs; leaflets 10-20 pairs, oblong or linear-oblong, mostly 1-1.5 cm. long, obtuse

or rounded at the apex, glabrous or sparsely pubescent, sometimes conspicuously

veined; flowers greenish yellow, sessile or nearly so, the spikes dense, 5-10 cm.

long; calyx 1 mm. long, glabrous or puberulent; corolla 2.5-3 mm. long, the petals

acute, tomentulose or pilosulous on the margins and within; stamens 4-5 mm.

long; legume compressed, linear, glabrous, falcate or almost straight, 7-20 cm.

long, 8-15 mm. wide, not or scarcely constricted between the seeds.

The Maya name of Yucatan is "catzimec," and the name

"mezquite," of Nahuatl derivation, is used there as well as through-

out Mexico and in southwestern United States; "carbon" (Salvador) ;

"algarrobo" (Honduras). Mezquite is one of the best-known trees

of northern Mexico and southwestern United States, but in Central

America it is neither important nor common, being found almost

exclusively in thickets along the Pacific coast, close to the shore.

In its wide range it varies greatly in size and habit. In Central

America it is a large shrub or small tree, but in the northern part

of its range it is only a low shrub with a huge mass of thick, woody

roots. Along the Mexican border within the United States, mezquite

is an important source of fuel, but it is the large roots, not the stems,

that are so used. In Guatemala it is employed as fuel and sometimes

for fence posts or minor construction. The pods are filled with a

sweet meal-like substance that has an agreeable flavor and was much

used, ground, for food by some of the Mexican Indians. The pods

are eaten greedily by stock and are very nutritious. In the Hawaiian

Islands, mezquite has become thoroughly naturalized over large

areas; and there the pods are collected in great quantities, ground

in a special mill, and used as stock feed. The fragrant flowers are

much visited by bees, which obtain from them a good quality of

honey. The bark is sometimes employed in Mexico for tanning

and the wood is suitable for charcoal. There is exuded from the

trunk an amber-colored, translucent gum similar to gum arabic, for

which it often is substituted in Mexico. The wood is rich, dark

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 87

brown or mahogany, with fine, wavy, dark-colored lines, the sapwood

yellow, usually thin; more or less fragrant, with an odor suggestive

of violets; rather hard and heavy, the specific gravity 0.77; grain

irregular, rather coarse-textured; tough and strong, easy to work,

finishes smoothly but does not take a high polish; resistant to decay.

It is suitable for railway ties, vehicle construction, and fence posts,

but is most used as fuel, for which it is of superior quality. In Texas

it has been utilized for paving blocks.

The classification of the various forms of mezquite always has

been found difficult, principally because of not very justifiable

multiplication of specific names by optimistic taxonomists. There

can be little doubt that most of the material from Mexico and Central

America is referable to P. juliflora, the variations being, at most,

varieties or forms that are not clearly characterized. There is a

question as to whether the proper name for the species is not Prosopis

chilensis (Molina) Stuntz, a name used in various recent publications

treating Mexico and Central America. South American botanists

maintain that this is a distinct species, but they have not demon-

strated in just what respects the Chilean plant differs from the North

American forms.

SCHRANKIA Willdenow

Plants perennial, erect or prostrate, herbaceous or suffrutescent, the stems

usually angulate, armed with short recurved prickles; leaves bipinnate, sensitive,

the petiole eglandular, the leaflets usually numerous, small; stipules setaceous;

flowers small, usually rose-colored, perfect or polygamous, 5-4-parted, sessile in

globose heads or short spikes, the peduncles axillary, solitary or fasciculate; calyx

minute; petals connate to the middle; stamens as many as the petals or twice as

many, free, exserted, the anthers small, eglandular; ovary subsessile, many-

ovulate, the style filiform, the stigma terminal, obtuse; legume linear, acute or

attenuate, densely aculeate, the valves finally separating from the thickened

persistent margins; seeds longitudinal, oblong, somewhat 4-gonous.

An American genus, of which one other species occurs in Panama.

Britton and Rose recognize 27 species from North America, but the

number of valid species in that area is probably less than half that

number.

Schrankia leptocarpa DC. Prodr. 2: 443. 1825.

In thickets, 325 meters; Santa Rosa (near Chiquimulilla, Standley

79249). Costa Rica; Panama; West Indies; South America.

Plants prostrate or suberect, the stems slender, sometimes a meter long but

usually shorter, angulate, glabrous or pilosulous, densely armed with short recurved

88 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

prickles; petioles and leaf rachis aculeate, the pinnae 2-3 pairs; leaflets 10-20 pairs,

thin, ciliate, oblong, 6-10 mm. long, rounded at the apex, the venation obscure;

peduncles solitary, 1.5 cm. long or shorter, the heads small, globose, the flowers

rose-pink; legume linear or subterete, 7-10 cm. long, 4 mm. thick, covered with

long slender prickles.

II. CAESALPINIEAE

Leaves bipinnate, at least most of them.

Calyx lobes strongly imbricate; plants often armed with spines.

Valves of the legume longitudinally dehiscent along the middle; leaves

bipinnate and simply pinnate Haematoxylon.

Valves of the legume not dehiscent along the middle; leaves all bipinnate.

Caesalpinia.

Calyx lobes valvate or only slightly imbricate; plants unarmed.

Flowers yellow; legume spatulate, 1-seeded Schizolobium.

Flowers red; legume linear, ligneous, many-seeded Delonix.

Leaves pinnate, 2-foliolate, 1-foliolate, or simple, never bipinnate.

Anthers erect; leaves pinnate.

Petals 5; stamens 5-10; herbs, shrubs, or trees Cassia.

Petals 1-2 or none; stamens 2; large trees Dialium.

Anthers versatile.

Leaves simple, or with 1-2 leaflets.

Leaves composed of 2 leaflets.

Flowers small, about 7 mm. long; legume indehiscent Cynometra.

Flowers 1 cm. long or larger.

Calyx lobes 4; legume indehiscent, ligneous, pulpy within . . . Hymenaea.

Calyx lobes 5; legume usually dehiscent, not ligneous, without pulp.

Bauhinia.

Leaves simple or of a single leaflet.

Petal 1 ; petiole narrowly winged Swartzia.

Petals 5; petioles not winged.

Legume ovoid or globose, not compressed; leaflet remotely serrate.

Zollernia.

Legume compressed, flat; leaflets or leaves entire.

Petals very unequal; legume winged along the upper suture . .Cerds.

Petals subequal; legume not winged Bauhinia.

Leaves with 3-many leaflets.

Plants armed with spines.

Legume longitudinally dehiscent along the middle of the valves; leaf

rachis not broad and flat Haematoxylon.

Legume not dehiscent along the middle of the valves; leaf rachis broad

and flat Parkinsonia.

Plants unarmed.

Petals 1 or none.

Calyx closed in bud, globose; leaflets 1, or 3-many Swartzia.

Calyx 4-lobate, the segments imbricate in bud; leaflets 4 Crudia.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 89

Petals 5.

Leaves even-pinnate; legume thick, indehiscent, pulpy within.

Tamarindus.

Leaves odd-pinnate; fruit compressed and flat, thin, not pulpy within.

Flowers red; leaflets 4-6 pairs Phyllocarpus.

Flowers yellow; leaflets many pairs Poeppigia.

BAUHINIA L.

Trees or shrubs, often scan dent, frequently armed with spines and provided

with tendrils, the stems sometimes complanate and perforated; leaves simple,

3-many-nerved, entire or bilobate (composed of 2 more or less connate leaflets),

or sometimes 2-foliolate; stipules mostly small and caducous; flowers white to

pink, red, or purple, racemose, the racemes simple and terminal or axillary, some-

times paniculate; calyx tube turbinate or elongate, the limb before anthesis entire

and closed, or contracted at the apex and 5-dentate, in anthesis variously cleft

or with 5 valvate lobes or segments; petals 5, slightly unequal, erect or spreading,

imbricate; perfect stamens 10 or fewer, some often reduced to staminodia or alto-

gether suppressed, free or short-connate; anthers ovate to oblong or linear, versa-

tile, the cells longitudinally dehiscent; ovary stipitate or subsessile, 2-many-

ovulate, the stipe free from the calyx or adnate to the tube; style filiform or very

short, the stigma small or variously dilated, often peltate or oblique; legume oblong

or linear, straight or oblique, rarely falcate, membranaceous to coriaceous or almost

ligneous, 2-valvate or indehiscent, the valves usually elastic; seeds orbicular or

ovate, compressed, the testa thin or indurate, with endosperm; cotyledons flat,

carnose, the radicle short, straight or somewhat oblique.

Species 200 or more, in the tropics of both hemispheres. Others

are known from southern Central America. Sterile specimens that

we are unable to place indicate that there are probably two other

species represented in Guatemala.

Leaves of 2 distinct leaflets B. sericella.

Leaves simple, entire or bilobate.

Branches armed with spines B. Pauletia.

Branches unarmed.

Calyx campanulate, short and broad; plants scandent, usually provided with

tendrils.

Valves of the legume not elastic, densely brown-sericeous, thin; calyx

lobes triangular B. Herrerae.

Valves of the legume elastic, glabrate, thick-coriaceous; calyx lobes filiform.

B. hondurensis.

Calyx long and narrow, tube-like, in anthesis denticulate or cleft; plants

erect, without tendrils.

Leaves, at least most of them, entire or merely emarginate, the lower leaves

sometime shallowly bilobate.

Leaves villosulous or tomentulose beneath B. rubelcruziana.

Leaves glabrous beneath or nearly so.

Leaves 5-nerved, glaucous beneath B. Jenningsii.

Leaves 9-nerved, bright green beneath B. pansamalana.

90 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Leaves all deeply bilobate.

Plants cultivated; petals about 2 cm. wide, pink or white. .B. purpurea.

Plants native; petals much narrower.

Leaves glabrous; a tall tree B. gigas.

Leaves finely appressed-pilose beneath or puberulent, at least on the

nerves; shrubs.

Fertile stamens 10.

Flowers 4-5 cm. long; lobes of the leaves acute or acutish.

B. ungulata.

Flowers 1 cm. long; lobes of the leaves obtuse B. Seleriana.

Fertile stamen only 1.

Lobes of the leaves acuminate or long-acuminate, sometimes

abruptly so B. Calderonii.

Lobes of the leaves subacute to very obtuse.

Petals 2; sinus between the lobes of the leaves very narrow.

B. dipetala.

Petals 5; sinus between the lobes of the leaves broad and open.

B. divaricala.

Bauhinia Calderonii (Rose) Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus.

Bot. 23: 161. 1944. Pata de venado.

Moist or rather dry thickets or mixed lowland forest, 1,000

meters or lower; Escuintla; Guatemala; Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu;

cultivated in the Jardin Botanico in Guatemala. Salvador, the

type from San Julian, Sonsonate.

A slender unarmed shrub about 1.5 meters high, sometimes perhaps larger,

the young branches sparsely puberulent or almost glabrous; petioles very slender,

2-5 cm. long, glabrous or nearly so; leaf blades 5-15 cm. long, 13 cm. wide or

narrower, cleft to about the middle, truncate to cordate at the base, very thin,

green and glabrous above, slightly paler beneath, usually minutely strigillose over

the whole surface but sometimes merely puberulent on the nerves and veins, the

lobes deltoid-ovate to lance-deltoid, rather abruptly acuminate or often very long-

acuminate; inflorescences short and laxly few-flowered, short-pedunculate, the

long slender pedicels densely puberulent; calyx green, about 1 cm. long, puberulent;

legume glabrous, 6-10 cm. long, 10-13 mm. wide, abruptly acuminate, attenuate

at the base.

Bauhinia dipetala Hemsl. Diag. PI. Mex. 48. 1880. Hierba de

culebra.

At 1,200-1,300 meters; Huehuetenango (determination somewhat

uncertain). Southern Mexico; British Honduras (El Cayo, in fruit,

probably referable here) ; Cuba.

A shrub or small tree, sometimes 6 meters high with a trunk 7 cm. in diameter,

usually lower, the branchlets puberulent or glabrate; leaves on slender petioles

2-3 cm. long, bilobate to about the middle, 5-10 cm. long, truncate or shallowly

cordate at the base, 7-9-nerved, glabrous above, minutely appressed-pilose beneath

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 91

but appearing glabrous to the naked eye; racemes short, few-flowered, the flowers

short-pedicellate; flower buds narrow, 1 cm. long or shorter; calyx 1.5 cm. long;

petals 2, about 6 mm. long, pilose, whitish; fertile filament 2 cm. long, glabrous, the

anther 6 mm. long, lanate on one side; ovary long-stipitate, hirsute; legume

coriaceous, 8-15 cm. long, 1-1.5 cm. wide, glabrous, lustrous, on a stipe 2 cm. long.

Bauhinia divaricata L. Sp. PI. 374. 1753. Casparea divaricata

HBK. ex Jackson, Ind. Kew. 449. 1895. Casco de chivo; Pata de

vaca (Pete"n); Tsulotoc (Pet^n, Maya); Pie de cobra.

Wet to dry thickets, 1,000 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz;

El Progreso; Zacapa; Retalhuleu. Southwestern Texas; Mexico;

British Honduras to Honduras; West Indies.

An erect shrub or small tree 1-8 meters high, the branchlets pubescent or

glabrate; leaves petiolate, chartaceous or membranaceous, 4-12 cm. long, often

broader than long, cordate or truncate at the base, puberulent to glabrous above,

usually densely pilose beneath with short, appressed or sometimes spreading hairs,

bilobate, the lobes usually obtuse or subacute, somewhat divaricate, the sinus

broad and open; racemes short and dense, with several or numerous flowers,

pubescent, the pedicels short; calyx 12-20 mm. long, tomentulose, narrow, with

short subequal filiform teeth; petals at first white, turning pink, glabrous, 2-2.5

cm. long, oblong, acuminate, slender-unguiculate; fertile stamen 1, twice as long

as the petals; legume 5-12 cm. long, 9-15 mm. wide, long-stipitate, puberulent or

glabrous; seeds 5-10.

Called "cowfoot" in British Honduras, a translation of the

Spanish name, which refers to the leaf-shape, similar in outline to the

print left in mud by a cow's foot; "calzoncillo" (Yucatan, "breeches,"

also referring to the leaf-shape); "tsulubtoc," "utsomeltoc" (Yuca-

tan, Maya); "casco de venado" (Honduras). In Yucatan the tough

inner bark is sometimes utilized to make coarse rope or twine.

Bauhinia gigas Lundell, Phytologia 1: 213. 1937.

Known only from the type, collected on a limestone hill, in

advanced forest, Valentin, El Cayo District, British Honduras,

C. L. Lundell 6298.

An unarmed tree 40 meters high, the trunk 45 cm. in diameter, the branchlets

slender, glabrous; petioles very slender, 3-4.5 cm. long, glabrous; leaf blades

membranaceous, broadly ovate, 7-14.5 cm. long, 6-12.5 cm. wide, 7-nerved,

finely reticulate-veined, glabrous, dark green above, paler beneath, bilobate to

below the middle, the lobes divaricate, subobtuse to acuminate, deeply cordate

at the base.

Known, apparently, only from sterile material, but noteworthy

for the unusual size attained by the tree, which, however, is scarcely

to be regarded as a specific character. We have seen no material of

this species.

92 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Bauhinia Herrerae (Britt. & Rose) Standl. & Steyerm. Field

Mus. Bot. 23: 10. 1943. Schnella Herrerae Britt. & Rose, N. Amer.

Fl. 23:206. 1930.

Wet to dry thickets or forest, 300 meters or less; Pete"n;

Alta Verapaz; Izabal. Nayarit to Oaxaca and Yucatan; British

Honduras.

A small or large vine, sometimes 18 meters long, provided with numerous

tendrils (often absent on herbarium specimens), the branches and inflorescence

densely ferruginous-tomentulose; leaves long-petiolate, mostly 3-8 cm. long and

about as wide, shallowly or rather deeply cordate at the base, 9-nerved, bilobate

to about the middle, the lobes very obtuse or narrowly rounded at the apex,

glabrate above, brownish-pilose beneath with more or less appressed hairs; stipules

filiform, 6-8 mm. long; racemes terminal, many-flowered, the pedicels 8-15

mm. long, the rachis thick and stout; buds ovoid, apicate; calyx densely ferrugi-

nous-tomentose, campanulate, 8 mm. long, its teeth deltoid-ovate; petals 1.5-2

cm. long, yellow; stamens glabrous; legume 6-9 cm. long, 1.5 cm. wide, short-

stipitate, strongly compressed and flat, densely appressed-pilose with ferruginous

hairs, the valves thin, apparently not elastic; calyx in age strongly multicostate;

seeds 1-4.

Called "pata de vaca" in Yucatan; "cibiz quibix" (Campeche,

Maya). This has been reported from British Honduras and Yucatan

as B. glabra Jacq., a South American species. In Yucatan the vine

has been used from ancient times by the Mayas for fastening the

roofs and framework of their houses. The Mayas peel off the bark,

double it upon its inner surface, and make large rolls of it that can

be kept for a long time. When they wish to use the bark, they moisten

it to make it pliable.

Bauhinia hondurensis Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 8: 313. 1931.

Pie de venado; Camatashan (Alta Verapaz).

Dry to wet thickets or forest, 300 meters or less; Alta Verapaz;

Izabal; Santa Rosa; Guatemala; Retalhuleu. Honduras, the type

collected near Tela.

A large vine, the older stems strongly zigzag, complanate and often with large

perforations, provided with numerous tendrils, the young branches and inflores-

cence densely ferruginous-pilosulous or tomentulose, the branches glabrate;

leaves long-petiolate, often subcoriaceous and lustrous, 9-nerved, shallowly or

deeply cordate at the base, bilobate to the middle or more deeply, the lobes acute

to rounded at the apex, glabrous above or nearly so, sparsely or rather densely

appressed-pilose beneath, in age often almost glabrous; racemes terminal, some-

times paniculate, few-many-flowered, the slender pedicels 6-10 mm. long; calyx

in bud broadly ovate, 10-nerved, cuspidate, sericeous, in anthesis campanulate,

about 9 mm. long, the lobes subulate, 3-3.5 mm. long; petals 2 cm. long or shorter,

obovate-oblong, rounded at the apex, long-attenuate to the base, white or pale

green, pilose; perfect stamens 10, shorter than the calyx, the anthers minute;

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 93

legume oblong, about 7.5 cm. long and 2.5 cm. wide, broadest near the apex and

rostrate, short-stipitate, sparsely appressed-pilose or in age almost glabrous, the

valves thick and hard, elastic; seeds 5 or fewer.

This species is noteworthy for its flattened and somewhat ribbon-

like, strongly zigzag stems, often with large perforations, which cause

this and similar species to receive sometimes the name of "escalera

de mono," meaning "monkey ladder." B. hondurensis has been

confused with B. cumanensis HBK., a Venezuelan plant of somewhat

uncertain status.

Bauhinia Jenningsii P. Wilson, Bull. Torrey Club 43: 463.

1916. B. Castilloi Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 22: 78. 1940 (type from

Freshwater Creek Reserve, British Honduras). Ixactiz.

Swamp or upland forest, 300 meters or less; Pete"n. Yucatan;

Isle of Pines (Cuba).

A slender shrub or small tree, sometimes 5 meters high, the young branchlets,

inflorescence, and legume minutely puberulent; leaves on slender petioles 1.5-2

cm. long, ovate to lance-oblong, entire, 7-15 cm. long, obtuse to acuminate,

truncate or rounded at the base, 5-nerved, chartaceous, green above and glabrous,

beneath appearing glabrous but glaucous and densely and minutely puberulent;

racemes corymbiform, few-flowered, the very slender pedicels 2 cm. long or

shorter; calyx red, very slender, 2 cm. long, puberulent; petals slightly longer than

the calyx, very narrow, long-unguiculate, sparsely pilose; fertile stamen 1, twice

as long as the 9 sterile ones; ovary long-stipitate; legume linear-oblong, 5-9 cm.

long, 8-15 mm. wide; seeds oblong, 7-8 mm. long.

Called "cow-tongue" in British Honduras.

Bauhinia pansamalana Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 13: 27. 1888.

Casparea pansamalana Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 216. 1930.

Wet rocky limestone forest, 1,200 meters or less; Alta Verapaz

(type collected between Pansamala and Sacolol, J. D. Smith 681);

Izabal. Chiapas.

A small tree, sometimes 9 meters high, glabrous except the flowers; leaves

long-petiolate, oblong-ovate to broadly elliptic, entire or some of the leaves

shallowly bilobate, 7-nerved, 12-25 cm. long, abruptly acuminate or long-acumi-

nate, the lobes, when present, acute, subcordate or rounded at the base, rather stiff

and firm, lustrous; racemes small, with few or numerous flowers, the pedicels 1.5

cm. long; buds linear, obtuse, 2 cm. long; calyx puberulent, becoming spathe-like

and reflexed; petals linear, long-unguiculate, 2 cm. long; fertile stamens 3, equaling

the petals; legume 20-30 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, glabrous.

Bauhinia Pauletia Pers. Syn. PI. 1: 455. 1805. Una de gato.

Dry or wet thickets on plains, 900 meters or less; Jutiapa;

Santa Rosa. Western Mexico; Salvador; Costa Rica; Panama;

West Indies; Venezuela.

94 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

A shrub or small tree, sometimes 8 meters high, often subscandent, the

branches long and slender, armed with stout sharp spines 6 mm. long or less, the

young branchlets puberulent or villosulous; leaves slender-petiolate, 2-6 cm. long

and about as wide, bilobate for one-third their length, rounded or subcordate

at the base, the lobes rounded, sparsely or densely pubescent beneath, usually

densely pubescent along the veins; racemes with a very stout, nodose, sometimes

tortuous rachis, 6-10 cm. long, the stout pedicels 1 cm. long or less, elongate and

reflexed in fruit; calyx 5-12 cm. long, its tube 1.5-2 cm. long, minutely strigillose;

petals elongate-linear, greenish white; stamens 5, about equaling the petals;

legume linear, long-stipitate, minutely velutinous-tomentulose, 25 cm. long or

shorter, 12-15 mm. wide, the valves thick and hard, elastic.

This has been reported from Guatemala as B. microphylla Vog.

In Salvador it is known by the names "pie de cabra," "pie de

venado," "garabatillo," and "tripas de vieja." The larger stems

often are perforated.

Bauhinia purpurea L. Sp. PL 375. 1753. Pie de cabra.

Native of southeastern Asia, cultivated in tropical America;

occasionally planted in Guatemala, especially in the North Coast,

also along the Pacific bocacosta.

A small or medium-sized tree with broad crown, the branchlets puberulent or

glabrate; leaves long-petiolate, rather thick and firm, 9-11-nerved, mostly 9-13

cm. long, subcordate or truncate at the base, shallowly bilobate, the lobes rounded

or very obtuse, glabrous above, sparsely pubescent beneath, at least along the

nerves; racemes corymbiform, few-flowered, fragrant; calyx narrow in bud, large,

densely pubescent, spathaceous in anthesis; petals rose-purple to white, about

5 cm. long and 2 cm. wide, oblanceolate or obovate; fertile stamens 3-4, very long;

legume about 30 cm. long.

The tree is a handsome one, much planted in Florida, with flowers

in varying shades of pink and purple that may be produced at almost

any season. A good-sized tree is in the park about the railroad

station at Escuintla.

Bauhinia rubelcruziana Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 13: 27. 1888.

Casparea rubelcruziana Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 214. 1930.

B. emarginella Standl. Carnegie Inst. Wash. Publ. 461: 60. 1935.

Wet hill forest, about 750 meters; Pete"n (type of B. emarginella

from Camp 32, Guatemala-British Honduras boundary, W. A.

Schipp S630); Alta Verapaz (type from Rio Rubelcruz, Tuerckheim

896). British Honduras; Chiapas.

A'shrub or tree, sometimes 9 meters high with a trunk 10 cm. in diameter, the

slender branchlets brownish-tomentulose; stipules 4 mm. long, linear, caducous;

leaves slender-petiolate, thin, 8-15 cm. long, 8-11 cm. wide, shallowly cordate

at the base, 9-nerved, emarginate at the apex or entire and obtuse, glabrous above

STANDEE Y AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 95

or nearly so, brownish-tomentose beneath at first, in age sparsely pilose, the lobes

rounded; racemes densely tomentulose, 15-20-flowered, the slender pedicels 1-2.5

cm. long; calyx 1.5-2 cm. long, tomentulose, linear-oblong in bud, becoming

spathaceous; petals linear-lanceolate or narrowly spatulate, unguiculate, 2 cm.

long, brick-red, ciliate; perfect stamen 1, equaling the petals; filaments rose-red;

legume 10-15 cm. long, 1.5-2 cm. wide, long-stipitate, puberulent or glabrate,

the valves rather thin, elastic.

Through some error, the specific name appeared originally as

rubeleruziana.

Bauhinia Seleriana Harms, Bull. Herb. Boiss. 7: 549. 1899.

Namnamte, Pata de javali, Pata de venado (Huehuetenango).

Dry thickets or forest, 800-1,600 meters, endemic; Huehue-

tenango (type from Quen Santo, on limestone, C. & E. Seler 2797) ;

Zacapa(?).

A shrub or tree 2-9 meters high, unarmed, the branchlets densely tomentose

at first, becoming glabrate; leaves petiolate, chartaceous, 4-7 cm. long, 9-11-

nerved, bilobate about one-third their length, the lobes rounded or very obtuse,

glabrous above, laxly tomentose beneath; racemes tomentose, with several or

numerous flowers, 3-8 cm. long, the pedicels 4-5 mm. long; buds 10-11 mm. long,

the calyx densely puberulent, spathaceous; petals white, oblanceolate, short-

unguiculate, 11-13 mm. long; stamens 10, the alternate ones shorter; ovary

puberulent.

Bauhinia sericella Standl. Carnegie Inst. Wash. Publ. 461: 60.

1935. Calzoncillo.

Wet forest or thickets, sometimes in Manicaria swamps, .at or

near sea level; Izabal. British Honduras, the type from Jacinto

Creek, W. A. Schipp 1197.

A small or large vine as much as 15 meters long, usually with numerous

tendrils, the branchlets minutely strigillose; leaves long-petiolate, 2-foliolate, the

leaflets semiovate, 5-15 cm. long or larger, acute to long-acuminate, 4-nerved,

glabrous above and lustrous, brownish beneath and very densely sericeous; flowers

ochroleucous, the racemes rather few-flowered or sometimes many-flowered, the

rachis brown-sericeous, the pedicels 4-7 mm. long; calyx campanulate, densely

ferruginous-sericeous, 5-6 mm. long, 10-costate, the teeth short, subulate; petals

12 mm. long, densely brown-sericeous outside, long-unguiculate; perfect stamens

10, short; legume about 6.5 cm. long and 17 mm. wide near the apex, acute at the

base and short-stipitate, rostrate, densely and minutely brown-sericeous, the valves

elastic.

Bauhinia ungulata L. Sp. PI. 374. 1753. Pauletia inermis

Cav. Icon. 5: 6. pi. 409. 1799. B. inermis Pers. Syn. PI. 1: 455. 1805.

B. Cavanillei Millsp. Field Mus. Bot. 1: 364. 1898. Pata de vaca;

Pie de venado.

96 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Wet to dry thickets or in forest, 1,000 meters or less; Pete"n;

Santa Rosa; Retalhuleu; Huehuetenango. Southern Mexico;

British Honduras; Salvador; Costa Rica; southward to Venezuela

and Bolivia.

An unarmed shrub commonly 2-4 meters high, the branchlets minutely

brownish-sericeous; leaves short-petiolate, mostly 6-13 cm. long, 7-9-nerved,

rounded to subcordate at the base, bilobate to about the middle, the lobes acute

or long-acuminate, glabrous above or nearly so, paler beneath, gland-dotted,

finely pubescent or glabrate; racemes mostly elongate and many-flowered, the

pedicels 5—20 mm. long; buds narrow and elongate, 4-5 cm. long, obtuse, brownish-

tomentulose and glandular; petals narrow, white, turning pink; stamens 10, red;

ovary long-stipitate; legume linear, 19 cm. long or shorter, 12 mm. wide, densely

and finely puberulent at first, glabrate and lustrous in age, brown, long-stipitate,

usually somewhat curved, containing numerous seeds.

Called "pie de vaca" in Honduras; "calzoncillo" (Tabasco);

"pie de cabro," "pata de venado" (Salvador); "chactsulubtoc"

(Yucatan, Maya). In Salvador the wood of this shrub or small tree

is that most commonly used, because of its strength, for making the

front and rear arcos of aparejos (packsaddles). The shrub occurs

in great abundance in the dry thickets of the Pacific plains.

CAESALPINIA L.

Trees or shrubs, sometimes scandent, unarmed or aculeate, often setose;

leaves bipinnate, the leaflets small and numerous or large and few, herbaceous or

coriaceous; stipules large and conspicuous or minute; flowers medium-sized or

rather large, usually yellow or red, racemose, the racemes axillary or terminal

and paniculate, the bracts small or large, usually caducous; bractlets none; calyx

tube short, the 5 lobes imbricate, the lowest outermost in bud, concave or cymbi-

form; petals 5, orbicular to oblong, spreading, strongly imbricate, slightly unequal,

or the uppermost one smaller; stamens 10, free, the filaments usually villous or

glandular at the base, the anthers uniform, the cells longitudinally dehiscent;

ovary sessile, free from the calyx, few-ovulate; style terete, filiform, the stigma

terminal, truncate, concave, or minute; legume oblong to lanceolate or falcate,

compressed, not winged, plane or turgid and bivalvate, often coriaceous or thick-

ened and indehiscent; seeds transverse, ovate to orbicular or globose, the testa

coriaceous; endosperm none; cotyledons flat or thick and carnose, the radicle

short, straight.

Species 70 or more, in the tropics of both hemispheres. A few

additional ones may occur in Central America. Britton and Rose

divided the North American species into about 10 genera, some of

which might have some good basis for generic segregation, but it

seems more satisfactory to treat the group in the sense it was main-

tained by Bentham. What practical or sentimental advantage

results from its division into small units, often of only a single

species each, is not apparent.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 97

Leaves and usually the branches armed with straight or recurved prickles; fruit

often prickly.

Fruit unarmed; leaflets rounded or emarginate at the apex; trees. .C. vesicaria.

Fruit densely covered with stiff prickles; leaflets mostly acute; shrubs or woody

vines.

Stipules foliaceous; bracts of the inflorescence reflexed; seeds gray. . . C. crista.

Stipules subulate or none; bracts erect or spreading; seeds yellow or olive.

C. Bonduc.

Leaves and branches unarmed, or the stems rarely setose below.

Fruit thick and hard or fleshy, indehiscent or tardily dehiscent, in a few species

thin and dehiscent, but the calyx lobes then pectinate-dentate, never

elastically dehiscent.

Leaflets linear-oblong, 2 mm. wide or narrower; fruit thick and hard, curved

or coiled; calyx lobes entire C. coriaria.

Leaflets ovate-oblong to orbicular, most of them more than 1 cm. wide; fruit

thin, straight; lowest calyx lobe pectinate-dentate.

Legume densely velutinous-pubescent; leaflets densely velutinous-pilose

beneath C. velutina.

Legume glabrous, at least in age; leaflets in age glabrous or nearly so.

C. violacea.

Fruit flat, elastically dehiscent; calyx lobes entire.

Inflorescence densely stellate-tomentose C. eriostachys.

Inflorescence glabrous or pubescent with simple hairs.

Leaflets black-glandular beneath C. Gaumeri.

Leaflets not black-glandular.

Stamens about equaling the petals or shorter.

Leaflets densely pilose beneath; fruit not glandular C. Recordii.

Leaflets glabrous beneath; fruit pubescent and with numerous short-

stipitate glands C. yucatanensis.

Stamens twice as long as the petals or longer.

Leaflets mostly 6-10 pairs or more; pedicels mostly much longer than

the flowers C. pulcherrima.

Leaflets mostly 3-5 or sometimes 6 pairs; pedicels usually shorter

than the flowers.

Leaflets densely short-pilose, at least on the lower surface; calyx

glabrous or obscurely and sparsely puberulent C. affinis.

Leaflets glabrous.

Calyx glabrous C. exostemma.

Calyx very densely puberulent or tomentulose with whitish hairs.

C. Conzattii.

Caesalpinia affinis Hemsl. Diag. PI. Mex. 8. 1878 (type col-

lected in Guatemala by Skinner, the locality unknown). Poin-

cianella affinis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 328. 1930. Carcomo;

Moco; Ebano; Carcano (fide Record; probably an erroneous name).

Dry brushy hillsides or dry forest, 700 meters or less; El Progreso;

Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa. Oaxaca; Honduras.

98 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

A shrub or small tree, unarmed, rarely as much as 12 meters high, the branch-

lets short-pilose or glabrate; pinnae 2-4 pairs, the leaflets 4-6 pairs, oblong to

rounded-obovate, mostly 1.5-2.5 cm. long, rounded at the apex, often emarginate,

usually densely velutinous-pilose on both surfaces; racemes short, dense, rather

few-flowered, minutely puberulent or glabrate, the pedicels 1-1.5 cm. long, articu-

late near the apex; calyx minutely puberulent or almost glabrous, 12 mm. long,

the lobes broad, entire, rounded at the apex; petals flame-red or orange-red to

orange-yellow, obovate to suborbicular, about 1.5 cm. long; filaments twice as

long as the petals, curved and declined, somewhat pilose; legume oblong, subfal-

cate, 6-8 cm. long, about 1.8 cm. wide, punctate and glandular-punctate.

This is a showy plant when in flower because of its large and

intensely colored blossoms, the only disadvantage being that at

flowering time, in middle verano, most of the plants are leafless. It

is very common on dry hills of the lower Motagua Valley, espe-

cially in El Progreso, and sometimes is planted about dwellings for

ornament.

Caesalpinia Bonduc (L.) Roxb. Hort. Beng. 32. 1814. Gui-

landina Bonduc L. Sp. PI. 545. 1753.

Wet forest, often along stream banks, at or little above sea level ;

Izabal. Florida; British Honduras; West Indies; tropical Asia.

A large vine, often 15 meters long, climbing over trees, armed on the stems and

leaf rachises with numerous small sharp uncinate prickles; stipules none; leaves

large, the pinnae 3-6 pairs; leaflets 4-8 pairs, ovate to elliptic-ovate, 4-8 cm. long,

sessile or nearly so, acute or acuminate, rounded or obtuse at the base, subcori-

aceous, lustrous above, in age glabrous or nearly so; racemes dense, 30 cm. long

or less, the flowers yellow, fragrant, the bracts linear-lanceolate, erect, soon

deciduous; pedicels 4-8 mm. long; calyx 6 mm. long, brownish-tomentulose;

petals 15 mm. long or less; fruit oval or oval-oblong, 6-12 cm. long, densely covered

with long stiff straight prickles; seeds subglobose, yellow or olive, 1.5-2.5 cm. in

diameter.

Caesalpinia Conzattii (Rose) Standl. Trop. Woods 37: 34.

1934. Poinciana Conzattii Rose, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 13: 303.

1911. Poincianella Conzattii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 328.

1930.

Dry thickets or open forest of the Pacific plains, 1,200 meters

or less; Guatemala; Retalhuleu; doubtless also in other departments

of the Pacific coast. Oaxaca; Salvador; Nicaragua; Costa Rica.

An unarmed shrub or tree, seldom more than 5 meters high, the branchlets

and leaves glabrous; pinnae 3-5 pairs; leaflets 4-6 pairs, oval-oblong to broadly

obovate, 1.5-2.5 cm. long, rounded at the apex, obtuse or rounded at the base,

paler beneath; racemes dense, often many-flowered, densely puberulent or tomen-

tulose, the pedicels 1-1.5 cm. long, articulate above the middle; calyx very broad,

pale red, about 13 mm. long, densely puberulent, the broad lobes rounded at the

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 99

apex; petals sulphur-yellow, obovate, not glandular, twice as long as the calyx

lobes; stamens long-exserted, 2.5-3 cm. long; legume elastically dehiscent, oblong,

subfalcate, 5-9 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, velutinous-puberulent, eglandular.

Known in Salvador as "camaroncillo," "flor del mar," and "flor

marena." It is questionable whether this is more than a form or

variety of C. exostemma. The differences supposed to separate the

two seem to be little more than variations in density of pubescence.

Caesalpinia coriaria (Jacq.) Willd. Sp. PI. 2: 532. 1799.

Poinciana coriaria Jacq. Sel. Stirp. Amer. 123. 1763. Libidibia

coriaria Schlecht. Linnaea 5: 193. 1830. Nacascolote; Nacascolo.

Dry plains and hillsides, 900 meters or less; Retalhuleu; reported

from Zacapa and Jutiapa, and probably growing in other depart-

ments but not common. Western and southern Mexico; Salvador

to Panama; West Indies; Colombia and Venezuela.

An unarmed tree, 10 meters high or less, usually with a broad crown and

crooked branches, the branchlets puberulent or glabrous; leaves small, the petiole

and rachis tomentulose, the pinnae 4-10 pairs; leaflets 12-28 pairs, linear-oblong,

4-8 mm. long, obtuse, subcordate or truncate at the base, glabrous, usually black-

dotted beneath; racemes shorter than the leaves, rather few-flowered, the pedicels

glabrous, 2-4 mm. long; calyx glabrous, 5 mm. long; petals white or yellowish,

about equaling the sepals; fruit thick and fleshy or coriaceous, indehiscent, 3-6

cm. long, 1-2 cm. wide, twisted, very irregular in size and shape.

Called "cascalote" in Chiapas. The trunk often branches from

the base, and many of the plants are mere shrubs. The bark is

scaly, chocolate-brown; sap wood pale yellow; heartwood brown or

black, hard, and scant. The wood is little utilized, unless as fuel,

but it is reported to yield a red dye. The wood is sometimes almost

black and is then used as a substitute for ebony in fashioning small

articles. The principal value of the tree is in its thick, often S-shaped

pods, which are an important source of dye material and tannin and

are known in the foreign trade as "dividivi." Large amounts of the

pods are exported to the United States from Colombia and Vene-

zuela, and the tree has been planted extensively in India as a source

of tannin, having been introduced there early in the nineteenth

century. A tree is said to produce as much as 100 pounds of pods,

which contain 25-30 per cent of tannin. Both pods and bark of the

tree are said to be exported from Mexico. In that country the fruit

has long been used for making black ink. In Guatemala it is much

used to impart a black dye to cotton textiles.

In Salvador nacascolote pods are utilized to color the celebrated

huacales or jicaras manufactured about Izalco from Crescentia fruits.

100 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

First a sirup is prepared from crude sugar, fermented maize, and old

nails. After a few days the sirup becomes heavily charged with iron

and is called the tinta. The day that the coloring is to be done there

is prepared also a decoction in water of crushed pods of nacascolote.

The huacales, i.e., dry Crescentia fruits, are first roughened to remove

the outer pellicle. Then they are polished and smoothed with the

rough leaves of guarumo (Cecropia). Thus prepared, the huacales

are dipped into the jar of tinta, placed in the sun to dry, and then

dipped in the nacascolote decoction. This process is repeated for

each huacal many times during the day, and after each treatment

each huacal is smoothed and rubbed with the hands to give it its

peculiar luster. Sometimes before the huacales are dipped, they are

covered with designs in wax (usually beeswax), these portions of the

shell being left in natural color after the dyeing process, but more

commonly the often intricate designs are cut out with a sharp pen-

knife on the huacal after coloring.

Gaesalpinia crista L. Sp. PI. 380. 1753. Guilandina Bonducella

L. Sp. PL ed. 2. 545. 1762.

We have seen no specimens of this from Guatemala, but undoubt-

edly it occurs on the Pacific seashores and possibly also along the

North Coast. Florida; Mexico to Panama; West Indies; southward

to Brazil; Old World tropics.

Plants usually growing along sea beaches and often forming dense thickets

just beyond reach of the waves, erect and densely branched or often more or less

scandent, the branches and leaf rachises armed with numerous stout sharp short

prickles, the branches often also setose; stipules usually large and foliaceous,

sometimes 5 cm. wide; leaves large, more or less pubescent, the pinnae 4-8 pairs;

leaflets 4-8 pairs, oblong to elliptic, rather thin, 2.5-7 cm. long, obtuse to short-

acuminate, often mucronate, rounded or subcordate at the base; racemes tomen-

tulose, many-flowered, spire-like, 30 cm. long or shorter, the bracts linear-atten-

uate, reflexed or spreading, 1-1.5 cm. long, deciduous, the pedicels 1 cm. long or

shorter; calyx tomentulose, 7-9 mm. long; petals yellow, 1 cm. long, oblong-ovate;

fruit oval, 5-10 cm. long, 6 cm. wide, very densely covered with long, rather

flexible, sharp prickles; seeds subglobose, gray, lustrous, 2-2.5 cm. long.

Called "taray" and "cojon de gato" in Yucatan; seeds called

"avellanas" in Salvador. It is perhaps this shrub that has given

the name Avellana to the port in Santa Rosa. The species is a

characteristic strand shrub of many parts of the Central American

coasts, where it often grows in great abundance, forming exceedingly

dense and quite impassable thickets. The hard seeds, like those of

C. Bonduc, belong to the group of so-called "sea beans," which often

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 101

are carried to European shores and other remote regions by ocean

currents.

Caesalpinia eriostachys Benth. Bot. Voy. Sulph. 88. 1844.

Occasional on brushy hillsides or in open forest, 300 meters or less;

Escuintla; doubtless in other parts of the Pacific plains. Western

and southern Mexico; Salvador to Panama; Cuba.

A large shrub or a tree, unarmed, sometimes 15 meters high, stellate-pubescent

on the branchlets, leaves, and inflorescence, often densely so; pinnae 5-8 pairs,

the leaflets 7-12 pairs, suborbicular to rhombic-oblong, 5-15 mm. long, very obtuse,

oblique at the base, black-dotted beneath, glabrate in age; racemes elongate, often

many-flowered, the rachis and pedicels densely stellate-tomentose, the pedicels

6-15 mm. long; calyx 10-15 mm. long, stellate-tomentose; petals golden yellow,

1.5 cm. long; filaments about equaling the petals, pilose and glandular; legume

coriaceous, elastically dehiscent, 10-12 cm. long, 2 cm. wide, glabrous, eglandular,

often somewhat falcate.

Called "pintadillo" and "iguano" in Salvador. The very showy

flowers are produced when the trees are leafless. The seeds are

reported locally to cause paralysis in animals that eat them.

Caesalpinia exostemma DC. Prodr. 2: 483. 1825. Poincianella

exostemma Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 328. 1930.

Reported by Britton and Rose (loc. cit.) from Guatemala, but

we have seen no specimens. Southern Mexico.

A shrub or tree, glabrous throughout; pinnae 3-4 pairs, the leaflets 3-4 pairs,

ovate, about 1.5 cm. long, obtuse; racemes about 15-flowered, the pedicels 1 cm.

long, articulate near the apex; calyx reddish, glabrous, the lobes ovate-elliptic,

7 mm. long; petals somewhat longer than the calyx, suborbicular; filaments

purple-red, declinate, 2.5 cm. long, twice as long as the petals, pilose, eglandular;

legume 8-12 cm. long, 1.5-2 cm. wide, puberulent.

Caesalpinia Gaumeri Greenm. Field Mus. Bot. 2: 330. 1912.

British Honduras, in low, sometimes swampy forest, little above

sea level; Yucatan.

A tree, sometimes 20 meters high, unarmed, the branchlets glabrous; stipules

obovate, 4-8 mm. long, caducous; petioles and leaf rachis glabrous or puberulent,

the pinnae 4-9; leaflets 5-9 in each pinna, opposite or alternate, rhombic-oblong

to rhombic-obovate, 1-3 cm. long, rounded at the apex, oblique at the base,

reticulate-veined and usually lustrous above, glabrous, or pubescent beneath on

the veins, black-dotted beneath, the costa excentric; racemes 10-15 cm. long,

glabrous or puberulent, the pedicels slender, 8-14 mm. long, articulate above the

middle; calyx lobes oblong, 5-8 mm. long, gland-dotted; petals unguiculate, yellow,

glandular, 10-12 mm. long; stamens about equaling the petals, the filaments

pilose and glandular; legume linear-oblong, 8 cm. long, 2 cm. wide, acuminate,

glabrous, eglandular.

102 FIELD IANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Called "peccary wood," "warree wood," and "bastard logwood"

in British Honduras; "citamche" (Yucatan, Maya).

Caesalpinia pulcherrima (L.) Swartz, Obs. Bot. 166. 1791.

Poinciana pulcherrima L. Sp. PI. 380. 1753. Hojasen; Gallitos;

Vainillo; Barbona; Flor barbona; Flor de Santa Lucia (Zacapa) ; Utsuh

(Quecchi); Cabello de angel (Pete"n); Zinkin (Pete"n, Maya); Guaca-

maya; Hierba del espanto, Espanta-lobos (fide Tejada); Santa Rosa

(Zacapa) ; Flor de chapa; Barba del sol (Retalhuleu).

Common in many regions in thickets and hedges, where appar-

ently naturalized from cultivation; generally cultivated for orna-

ment; apparently wild on dry plains and hillsides of the lower

Motagua Valley, at least in the dry regions, found mostly at 900

meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz (cultivated); Baja Verapaz; El

Progreso; Izabal; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa;

Escuintla; Guatemala; Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu. Mexico; British

Honduras to Salvador and Panama; West Indies; South America;

naturalized in the Old World tropics.

A glabrous shrub or small tree, 5 meters high or less, with brittle branches,

the older branches sometimes setose; leaves large, the pinnae 3-9 pairs; leaflets

6-12 pairs, thin, short-petiolulate, paler beneath, oblong or oblong-obovate, 1-2

cm. long, 7-10 mm. wide, rounded at the apex, obtuse at the base; racemes large

and elongate, terminal and axillary, the slender pedicels 5-8 cm. long; lowest

calyx lobe narrow, cucullate, 1.5 cm. long, much longer than the other lobes;

petals fire-red or bright yellow, 1.5-2.5 cm. long; stamens 5-6 cm. long; legume

elastically dehiscent, as much as 12 cm. long, 1.5-2 cm. wide, somewhat oblique,

glabrous.

Called "flambeau flower" in British Honduras; "cansic" (British

Honduras, Maya); "chazinkin," "canzinkin" (Yucatan, Maya; the

red and yellow forms respectively); "maravilla" (Oaxaca). This is

one of the very common ornamental shrubs of the Central American

lowlands, sometimes seen at middle elevations. Presumably it is a

native of Mexico and Central America, but it is somewhat difficult

to decide whether it ever is found in a truly wild state. If it so occurs

anywhere in Central America it is in the lower Motagua Valley,

especially about Zacapa and farther up the Motagua, where it grows

in great abundance on the dry hillsides in a possibly wild state.

Along the Pacific lowlands the shrub evidently is an escape from

cultivation, although often in considerable abundance. About

Zacapa in early October the shrub presents a beautiful sight, often

a continuous thicket of great extent, covered with a mass of flame-

colored flowers. Bright red is the prevailing color, but yellow

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 103

flowers are not uncommon, especially on cultivated plants. English

names for the shrub are "bird-of -paradise" flower, "Barbados pride,"

and "flower fence." The flowers are somewhat fragrant and are

reported to yield a good quality of honey. The fruit contains tannin

and is said to be employed sometimes for tanning hides. It has been

reported that in Guatemala the crushed leaves sometimes are thrown

in water to stupefy fish.

Caesalpinia Recordii Britt. & Rose in Standl. Trop. Woods 7:

6. 1926. Poincianella Recordii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 329.

1930.

British Honduras, at or little above sea level; type collected by

S. J. Record, the locality not specified.

A medium-sized tree, the trunk as much as 25 cm. in diameter, unarmed, the

branchlets, petioles, and inflorescence short-pilose or puberulent; pinnae 2-5

pairs, the leaflets 2-6 pairs, oblong or oblong-oval, mostly 2.5-4 cm. long, sparsely

short-pilose above or glabrate, usually lustrous, densely velutinous-pilose beneath,

subcoriaceous, eglandular; racemes 15-35 cm. long, many-flowered, the bracts

ovate, 4-6 mm. long, caducous, the pedicels 1.5-2 cm. long, articulate near the

middle, velutinous-pubescent; calyx 1 cm. long, densely short-pilose, the lobes

broad, rounded at the apex; petals yellow, 1 cm. long, the outer ones covered on

the outer surface with sessile glands; stamens about equaling the petals, the

filaments villous below; legume 6-10 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, densely and finely

pubescent, eglandular, siibfalcate.

The Maya name is reported from British Honduras as "canlo,"

and English names used there are "warree wood," "peccary wood,"

and "bastard Billy Webb." Britton and Rose describe the pods as

having both margins outcurved, which is an error, since they are

somewhat falcate and in shape exactly like those of related species.

Because of this misstatement, material of this species could never

be traced to its proper place in their key to the species of Poincianella.

Caesalpinia velutina (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Trop. Woods 34:

40. 1933. Brasilettia velutina Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 322.

1930. Chaperno bianco, Totoposte (Huehuetenango) ; Aripin.

Dry, rocky, brushy or thinly forested hillsides, 250-1,000 meters;

Zacapa; Chiquimula; El Progreso (type from El Rancho, W. A.

Kellerman 7044) ; Huehuetenango. Oaxaca.

A tree 5-10 meters high, with a broad crown, the branchlets and leaf rachises

densely and shortly velutinous-pilose; leaves often very large, the pinnae 2-4

pairs; leaflets 5-7 pairs, oblong or oblong-ovate, mostly 3-6 cm. long, obtuse,

rounded and often oblique at the base, densely velutinous-pilose, especially

beneath, paler beneath; racemes shorter than the leaves, many-flowered, brownish-

104 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

tomentulose, the pedicels 5-10 mm. long; calyx 5 mm. long, tomentulose, the outer

lobe pectinate-dentate; petals yellow, 8 mm. long; legume oblong, 10-15 cm. long,

2.5-3 cm. wide, obtuse, acute or obtuse at the base and long-stipitate, densely

velutinous-pubescent, brownish, the valves thin, not elastic.

The wood is used in Guatemala for construction purposes. The

tree is common in dry regions of the lower Motagua Valley, con-

spicuous at the end of the rainy season because of its great clusters

of large pods that hang for a long time on the tree.

Caesalpinia vesicaria L. Sp. PI. 381. 1753. Nicarago vesicaria

Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 319. 1930. Espino negro.

Dry thickets or dry open forest, 1,400 meters or less; Pete"n;

Guatemala; Retalhuleu. Campeche; Yucatan; Greater Antilles.

A tree of 9 meters or less, the branchlets and leaves glabrous, the leaves

usually armed with a few short stout prickles, large, the pinnae 2-3 pairs; leaflets

1-3 pairs, rounded-obovate to oblong, sub coriaceous, rounded or emarginate at

the apex, rounded or obtuse at the base and often oblique, 1-4 cm. long, deep

green and lustrous above, paler and dull beneath; racemes simple or branched,

stout, glabrous or nearly so, the pedicels 6-9 mm. long; calyx 8-9 mm. long,

glabrous, the lobes entire; petals yellow, slightly longer than the calyx lobes;

stamens equaling the petals, the filaments villous; legume narrowly oblong, 4-8

cm. long, 1.2-2 cm. wide, indehiscent, puberulent at first, becoming glabrate; seeds

about 6, orbicular, lustrous, brown, scarcely compressed.

Maya names of Yucatan are recorded as "toxob" and "yaxkix-

canab." An infusion of the pods with iron sulphate is said to give a

permanent black dye. In Yucatan powdered charcoal of the bark

is a domestic remedy for diarrhea in children.

Caesalpinia violacea (Mill.) Standl. Carnegie Inst. Wash.

Publ. 461: 61. 1935. Robinia violacea Mill. Gard. Diet. ed. 8. No. 8.

1768. C. brasiliensis Swartz, Obs. Bot. 166. 1791, not L. 1753.

Cante.

In climax forest, 300 meters or less; Pete"n (Uaxactun). British

Honduras; Yucatan; Jamaica; Cuba.

An unarmed tree, sometimes 25 meters high with a trunk more than a meter

in diameter, the branchlets and leaf rachis puberulent or glabrate; pinnae 2-4

pairs, elliptic to oblong or ovate, 2-5 cm. long, lustrous above, glabrous or puberu-

lent, glabrous or pubescent beneath, obtuse or acute; racemes 10-25 cm. long,

many-flowered, the rachis sparsely puberulent or glabrate, the pedicels 8 mm. long

or shorter; calyx 8 mm. long or less, yellowish-puberulent, the outermost lobe

deeply pectinate-dentate; petals yellow, 7 mm. long; stamens shorter than the

petals; legume linear-oblong, 6-10 cm. long, 2.5-3 cm. wide, glabrous or nearly so,

rounded at the apex, short-stipitate, the valves thin, not elastic.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 105

"Brasiletto" (British Honduras); "chacte" (Yucatan, Maya).

This has been reported from the Yucatan region as C. platyloba Wats.,

a species of northwestern Mexico. The wood gives a red dye. It is

said that this pigment is the one used by the ancient Mayas for

imprinting the celebrated "red hand" found on the interior walls of

some of the ancient ruined buildings.

Caesalpinia yucatanensis Greenm. Field Mus. Bot. 2: 252.

1907. Poincianella yucatanensis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

330. 1930. Palo de gusano; Cinim (Maya).

Moist forest, 300 meters or less; Pete*n. British Honduras;

Yucatan.

A shrub or small tree, the trunk sometimes 15 cm. in diameter, unarmed, the

young branchlets puberulent; pinnae 4-7, the leaflets 2-4 pairs, oblong to oval,

2-3.5 cm. long, rounded at the apex, rounded or obtuse at the base, glabrous,

lustrous above, somewhat paler beneath; racemes 5-15 cm. long, short-pilose or

puberulent, the pedicels 1.5-2 cm. long, geniculate near the apex; calyx 8 mm. long,

the lobes broad, densely velutinous-pubescent; petals 1.5 cm. long, yellow, oblong

to obovate, glandular below; stamens about equaling the petals; legume linear-

oblong, somewhat falcate, sessile, 6-12 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. wide, finely pubescent

and reddish-glandular, the valves elastic.

Called "sen de pais" in Yucatan, and the Maya name is recorded

as "canpocolcum."

CASSIA L.

Trees, shrubs, or herbs, sometimes scandent; leaves even-pinnate, the petioles

often glanduliferous; flowers commonly yellow, rarely white or pink, in axillary or

terminal racemes, in terminal panicles, or solitary in the leaf axils; calyx tube

short, the 5 segments imbricate; petals 5, imbricate, spreading, subequal or the

lower ones smaller, the uppermost petal within the others; stamens 10, subequal,

perfect, or the upper ones smaller, or the 3 uppermost minute and abortive, some-

times 5; anthers uniform or those of the lower stamens larger, the cells opening

by an apical pore or slit; ovary sessile or stipitate, free from the calyx, often

arcuate, with few or numerous ovules; style short or elongate, the stigma terminal,

truncate or small; legume variable, terete to compressed and flat, woody, coria-

ceous, or membranaceous, indehiscent or 2-valvate, rarely with longitudinal wings,

naked within or septate between the seeds, often filled with pulp; seeds transverse

or sometimes longitudinal, more or less compressed, with endosperm; cotyledons

ovate to oblong, the radicle short, straight.

Species 450 or more, most plentiful in tropical regions. Others

besides the following are known from southern Central America.

Britton and Rose referred the North American species to 28 genera,

but most authors have been content to place all in a single genus,

which most botanists have been able to visualize as constituting a

106 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

definite group. The legume does vary exceedingly in different groups

of the genus, and it would be possible to recognize a few of the groups

as distinct, especially the subgenus Chamaecrista. Until botanists,

for lack of something better to do, agree in the recognition of numer-

ous small generic unities, as has often been done in studies of the

European flora, it seems more satisfactory to leave all plants of this

alliance in the genus Cassia, the largest group of Leguminosae found

in Central America.

Legume elastically dehiscent; herbs or low shrubs.

Petals subequal; legume oblong or oblong-linear; leaves without glands. Sub-

genus Grimaldia.

Stamens 5-7; petals 5-7 mm. long; plants annual C. Absus.

Stamens 9-10; petals usually more than 1 cm. long; plants perennial.

Leaflets glabrous C. hispidula.

Leaflets pilose or setulose, at least beneath.

Sepals glabrous or slightly pubescent; an erect shrub or small tree.

C. Deamii.

Sepals long-pilose or glandular-pilose; low herbs, often procumbent.

Flower buds pointed; sepals acute C. Rosei.

Flower buds rounded at the apex; sepals very obtuse C. Killipii.

Petals unequal; legume usually linear; petiole usually bearing a conspicuous

gland. Subgenus Chamaecrista.

Leaflets only 1-3 pairs.

Leaflets 1 pair C. diphylla.

Leaflets 2-3 pairs.

Legume with appressed hairs; leaflets 5-10 mm. long C. Tagera.

Legume with long spreading hairs; leaflets mostly 15-20 mm. long.

C. Bartlettii.

Leaflets 5-many pairs in all or most of the leaves.

Peduncles filiform, much longer than the leaves; leaflets 4-9 pairs.

Stems densely pilose with long spreading hairs C. pilosa.

Stems usually incurved-puberulent C. serpens.

Peduncles short or elongate, scarcely filiform; leaflets usually numerous.

Stipules large, cordate-ovate; stems zigzag or flexuous C. flexuosa.

Stipules small, usually very narrow, not cordate; stems not conspicuously

zigzag or flexuous.

Gland of the petiole sessile and depressed C. simplex.

Gland of the petiole conspicuously stipitate, or at least elevated and

constricted at the base.

Flowers large, 2-3 cm. broad C. Seleri.

Flowers mostly small and 1.5 cm. broad or smaller.

Gland of the petiole borne on a rather long, slender stipe.

Legume densely pilose with rather long, spreading hairs.

C. stenocarpa.

Legume sparsely pilose with short appressed hairs . . C. Wilsonii.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 107

Gland of the petiole almost sessile, or the stipe very short and

thick.

Leaflets copiously pilose beneath with long, more or less

appressed hairs C. mayana.

Leaflets glabrous beneath or essentially so ... C. stenocarpoides.

Legume not elastically dehiscent; trees, shrubs, or herbs.

Legume terete, subterete, turgid, or tetragonal, not winged.

Leaflets always 2 pairs, large and broad; branches never hirsute; large shrubs

or sometimes woody vines.

Bracts foliaceous, persistent; petals greenish yellow; leaflets minutely and

inconspicuously sericeous beneath C. undulata.

Bracts caducous; petals buff or yellow, not greenish C. badllaris.

Leaflets more than 2 pairs in all or most of the leaves, often very numerous or,

if only 2 pairs, the plants herbaceous and with long-hirsute stems.

Leaves eglandular; trees.

Leaflets glabrous; flowers yellow C. fistula.

Leaflets sparsely or densely pubescent.

Leaflets rounded or very obtuse at the apex; flowers pink or white.

C. grandis.

Leaflets acute or acuminate; flowers yellow C. spedabilis.

Leaves with glands between the leaflets; herbs or shrubs.

Leaflets 2 pairs; stems densely long-hirsute C. pilifera.

Leaflets more than 2 pairs in all or most of the leaves, often numerous

pairs; stems not hirsute.

Leaflets acute or acuminate; plants glabrous throughout. .C. laevigata.

Leaflets rounded or obtuse at the apex, usually more or less pubescent,

sometimes glabrous.

Legume about 3 mm. thick, tetragonal, dehiscent along both sutures;

plants herbaceous, the stems usually glabrous C. Tora.

Legume much thicker, indehiscent or irregularly rupturing; plants

shrubs, the branches usually densely pubescent.

Leaflets 6-8 pairs; fruit densely pubescent C. tomentosa.

Leaflets mostly 3-5 pairs; fruit glabrous.

Leaflets glabrous; anthers all short-rostrate. . . .C. bicapsularis.

Leaflets pilose beneath; 3 of the anthers long-rostrate.

C. indecora.

Legume compressed and flat, or sometimes 4-winged.

Legume conspicuously 4-winged.

Plants herbaceous, a meter high or less; leaflets 3 pairs C. pentagonia.

Plants tall shrubs or small trees; leaflets numerous pairs C. alata.

Legume not winged.

Leaves with a gland at the base of the petiole; herbs; leaflets acute or acumi-

nate.

Legume glabrous or puberulent, 6-9 mm. wide, 6-12 cm. long; plants

glabrous throughout or nearly so, or only puberulent . . C. occidentalis.

Legume densely pilose with spreading hairs, 8-30 cm. long; plants

abundantly pilose C. leptocarpa.

Leaves eglandular, or the glands not at the base of the petiole.

108 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Leaves bearing glands between some or all the leaflets.

Leaflets 3 pairs; plants herbaceous or suffrutescent; legume arcuate.

Leaflets rounded or obtuse at the apex; stems pubescent or glabrate.

C. leiophylla.

Leaflets acute; branches hirsute C. cobanensis.

Leaflets 4-many pairs in all or most of the leaves.

Plants annual herbs; legume transversely impressed between the

seeds . . . , C. uniflora.

Plants shrubs or trees; legume not impressed between the seeds.

Legume articulate between the seeds; petals 4 cm. long; leaflets

broadly obovate C. Skinneri.

Legume not articulate, the valves continuous; petals usually

smaller.

Flowers small, about 8 mm. long, in short many-flowered dense

racemes on much elongate peduncles C. guatemalensis.

Flowers larger, commonly 2 cm. long, in short-pedunculate

cymes or short few-flowered racemes.

Leaflets mostly 15-30 pairs, linear-oblong, sessile or nearly

so C. foliolosa.

Leaflets mostly 3-10 pairs, oblong or oval to obovate,

petiolulate.

Leaflets glabrous beneath or nearly so; legume 5-6 mm.

wide.

Leaflets 4-10 pairs C. biflora.

Leaflets 2-3 pairs C. Holwayana.

Leaflets copiously pilose or sericeous beneath.

Leaflets densely sericeous beneath, mostly oblong;

legume 5-6 mm. wide C. longirostrata.

Leaflets loosely pilose beneath, mostly obovate; legume

3.5-4 mm. wide C. xiphoidea.

Leaves eglandular.

Leaflets 2-5 pairs.

Branches unarmed.

Inflorescence short-racemose or subcorymbose, few-several-

flowered; leaflets obtuse or rounded at the apex.

C. emarginata.

Inflorescence long-racemose, many-flowered; leaflets acute or

acuminate C. xanthophylla.

Branches usually armed with stipular spines.

Leaflets oblong-elliptic, obtuse or rounded at the apex . . C. petensis.

Leaflets lanceolate, acuminate C. anisopetala.

Leaflets many pairs.

Leaflets glabrous or practically so.

Petals with conspicuous dark veins; leaflets aristate-mucronate.

C. nicaraguensis.

Petals not conspicuously veined; leaflets not mucronate or very

obscurely so C. siamea.

Leaflets copiously pubescent beneath.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 109

Leaflets broadly rounded or emarginate at the apex, not or very

obscurely mucronate C. reticulata.

Leaflets obtuse or subacute, aristate-mucronate . . C. didymobotrya.

Cassia Absus L. Sp. PI. 376. 1753. Grimaldia Absus Britt. &

Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 299. 1930. Moquillo.

Grassy slopes, 400-525 meters; Chiquimula (near Sasmo, north-

west of Chiquimula, Steyermark 30189); Santa Rosa; Escuintla.

Southern Mexico; West Indies; South America; Old World tropics.

Plants annual, erect, or sometimes more or less clambering, 75 cm. high or less,

sparsely branched, the stems densely viscid-pilose with long and short hairs;

stipules small, lanceolate; leaves slender-petiolate, the petiole eglandular; leaflets

4, elliptic to rounded-obovate, 2-3 cm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex,

glabrous above, paler beneath and puberulent or appressed-pilosulous; flowers

short-pedicellate, yellow, small, the petals 5-7 mm. long; stamens usually 5, some-

times 7; legume broadly linear, 2.5-4.5 cm. long, 4-6 mm. wide, compressed,

elastically 2-valvate, thinly setulose-pilose with very long, spreading hairs.

Cassia alata L. Sp. PL 378. 1753. Herpetica alata Raf. Sylva

Tell. 123. 1838. Barajo; Moco.

Moist or wet thickets, at or little above sea level; Izabal, and

probably also in other lowland regions. Southern Mexico; British

Honduras to Panama; West Indies; South America; Old World

tropics.

Usually a shrub of 1-2 meters but sometimes larger, the branches stout,

puberulent or glabrate; stipules lanceolate, attenuate, 1-2 cm. long; leaves large,

eglandular; leaflets 6-12 pairs, membranaceous, broadly oblong or oblong-obovate,

5-15 cm. long, 3-8 cm. wide, broadly rounded at the apex and base, sparsely

puberulent or glabrate; flowers yellow, in terminal or axillary racemes, these

usually as long as the leaves or longer and many-flowered, the pedicels short;

bracts ovate-orbicular, obtuse, 1-1.5 cm. long, caducous; sepals 1 cm. long; petals

unguiculate, 2 cm. long or less, conspicuously veined; stamens 10, 7 of them perfect,

the others reduced to staminodia; legume linear, chartaceous, straight, 10-15 cm.

long, 1.5 cm. broad, lustrous, longitudinally dehiscent, with 4 broad thin longi-

tudinal wings; seeds very numerous, transverse, compressed, brown, 5 mm. long.

Called "taratana" in Tabasco; "flor del secreto" (Yucatan).

The English name "ringworm shrub" is sometimes given to the plant,

an ointment prepared from the leaves being a popular remedy in

tropical America for ringworm and other cutaneous diseases. This

species seems to be rare in most regions of Central America. In

general appearance it is exactly like C. reticulata, but the pods of the

two species are, of course, very unlike.

Cassia anisopetala Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 37: 209. 1904.

Pseudocassia anisopetala Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 231. 1930.

110 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Wet thickets, 350 meters; Alta Verapaz, the type from Cubilgiiitz,

Tuerckheim 8194.

A shrub, the branches armed with short stout stipular spines, densely pubes-

cent; leaves eglandular; leaflets 4 or sometimes 2-3 pairs, lanceolate, 3-8 cm. long,

1-3 cm. wide, acuminate, cuneate at the base, glabrous and lustrous above, pubes-

cent beneath; flowers racemose, the racemes 4-20 cm. long, many-flowered, the

pedicels 5-6 mm. long; sepals oval or oblong, 5-9 mm. long; petals very unequal,

the largest 2 cm. long; perfect stamens 7, the anthers pilose; staminodia 3; ovary

glabrous.

We have seen no material of this species, but from description

it is close to C. petensis. Why Britton and Rose did not make another

new genus of these two species is hard to understand, for they cer-

tainly have little resemblance to C. spectabilis, type of their genus

Pseudocassia, and do have better characters for segregation than

many of their other genera.

Cassia bacillaris L. f. Suppl. PI. 231. 1781. Chamaefistula

bacillaris G. Don, Gen. Syst. 2: 451. 1832. Cassia fagifolia Bertol.

Fl. Guat. 414. 1840 (type from "Mar del Sur," Guatemala, Velas-

quez'). Chamaefistula fagifolia Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 235.

1930. Moco; Frijol de cabro.

Wet or moist thickets, often in second growth, frequently along

rocky stream banks, 1,000 meters or less; Pete*n; Alta Verapaz;

Izabal; Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Sacatepe"quez ;

Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu; probably in all the Pacific coast depart-

ments. Southern Mexico; British Honduras to Panama; West

Indies; South America.

A shrub of 5 meters or less, sparsely branched, usually rather weak and some-

times subscandent, the young branches generally puberulent, often glabrate;

stipules linear, caducous; leaf rachis bearing an oblong gland between the lower

leaflets; leaflets 4, membranaceous or thicker, usually broadly elliptic, sometimes

obovate, asymmetric, acute or short-acuminate, mostly 7-15 cm. long, glabrous

above or nearly so, pale beneath, sparsely or densely puberulent or pilosulous;

flowers buff, in short dense few-flowered racemes, these forming small or large

panicles at the ends of the usually flexuous or zigzag branches; sepals oval, rounded

at the apex, thin, 7-11 mm. long, appressed-pilosulous; petals about 2 cm. long,

thinly sericeous; perfect stamens 7; ovary densely appressed-pilose; legume sub-

terete, 10-25 cm. long, glabrous, 10-14 mm. thick, short-stipitate, many-seeded,

dehiscent along the lower suture or often rupturing irregularly, the interior with

abundant pulp.

A rather showy shrub, often abundant in second growth in wet

regions. Britton and Rose published from Central America numer-

ous segregates of the species, most of them of very doubtful validity,

none of which need be cited here. This and related species are often

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 111

infested with savage ants that gather in the inflorescences, apparently

to feed upon a viscid exudate from the branches. This species has

been reported from Guatemala as C. oxyphylla Kunth.

Cassia Bartlettii Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 11: 132. 1932.

British Honduras, open places, often in pine ridge, at or little

above sea level; type from El Cayo District, H. H. Bartlett 11649.

Plants erect, shrubby or at least suffrutescent, strict, 1.5 meters high or less,

much branched, the stems sparsely or densely pilose with spreading hairs, often

almost hidden by the stipules; stipules ovate-oblong, persistent, 10-14 mm. long,

acute, shallowly cordate at the base, multistriate, long-ciliate; leaves very numer-

ous, small, the petiole bearing a small depressed gland near the apex; leaflets 4,

cuneate-oblong or obovate-oblong, 1-2 cm. long, 5-7 mm. wide, somewhat oblique,

rounded at the apex, glabrous, ciliate, 4-5-nerved, often pale or glaucescent

beneath; peduncles axillary, 1-flowered, longer than the leaves; sepals glabrous,

thin, multistriate, long-acuminate, 14 mm. long or less; petals yellow, 1.5 cm. long;

legume oblong-linear, 4 cm. long, 7 mm. wide, compressed, elastically 2-valvate,

densely fulvous-hispid, about 12-seeded.

Cassia bicapsularis L. Sp. PI. 376. 1753. Adipera bicapsularis

Britt. & Rose ex Britt. & Wils. Sci. Surv. Porto Rico 5: 370. 1924.

Vainillo; Moco; Moco de gallo.

Moist thickets, sometimes in oak forest, often in second growth

or in waste ground, 1,500 meters or less; Pete"n; Chiquimula; Jalapa;

Santa Rosa; Quezaltenango; San Marcos. Mexico; British Hon-

duras to Panama; West Indies; South America.

Plants usually more or less woody, glabrous throughout or nearly so, erect or

sometimes weak and supported on other shrubs, with stems as much as 4.5 meters

long; stipules small, deciduous; leaves long-petiolate, the rachis bearing an oblong

gland between the leaflets of the lowest pair; leaflets 3-5 pairs, obovate, to broadly

oblong or suborbicular, 1-4 cm. long, rounded at the apex, pale beneath; flowers

yellow, racemose, the racemes axillary, mostly longer than the leaves, long-

pedunculate, the flowers numerous, crowded near the apex of the inflorescence;

bracts caducous; pedicels 3-8 mm. long; sepals oval, 8-12 mm. long, rounded at the

apex; petals 1-1.5 cm. long; anthers erostrate; ovary glabrous; legume short-

stipitate, terete, 8-15 cm. long, 1-1.5 cm. thick, glabrous, lustrous, tardily dehis-

cent along one suture, the valves brittle and thin, often rupturing irregularly;

seeds numerous, brown, lustrous, transverse, 5 mm. long, imbedded in abundant

pulp.

Sometimes called "wild currant" or "wood creeper" in British

Honduras; "alcaparrillo" (Yucatan); "cachimbo" (Tabasco); "moco

de giiegiiecho," "caragiiillo," "frijolillo," "moco de gallo," "moco

de chompipe" (Salvador). The pulp of the fruit is sweet and edible,

with a flavor somewhat resembling that of tamarind.

112 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Cassia biflora L. Sp. PL 378. 1753. Peiranisia biflora Pittier,

Arb. & Arb. Legum. 128. 1928. Ronron (Volcan de Pacaya; perhaps

an erroneous name); Moco; Barbasco (Huehuetenango) ; Flor

amarilla; Tzulcam or Tzulcdn (Huehuetenango).

Moist or dry thickets, often in second growth or waste ground,

sometimes in open oak forest, 500-2,400 meters; Zacapa; Chiqui-

mula; Jalapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Sacatepe'quez ;

Chimaltenango; Solola; Quiche"; Huehuetenango. Mexico; Honduras

and Salvador to Panama; West Indies; Colombia and Venezuela.

Usually a shrub of 1-3 meters but sometimes a tree of 10 meters, or occasion-

ally elongate and reclining on other shrubs, the branches pubescent or glabrous,

usually slender; stipules subulate or setaceous, small, deciduous; petiolar gland

subcylindric or clavate, inserted between the lowest leaflets; leaflets mostly 4-10

pairs, oblong to obovate, 1-3 cm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex, petiolulate;

peduncles mostly axillary, 1-3-flowered, sometimes clustered at the ends of the

branches, the pedicels slender, 1-2 cm. long; sepals obtuse or rounded at the apex,

4-8 mm. long; petals bright yellow, about 2 cm. long; legume linear, 6-15 cm. long,

5-6 mm. wide, compressed, bivalvate, glabrous or pubescent.

Known in Salvador as "carne asada," "caraguillo," "flor bar-

bona amarilla," and "brasilillo" ; "cacahuite," "comayagua" (Hon-

duras). One of the common weedy shrubs through much of Central

America, especially along the Pacific slope. Britton and Rose

published numerous segregates from Central America, of slight

taxonomic importance, but few of their names are connected with

Guatemalan material. The species is a variable one, it is true, but

it appears impossible to find satisfactory characters for separating

the more obvious forms, or at least they have not been found up to

the present time. In Huehuetanango this plant is said to be used

in conjunction with Tephrosia in infusion for bathing domestic

animals in order to destroy insect and other parasites.

Cassia cobanensis (Britton) Lundell, Phytologia 1: 214. 1937.

Vogelocassia cobanensis Britton in Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

259. 1930.

Type from Coban, Alta Verapaz, Tuerckheim 2056; known only

from the type.

Plants herbaceous, a meter high, hirsute; stipules 1-2 cm. long, persistent;

rachis bearing a narrow gland between the lowest leaflets; leaflets 3 pairs, obovate

or broadly oblong, 5 cm. long or shorter, acute, pubescent on both surfaces;

peduncles short, 1-3-flowered, the slender pedicels 3-4 cm. long; flowers yellow,

4.5-5 cm. broad, the sepals obtuse, 1 cm. long; perfect stamens 7; legume linear,

compressed, 6-9 cm. long, 4-5 mm. wide, falcate, attenuate to the base and apex;

seeds brown, turgid, 3.5-4 mm. long.

We have seen no material of this species.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 113

Cassia Deamii (Britt. & Rose) Lundell, Carnegie Inst. Wash.

Publ. 478: 212. 1937. Grimaldia Deamii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer.

Fl. 23: 300. 1930.

Dry rocky hillsides, 1,100 meters; Guatemala (type from Fiscal,

C. C. Deam 6109). Chiapas; British Honduras.

A shrub of 1-2 meters or sometimes a tree of 5 meters, much branched, the

slender branches pubescent and glandular, the older ones fuscous-brown; stipules

minute, lanceolate; petioles very slender, 2-4 cm. long, eglandular; leaflets 4,

obovate or oval, 1-2 cm. long, rounded or shallowly emarginate at the apex, green

and glabrous above, pilose or glabrate and paler beneath; flowers racemose, yellow,

the racemes few-flowered, lax, terminal, viscid-pilose, the pedicels 1-2.5 cm. long;

flower buds globose, rounded at the apex; sepals almost glabrous, obtuse, 8-9 mm.

long; petals 12-15 mm. long; legume linear-oblong, 2.5-3.5 cm. long, 5-7 mm. wide,

flat, elastically 2-valvate, rather densely pilose and short-setulose, about 5-seeded.

Cassia didymobotrya Fresen. Flora 22: 53. 1839. Moco de

chiltote (fide Aguilar).

Native of tropical Africa; planted for ornament in various parts

of Guatemala, and occasionally seen half wild, perhaps about the

sites of former dwellings.

A tall shrub, in habit and general appearance similar to C. reticulata, the

branches puberulent; stipules large, green, persistent, cordate-ovate, acuminate;

leaves eglandular; leaflets 7-15 pairs, broadly oblong, 2-3.5 cm. long, obtuse and

aristate, pilosulous, especially beneath; flowers large, pale yellow, the racemes

longer than the leaves, many-flowered, long-pedunculate, the bracts ovate, green,

caducous, the flowers short-pedicellate; sepals puberulent; petals pale yellow, with

conspicuous dark veins; legume linear, short-pilose, flat, bivalvate.

Resembling C. reticulata in appearance, this species has much

paler flowers. It is grown also in Costa Rica. In Guatemala it is

frequent about the capital as well as in the cemetery and gardens of

Tactic and in other parts of Alta Verapaz.

Cassia diphylla L. Sp. PI. 376. 1753. Chamaecrista diphylla

Greene, Pittonia 4: 28. 1899.

Grassy savannas or hillsides, sometimes in pine forest or along

sandy or rocky stream beds, 700 meters or less; Alta Verapaz;

Izabal ; Escuintla ; San Marcos. Southern Mexico ; British Honduras ;

Nicaragua; Panama; southward to Brazil; West Indies.

Plants herbaceous or suffrutescent, annual, erect or ascending, sparsely

branched, glabrous or nearly so; stipules lanceolate, cordate at the base, 5-20 mm.

long, striate-nerved, acuminate, longer than the petioles, appressed to the stem;

petiolar glands 1-2, sessile or stipitate; leaflets 2, obliquely obovate, 1-3 cm. long,

palmate-nerved, rounded at the apex, glabrous; peduncles stiff, longer than the

114 FIELD IANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

leaves; sepals finely many-nerved, scarious, 6-10 mm. long, obtuse and apiculate

or acuminate; petals yellow, equaling the sepals; legume linear, 3-6 cm. long, 3-6

mm. wide, pilose with long spreading hairs.

Called "hierba de ciempieV' in Salvador. A typical savanna

plant.

Cassia emarginata L. Sp. PI. 376. 1753. C. atomaria L. Mant.

PI. 68. 1767. C. emarginata var. subunijuga Rob. & Bartl. Proc.

Amer. Acad. 43: 53. 1907 (type from Gualan, Zacapa, C. C. Deam

220). Vainillo; Vainilldn (fide Aguilar).

Dry, brushy or thinly forested hillsides or canyons, 180-1,400

meters; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Zacapa; Chiquimula; El Progreso;

Guatemala; Huehuetenango. Mexico; British Honduras to Costa

Rica; West Indies; Colombia and Venezuela.

A shrub or tree of 2-12 meters, the crown low, spreading, the trunk often

branched from the base, the bark gray or brownish, the branchlets densely pilo-

sulous or tomentose; stipules small, setaceous; leaves eglandular; leaflets 1-5 pairs,

broadly oblong to suborbicular, 2-10 cm. long, rounded or obtuse at the apex,

often emarginate, obtuse or rounded at the base, puberulent or glabrate above,

pale beneath, densely velutinous-pilosulous or tomentose; racemes shorter than

the leaves, axillary, few-flowered, the pedicels long and slender, unequal; sepals

5-7 mm. long, sparsely pubescent, rounded at the apex; petals yellow, 2-3 times

as long as the petals, glabrous or sparsely pilose; perfect stamens 7; legume linear,

15-35 cm. long, 8-12 mm. wide, straight, compressed but thick, coriaceous,

indehiscent, glabrous or glabrate, many-seeded.

Called "barba de jolote" in British Honduras; "arguchoco"

(Salvador); "xtuab," "xtuhabin" (Yucatan, Maya). The sapwood

is yellow, the heartwood dark brown and hard. The shrub is a

characteristic species of the dry, thinly wooded hillsides of the lower

Motagua Valley, especially in El Progreso, and it occurs in a few

other regions but in less abundance. In the Gualan region it is

popularly believed that if horses and mules eat the pods, the hair

of their tails falls out. The foliage has a rather strong and unpleasant

odor. In Yucatan it is sniffed to stop nose bleed. C. emarginata

var. subunijuga is a minor form in which most of the leaves have a

single pair of leaflets.

Cassia fistula L. Sp. PI. 377. 1753. Canafistula.

A native of tropical Asia, rarely cultivated as a shade tree in

Guatemala, as at El Rancho. Planted frequently in some parts of

tropical America, particularly in the West Indies, but infrequent in

Central America.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 115

An almost or quite glabrous tree, sometimes 20 meters high, generally with

open branching; stipules linear-lanceolate, small, fugacious; leaves large, long-

petiolate, the leaflets 4-8 pairs, long-petiolulate, rather thick and firm, ovate to

oblong-ovate or ovate-lanceolate, 7-20 cm. long, acute or short-acuminate, obtuse

at the base, glabrous, bright green and often lustrous above, slightly paler beneath;

racemes slender, pendent, lax, many-flowered, 25-75 cm. long, the slender pedicels

2-5 cm. long; sepals oval or oblong, puberulent, 6-10 mm. long; petals pale yellow

or bright yellow, 2-3 cm. long; legume cylindric, dark brown or blackish, commonly

about 50 cm. long and 2 cm. thick, indehiscent, pulpy within about the compressed

horizontal seeds.

In some regions the pulp of the fruit is much used in domestic

medicine because of its laxative properties. The tree is a handsome

and ornamental one, but it is rarely seen in Central America.

Cassia flexuosa L. Sp. PL 379. 1753. Chamaecrista flexuosa

Greene, Pittonia 4: 27. 1899.

Open rocky slopes or moist or wet savannas, 1,000 meters or less;

Pete"n; Jutiapa; Quiche". Southern Mexico; British Honduras;

Salvador; Panama; Cuba; South America.

Plants perennial, erect from a woody root, glabrous, puberulent, or densely

short-pilose, erect or ascending, the stems stiff, slender, conspicuously zigzag or

flexuous, mostly 50 cm. long or less; stipules ovate-cordate, acute or acuminate,

thick, striate-nerved, 5-15 mm. long; petiole bearing 1-2 sessile orbicular glands;

leaflets 15-50 pairs, oblong-linear, coriaceous, glabrous or pubescent, obtuse or

acute, 2-4-nerved, 4-8 mm. long; peduncles 1-2.5 cm. long; sepals membranaceous,

glabrous or pubescent, acute, 8-10 mm. long; larger petals 14-17 mm. long, yellow;

legume linear, 3-6 cm. long, 5 mm. wide, glabrous or finely pubescent, many-

seeded.

The Maya name of Yucatan is recorded as "buulchich."

Cassia foliolosa Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 27: 544. 1871 (type

from some unspecified locality in Guatemala, Skinner).

Dry or moist thickets, sometimes at the edge of forest or in

thinly wooded barrancos, often in rocky places, 1,100-2,400 meters;

endemic; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Guatemala; Chi-

maltenango.

A shrub or small tree of 1-5 meters, sparsely branched, the branches slender,

puberulent on the young branchlets, elsewhere glabrous or nearly so; leaflets

20-30 pairs, linear-oblong, 8-12 mm. long, about 3 mm. wide, green above, pale

beneath; petiole bearing a gland between the lowest leaflets; peduncles axillary,

2-flowered; sepals oval or suborbicular, 1 cm. long, glabrous or nearly so; petals yel-

low, 2 cm. long; 3 lower anthers larger than the others, rostrate; ovary appressed-

pilose; legume linear, flat, about 9 cm. long and 5 mm. wide, slightly falcate,

appressed-pilosulous, stipitate.

116 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Cassia grandis L. f. Suppl. PL 230. 1781. Caragua;Bucut,Bocot

(Pete"n, Maya, fide Lundell); Canafistula (Pete*n); Mucut (Pete"n,

Maya) ; Carao.

Open, brushy or forested hillsides or on thinly forested plains,

often about dwellings or along roadsides and in pastures, 900 meters

or less; Pete"n; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Suchitepe"quez;

Retalhuleu; probably in all the Pacific coast departments as well as

elsewhere in the Oriente. Southern Mexico; British Honduras to

Salvador and Panama; West Indies; northern South America.

A large tree, sometimes 30 meters high or more, the crown rounded or spread-

ing, the trunk sometimes a meter in diameter, the bark chocolate-brown, scaly,

the young branchlets densely pilosulous; stipules very small, linear, deciduous;

leaves short-petiolate, eglandular; leaflets 8-20 pairs, oblong, short-petiolulate,

3-5 cm. long, rounded or very obtuse at each end, lustrous above, puberulent or

glabrate, paler beneath and puberulent; flowers pink or white, racemose, usually

appearing when the tree is leafless or nearly so, the racemes 10-20 cm. long, the

flowers slender-pedicellate; sepals broad, 6-8 mm. long, rounded at the apex,

whitish-tomentulose; petals 1 cm. long, glabrous; stamens 10, the anthers of the 3

lower stamens longer than the others; legume ligneous, terete, blackish, indehiscent,

30-80 cm. long, 2-2.5 cm. thick, septate within; seeds transverse, compressed.

Known in British Honduras as "stinking-toe" and "beef-feed."

The wood is brownish yellow, rather hard and heavy, coarse-

textured ; not durable. It is utilized for fuel and minor construction

purposes. When in flower, this is one of the handsome trees of

Central America, especially along the Pacific lowlands, reminding

one of apple trees, by both the form of the tree and the coloring of

the blossoms. The ashes of the wood are employed in soap-making.

The pulp of the pods is edible but has purgative properties. An

ointment made from lard and the crushed leaves is employed com-

monly in treating cutaneous diseases, especially mange and other

skin affections in dogs. It is probably this species that -has been

reported from Pete"n as C. moschata HBK., a species that apparently

does not extend to northern Central America.

Cassia guatemalensis Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 23: 6. 1897.

Cassia Caeciliae Harms, Bull. Herb. Boiss. 7: 549. 1899 (type from

Todos Santos, Huehuetenango, C. & E. Seler 3172). Peiranisia

guatemalensis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 266. 1930. Barajito.

Exposed hillsides or in wet upland thickets, often in Cupressus

forest, sometimes on white-sand slopes, 1,650-2,700 meters; Jalapa;

Jutiapa; Santa Rosa (type from Buena Vista, Heyde & Lux 4176);

Chimaltenango; Huehuetenango; Quezaltenango; San Marcos.

Costa Rica.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 117

A shrub or tree of 2.5-6 meters, sparsely branched, the branchlets stout,

densely velutinous-pilose; stipules linear, 6 mm. long; leaves large, the rachis

bearing a gland between the lowest leaflets; leaflets 4-8 pairs, thick, oblong, 3-5

cm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex, appressed-pilose on the margins and on

the costa beneath; flowers small, pale yellow, racemose, slender-pedicellate,

numerous, mostly crowded near the end of the long peduncle; sepals suborbicular,

4-6 mm. long; petals 6-8 mm. long, with conspicuous dark veins; anthers not

rostrate; legume flat, 2-valvate, straight or slightly curved, about 8 cm. long and

12 mm. wide, sparsely pilose or glabrate.

The shrub is frequent in some of the high mountain regions of

central and western Guatemala, in appearance very unlike any other

local species of the genus, especially because of its unusually small

flowers.

Cassia hispidula Vahl, Eclog. 3 : 10. 1807. Grimaldia hispidula

Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 299. 1930. Moco.

Dry, open, usually rocky slopes, frequently in pine forest, 200-

1,600 meters; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Quiche"; Huehuetenango. South-

ern Mexico; Salvador; Costa Rica; Cuba; northern South America.

Plants perennial, herbaceous from a woody root, the stems often much

branched, decumbent, slender, 75 cm. long or less, viscid-puberulent and setulose-

pilose with long spreading hairs; petioles longer than the leaflets, slender, eglandu-

lar; leaflets 4, orbicular to elliptic, 1-2 cm. long, rounded or very obtuse at the

apex, glabrous; flowers yellow, chiefly in short few-flowered terminal racemes, the

pedicels long and slender; sepals green, acute, viscid-pilose, 8-10 mm. long; petals

1.5-2 cm. long; stamens 10; legume compressed and flat, elastically 2-valvate,

3-5 cm. long, 5-7 mm. wide, setulose-hirsute with very long, spreading hairs;

seeds few, oblong, black, 5 mm. long.

Known in Salvador and Costa Rica (probably also in Guatemala)

as "nahuapate," and used medicinally. The name, of Nahuatl

origin, is a curious one, signifying, presumably, "Mexican medicine."

Cassia Holwayana Rose, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 8: 301. 1905.

C. multiflora Mart. & Gal. Bull. Acad. Brux. 10, pt. 2: 307. 1843, not

C. multiflora Vog. 1837.

Dry, brushy, or moist, often rocky hillsides, 650 meters or less;

Zacapa; Chiquimula. Southern Mexico.

A slender shrub 1-4 meters high, glabrous throughout; stipules linear, cadu-

cous; leaflets 2-3 pairs, rounded-obovate to broadly oblong, 2-4.5 cm. long,

rounded at the apex, paler beneath; petiole with an elongate gland between the

lowest leaflets; peduncles axillary, solitary or clustered, mostly 2-flowered, the

slender pedicels 1.5-2 cm. long; flowers yellow, 4-5 cm. broad; sepals oval or

orbicular, glabrous, sometimes ciliate, 5-9 mm. long; ovary densely appressed-

pilose; legume linear, flat, 8-12 cm. long, 4 mm. wide, sparsely pubescent or almost

glabrous, 2-valvate.

118 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Cassia indecora HBK. Nov. Gen. & Sp. 6: 344. 1824. Adipera in-

decora Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 239. 1930. Moco de chompipe.

Moist or dry, often rocky, brushy hillsides, sometimes in oak

forest, 250-1,300 meters; Zacapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Guatemala.

Mexico; southward to Panama; West Indies; South America.

A shrub or small tree, sometimes 5 meters high, occasionally somewhat

scandent, the stems short-pilose or glabrate; petiole bearing a gland below the

lowest leaflets; leaflets 3-5 pairs, rather fleshy and thick, oblong to obovate,

1.5-4.5 cm. long, rounded at the apex, glabrous above or nearly so, sparsely or

densely pilose beneath; flowers deep yellow, racemose, the racemes equaling or

longer than the leaves, few-many-flowered, the bracts linear, green, the pedicels

6-10 mm. long; sepals broad, 1 cm. long or shorter, rounded at the apex, sparsely

pilose or almost glabrous; petals about 1.5 cm. long, glabrous; 3 of the anthers

conspicuously rostrate; ovary densely pilose; legume subterete, 8-15 cm. long,

1 cm. thick, glabrate, tardily if at all dehiscent, the valves thin, fragile; seeds

numerous, surrounded by pulp, transverse, compressed.

Cassia javanica L., a native of tropical Asia, is in cultivation at

Finca Moca in Solola. It is a small or medium-sized tree, the leaves

almost glabrous, with 6-12 pairs of large, glabrous, ovate to oval,

very obtuse leaflets and with umbelliform inflorescences of large

pink flowers. The cylindric fruits are 30-60 cm. long. The tree is

apparently very rare in cultivation in tropical America.

Cassia Killipii Rose in Standl. Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 17:

167. 1927. Grimaldia Killipii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 301.

1930.

Open savannas or in rocky places, British Honduras, at or little

above sea level; Panama.

Plants perennial, prostrate, much branched, the stems a meter long or shorter,

densely short-pilose and with long slender spreading viscid hairs; stipules minute;

leaves slender-petiolate, the petiole eglandular; leaflets 4, orbicular to elliptic,

5-15 mm. long, rounded or very obtuse at the apex, glabrous above, pubescent

beneath; flowers deep orange, solitary in the leaf axils or in few-flowered terminal

racemes, the buds rounded at the apex; sepals sparsely or densely hirsute, 8-9

mm. long, rounded at the apex; petals 11-13 mm. long; stamens 10; legume about

2.5 cm. long and 5 mm. wide, densely long-hirsute.

Cassia laevigata Willd. Sp. PI. 441. 1809. Adipera laevigata

Britt. & Rose ex Britt. & Wils. Sci. Surv. Porto Rico 5: 371. 1924.

Frijolillo; Moco.

Moist or wet thickets or hedgerows, sometimes a weed in waste

ground, often in second growth, sometimes in moist forest, 2,300

meters or less; Alta Verapaz; Baja Verapaz; Izabal; Guatemala;

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 119

Chimaltenango; Suchitepe*quez; Retalhuleu; San Marcos; Huehue-

tenango. Mexico; Salvador; Costa Rica; Greater Antilles; South

America; naturalized in the Old World tropics.

A shrub or small tree, sometimes almost wholly herbaceous, 6 meters high or

less, glabrous throughout; stipules linear, 5-8 mm. long, caducous; glands usually

borne on the rachis between each pair of leaflets; leaflets 3-4 pairs, thin, bright

green, ovate to oblong-elliptic, 3-8 cm. long, long-acuminate; racemes axillary

and terminal, short and rather dense, long-pedunculate, mostly shorter than the

leaves, the bracts linear-lanceolate, deciduous, the pedicels 5-15 mm. long; sepals

suborbicular, rounded at the apex, 6-10 mm. long; petals yellow, 1.5-2 cm. long,

glabrous; 4 of the stamens with short filaments and straight anthers, 3 with long

filaments and curved erostrate anthers; legume short-stipitate, sub terete, 6-9 cm.

long, 1 cm. thick, rounded and short-rostrate at the apex, only tardily if at all

dehiscent, glabrous, the valves thin, brittle; seeds numerous, transverse, sur-

rounded by pulp, compressed, lustrous, 4-5 mm. long.

The seeds of this plant sometimes are used in Guatemala and

other parts of Central America as a substitute for coffee.

Cassia leiophylla Vogel, Syn. Cass. 25. 1837. Vogelocassia

leiophylla Britton in Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 259. 1930.

Cola de gallo; Frijolillo.

Dry to wet thickets, sometimes in rocky stream beds, often a

weed in waste ground or second growth, 1,400 meters or less; Alta

Verapaz; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala;

Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu; San Marcos. Southern Mexico; British

Honduras to Salvador and Panama; South America.

Plants herbaceous or suffrutescent at the .base, erect to prostrate, most often

procumbent, the stems a meter long or less, pilosulous or glabrate; stipules per-

sistent, 12-16 mm. long; petiolar gland inserted between the lowest leaflets;

leaflets 3 pairs, obovate or obovate-oblong, 2-6 cm. long, thin, obtuse or rounded

at the apex, mucronate, pilosulous on both surfaces with spreading or subappressed

hairs; peduncles axillary or forming small terminal panicles, mostly 2-flowered,

the slender pedicels 2-5 cm. long; sepals very unequal, 8 mm. long or less, rounded

at the apex, green, sparsely puberulent or almost glabrous; petals deep yellow,

1.5-2 cm. long, sparsely strigillose or almost glabrous; 3 lower anthers conspicu-

ously rostrate; legume linear, falcate, 10-12 cm. long, 3-6 mm. wide, compressed,

puberulent or glabrate, 2-valvate; seeds numerous, transverse, turgid, 3-3.5 mm.

long.

Called "frijolillo" in Salvador; "hormiguera" (Campeche). The

last name refers to the fact that the plants, like those of other species,

are much frequented by ants.

Cassia leptocarpa Benth. Linnaea 22: 528. 1849. C. leptocarpa

var. hirsuta Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 27: 531. 1871. Ditremexa

120 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

leptocarpa Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 256. 1930. Hediondilla;

Kenkichoj (Coban, Quecchi); Frijolin macho (Pete"n); Moquito;

Frijolillo.

Dry or wet thickets, often in waste or cultivated ground, 1,600

meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Baja Verapaz; Jalapa; Jutiapa;

Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Suchitepe*quez ; Retalhuleu;

doubtless in all the lowland areas. Southern Mexico ; Honduras and

Salvador to Costa Rica; Cuba; South America.

A coarse erect herb, a meter high or less, sometimes suffrutescent at the base,

the stems pilose or glabrate; stipules linear, 6-9 mm. long, caducous; petiole

bearing a large gland near its base; leaflets 4-7 pairs, membranaceous, ovate to

elliptic, acuminate, 4-10 cm. long, usually abundantly pilose on both surfaces,

sometimes glabrous; flowers yellow, racemose, the racemes axillary and terminal,

with few or numerous flowers, the pedicels 1-3 cm. long; sepals elliptic to rounded,

6-8 mm. long, the outer ones pilose or glabrous; petals twice as long as the sepals;

legume linear, turgid, 10-30 cm. long, 3-5 mm. thick, pilose or glabrous; seeds

very numerous, transverse.

Known in Salvador, and probably also in Guatemala, as "fri-

jolillo"; "zalche" (Yucatan, Maya). The name "hediondilla" refers

to the fact that the crushed plant has an unpleasant odor. The

Guatemalan material is referable to C. leptocarpa var. hirsuta Benth.

It has been reported from the region as C. hirsuta L., a different

species.

Cassia longirostrata (Britt. & Rose) Lundell, Phytologia 1:

214. 1937. Peiranisia longirostrata Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

264. 1930.

Thickets or mixed forest, sometimes in open oak forest, 1,300-

1,800 meters; endemic; Sacatepe"quez; Solola (type from Solola, E.

W. D. Holway 134); Huehuetenango; Baja Verapaz; Quezaltenango.

A shrub of 1-2 meters, sometimes weak and reclining, the branches rather

densely short-pilose; stipules filiform, 8-12 mm. long, caducous; petiole bearing

a small gland between the lowest leaflets; leaflets 6-10 pairs, oblong or oblong-

obovate, 1-2 cm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex, green above, sparsely short-

pilose, pale beneath, densely sericeous or sometimes only sparsely short-pilose;

flowers large, yellow, mostly on 2-flowered peduncles, these sometimes forming

terminal panicles, the pedicels slender, villous; sepals orbicular, 6-8 mm. long,

glabrous or the outer ones sparsely pilose; petals 1.5 cm. long; anthers of the 2-3

longer stamens slender-rostrate; ovary densely lanate; legume linear, 8-12 cm.

long, 5-6 mm. wide, stipitate, flat, 2-valvate, lustrous, pilosulous or glabrate;

seeds numerous, transverse.

Cassia mayana Lundell, Phytologia 1: 215. 1937. Chamae-

crista Tonduzii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 290. 1930, not Cassia

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 121

Tonduzii Standl. 1919 (type from Guatemala without definite

locality, A. Tonduz 649). Kenke (Coban, Quecchi).

Brushy slopes or plains, often in open fields, frequently a weed

in waste ground, sometimes in pine-oak forest, 2,000 meters or less;

Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Santa Rosa; Escuintla;

Huehuetenango.

Plants annual but sometimes persisting, erect or procumbent, simple or

branched, herbaceous or suffrutescent at the base, 75 cm. high or less, the stems

usually densely pilose with spreading hairs; stipules lanceolate, 4-7 mm. long;

leaves small, the petiolar gland short-stipitate; leaflets 10-16 pairs, linear-oblong,

8-12 mm. long, rounded and aristate at the apex, glabrate above, pilose beneath

with long appressed hairs, the costa almost central; peduncles axillary, 1 cm. long

or shorter; sepals lanceolate, acuminate, appressed-pilose, 7-8 mm. long; petals

yellow, 9-11 mm. long; legume linear, 4-5 cm. long or often shorter, 4 mm. wide,

pilose with short subappressed hairs, flat, elastically 2-valvate.

Cassia nicaraguensis Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 27: 552. 1871.

C. Seleriana Harms, Bull. Herb. Boiss. 7: 551. 1899. Chamaesenna

nicaraguensis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 250. 1930. Vainillo;

Cotorrdn; Barajo; Flor de San Miguelito (Jutiapa).

Brushy, often rocky slopes or plains, 2,300 meters or less; Izabal;

Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Guatemala;

Quich^ ; Huehuetenango. Southern Mexico; Salvador to Panama.

A shrub or small tree of 2-5 meters, glabrous throughout; stipules foliaceous,

large, semicordate, acuminate, deciduous, sometimes 2.5 cm. long; leaves large,

eglandular; leaflets mostly 10-20 pairs, oblong, chartaceous, 4-8 cm. long, 1.5-2.5

cm. wide, obtuse or rounded at the apex and long-mucronate, slightly paler

beneath; flowers large, racemose, the racemes arising from the upper leaf axils,

many-flowered, equaling or longer than the leaves, the bracts oblong to obovate,

1-1.5 cm. long, buff, caducous; sepals buff, oval, rounded at the apex, 1-1.5 cm.

long; petals yellow or sulphur-yellow, 2-2.5 cm. long, with conspicuous, dark,

closely reticulate venation; legume linear, compressed, 7-12 cm. long, 1-1.5 cm.

wide, lustrous, 2-valvate, elevated over the small seeds.

The shrub is a showy and handsome one, well worthy of culti-

vation.

Cassia occidentalis L. Sp. PI. 377. 1753. Ditremexa occidentalis

Britt. & Rose ex Britt. & Wils. Sci. Surv. Porto Rico 5: 372. 1924.

Moquillo; Frijolillo.

A weedy plant, common in dry to wet fields and thickets, some-

times along sandbars or in cultivated or waste ground, 1,400 meters

or less, most frequent at low elevations; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Izabal;

Zacapa; Chiquimula; El Progreso; Jutiapa; Escuintla; Guatemala;

122 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Retalhuleu. Southern United States; Mexico; British Honduras to

Salvador and Panama; West Indies; South America; naturalized in

the Old World tropics.

An erect annual, commonly a meter high or lower, stout, branched, sometimes

somewhat suffrutescent at the base, glabrous or nearly so; stipules linear-lanceolate,

4-6 mm. long, caducous; leaves long-petiolate, the petiole bearing a large sessile

globose gland near the base; leaflets 4-6 pairs, ovate to lance-ovate, 3-7 cm. long,

acute or acuminate; flowers yellow, racemose, the racemes axillary, lax, few-

flowered, the bracts lanceolate, caducous; sepals 6-9 mm. long; petals twice as

long as the sepals; perfect stamens 7, the anthers erostrate; legume linear, com-

pressed, 6-12 cm. long, 6-9 mm. wide, straight or falcate, almost sessile, many-

seeded, 2-valvate, the margins thickened; seeds compressed, brown, dull, trans-

verse, 4 mm. long.

Called "yama bush" in British Honduras; "frijolillo negro"

(Salvador). Like some other species of the genus, the plant has a

disagreeable odor when crushed. The pulverized seeds are said to

be much used in the North Coast as well as in other parts of Guate-

mala and Central America as a substitute for coffee. It may seem

strange that substitutes for coffee should be used in a country where

so much coffee is grown, but the fact is that many persons are too

poor to buy coffee, despite its low price. In some regions an oint-

ment prepared from the leaves is applied as a remedy for ringworm

and other affections of the skin.

Cassia pentagonia Mill. Gard. Diet. ed. 8. no. 18. 1768.

Frijolillo bianco.

Dry or moist thickets, open oak forest, or sometimes in marshes

about lakes, 500-1,650 meters; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Guatemala.

Originally described from Campeche; Minas Geraes, Brazil.

A stout erect branched annual, a meter high or less, glabrous throughout or

nearly so; petiole bearing an elongate gland below the lowest leaflets; leaflets 3

pairs, cuneate-obovate, 2-3.5 cm. long, rounded and mucronate at the apex;

peduncles axillary, solitary or fasciculate, short, 1-flowered; sepals oval, 6-7 mm.

long; petals yellow, little longer than the sepals; legume linear, 5-10 cm. long, about

1 cm. broad (including the wings), stipitate, contracted and long-rostrate at the

apex, the seeds oblique, the valves broadly winged on the margins.

Strangely enough, this was reduced by Britton and Rose to

synonymy under Emelista Tora, to which it bears but scant resem-

blance. If they had examined material of the species, undoubtedly

they would have made it the type of another of the new genera with

which they were so prodigal in treating Cassia for North American

Flora. In Guatemala the plant is local, but often plentiful in the

few localities where it has been observed. It grows mostly in the

more arid regions and soon withers after the rains cease.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 123

Cassia petensis (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Carnegie Inst. Wash.

Publ. 461: 61. 1935. Pseudocassia petensis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer.

Fl. 23: 231. 1930. Canchinaic (Pete'n, Maya).

Secondary upland forest, 300 meters or less; Pete'n (type from

Pete'n, 0. F. Cook & R. D. Martin 193). British Honduras.

A more or less scandent shrub, the branches armed with short stout recurved

stipular spines, the young branchlets stout, sordid-pilosulous; leaves eglandular,

small; leaflets 2-3 pairs, elliptic-oblong, mostly 3.5-5 cm. long, 1-2.5 cm. wide,

obtuse or rounded at the apex, green above and sparsely pilosulous or puberulent,

densely and softly pilose beneath; flowers yellow, racemose, clustered near the

ends of short branchlets, the slender pedicels 5-10 mm. long; sepals oval to sub-

orbicular, 5-6 mm. long, sparsely pilose or glabrous; petals twice as long as the

sepals; anthers short-pilose; legume compressed but thick, about 30 cm. long and

1.5 cm. wide, subsessile, blackish, glabrous, the seeds numerous, transverse.

Cassia pilifera Vogel, Syn. Cass. 23. 1837. Emelista pilifera

Pittier, Journ. Wash. Acad. Sci. 19: 176. 1929.

Moist or dry thickets, about 325 meters; Santa Rosa (Chiqui-

mulilla). Southern Mexico, southward to Panama; Cuba; South

America.

Plants usually herbaceous and probably annual, erect or usually procumbent,

slender, a meter long or less, the stems pilose with long spreading hairs; glands

present on the rachis between the leaflets, these 2 pairs, mostly obovate or rhombic,

thin, 2-7 cm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex, minutely pilosulous above, paler

beneath, sparsely pilosulous; peduncles axillary, 1-2-flowered, usually shorter

than the leaves; sepals unequal, broad, rounded at the apex, green, 6-10 mm. long,

sparsely pilose; petals pale yellow, 1-2 cm. long; legume linear, compressed, 8-16

cm. long, 2-3 mm. wide, 2-valvate, long-rostrate, almost sessile, subfalcate; seeds

numerous, longitudinal.

Easily recognized by the very long and abundant hairs of the

stems, petioles, and peduncles.

Cassia pilosa L. Syst. ed. 10. 1017. 1759. Chamaecrista macro-

poda Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 17: 431. 1914 (type from Cerro

Redondo, Santa Rosa, Heyde & Lux 6133). Chamaecrista pilosa

Greene, Pittonia 4: 28. 1899. Cassia macropoda Standl. Field Mus.

Bot. 4: 213. 1929.

Dry or moist, open places, sometimes on sandbars along streams,

1,400 meters or less; Santa Rosa; San Marcos. Chiapas; Salvador;

Jamaica and Cuba; Colombia and Venezuela.

Plants herbaceous, sparsely branched, erect or procumbent, mostly 50 cm.

long or less, the stems densely pilose with spreading white hairs and also appressed-

pilosulous; stipules ovate-lanceolate, 6-13 mm. long, long-acuminate, striate-

nerved, ciliate, subcordate; petiolar gland small, short-stipitate, sometimes none;

124 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

leaflets mostly 4-5 pairs, oblong or oblong-obovate, 5-25 mm. long, 3-7 mm. wide,

rounded at the apex and mucronate, ciliate, glabrous or sparsely pilose, with con-

spicuous elevated nerves, the costa excentric; peduncles filiform, mostly longer

than the leaves; sepals lanceolate, 4-5 mm. long, sparsely pilose or glabrous; petals

yellow, 5-7 mm. long; legume oblong-linear, 2-4 cm. long, 3-4 mm. wide, elastically

2-valvate, rounded and apiculate at the apex, sparsely appressed-pubescent or

glabrate, with numerous seeds.

This has been reported from Guatemala as Cassia grammica

Spreng.

Cassia reticulata Willd. Enum. PI. 443. 1809. Chamaesenna

reticulata Pittier, Arb. & Arb. Legum. 130. 1928. Barajo; Sambran

prieto.

Moist or wet thickets, most plentiful along sandy or rocky stream

beds, sometimes planted about dwellings, 800 meters or less; Alta

Verapaz; Izabal; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala;

Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu; San Marcos. British Honduras to

Salvador and Panama; South America.

A shrub or small tree, generally 2-6 meters high, the branches thick, densely

short-pilose when young; stipules lanceolate, 1 cm. long or less, usually persistent;

leaves large, eglandular; leaflets 8-12 pairs, broadly oblong or the upper ones

broadly obovate to suborbicular, 7-10 cm. long, 2.5-5 cm. wide or even wider,

rounded and often retuse at the apex, glabrate above, densely soft-pilose beneath;

flowers racemose, the racemes axillary, often equaling the leaves, the bracts very

large, obtuse, orange, caducous; pedicels 4-5 mm. long; sepals broad, rounded at

the apex, minutely puberulent; petals bright yellow, 1.5 cm. long, with dark

reticulate venation; legume linear, 7-15 cm. long, 12-15 mm. wide, flat, 2-valvate,

short-stipitate, obtuse and short-rostrate, very lustrous, glabrous or sparsely

pubescent; seeds linear, transverse, numerous.

The Maya name of Yucatan is reported as "yaaxhabin." The

trunk sometimes is supported by prop roots similar to those of

maize. The shrub is abundant in the lowlands of the North Coast

as well as on the Pacific plains, often springing up abundantly on

cleared land and forming dense stands of great extent. It sometimes

forms dense thickets along stream beds or about the margins of

lakes, growing at times in shallow water. It is very showy and note-

worthy for the contrast in color of the bright yellow petals and the

orange sepals and bracts. The leaves droop and fold together in the

evening, and the name "barajo" is given the plant because at this

time the folded leaflets vaguely suggest a baraja (deck of cards).

Nearly always the branches and inflorescence are infested by small

ants that bite severely. The plant is reported, and doubtless cor-

rectly, to have purgative properties, a characteristic of many species

of Cassia.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 125

Cassia Rosei Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 11: 159. 1936. Grimaldia

con/usa Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 300. 1930, not Cassia confusa

Phil., 1893. Nahuapate.

Dry rocky slopes, sometimes in pine forest, 850-1,400 meters;

Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Quiche^ Oaxaca and Chiapas.

Plants perennial, erect or prostrate, from a thick woody root, the stems 60 cm.

long or less, viscid-pilose with short or rather long hairs; stipules minute; petiole

eglandular; leaflets 4, orbicular to elliptic or obovate, 1-2 cm. long, obtuse or

rounded at the apex, more or less pubescent and viscid on both surfaces; flowers

yellow, in terminal few-flowered lax racemes, the slender pedicels 1-1.5 cm. long;

flower buds pointed; sepals viscid-pilose, acute, 8-10 mm. long; petals 1-1.5 cm.

long; legume linear-oblong, 4-5 cm. long, 5-8 mm. wide, setulose-hirsute, com-

pressed and flat, elastically 2-valvate.

Like other related species of the subgenus Grimaldia, this plant

is used in domestic medicine.

Cassia Seleri (Rose) Lundell, Phytologia 1 : 215. 1937. Chamae-

crista Seleri Rose in Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 287. 1930.

Palomilla amarilla; Savilla.

Dry or moist, brushy or open slopes or plains, sometimes a weed

in cultivated fields, often in pine forest, 2,100 meters or less; Zacapa;

Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala (type from Barranco de las

Vacas, Salida de Isabel, Guatemala, C. & E. Seler 2286) ; Sacate-

pe"quez; Chimaltenango; Solola; Quezaltenango; Huehuetenango.

Plants essentially annual, usually erect, a meter high or less, sometimes

persistent for more than one season and becoming suffrutescent near the base,

sparsely branched, the stems pilose or puberulent; stipules lanceolate, acuminate,

ciliate, 6-9 mm. long, striate-nerved; petiolar gland stipitate; leaflets 10-20 pairs,

oblong-linear, 10-15 mm. long, 1.5-3 mm. wide, acute or obtuse and mucronate,

glabrous, often ciliate, the costa slightly ex centric; peduncles 1-1.5 cm. long,

axillary; sepals lanceolate, 9-10 mm. long, long-acuminate, sparsely pilose;

petals yellow, 12-15 mm. long; legume linear, flat, elastically 2-valvate, 3-5 cm.

long, 4-5 mm. wide, pilose with short, curved or subappressed hairs, many-seeded.

This has been reported from Guatemala as Cassia flavicoma

HBK., and reports of C. patellaria DC., C. nictitans L., C. mimosoides

L., and C, Chamaecrista L. probably relate to this or one of the closely

related species. These species of the subgenus Chamaecrista, that is,

the majority of those recognized by Britton and Rose, are too closely

related. It may be that the number of distinct forms is really large,

but the keys to species published by those authors are obviously

unworkable, although little worse, probably, than those of earlier

students of the group.

126 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Cassia serpens L. Syst. ed. 10. 1018. 1759. Chamaecrista serpens

Greene, Pittonia 4: 29. 1899.

Moist or dry, open, often grassy or rocky slopes or plains, some-

times a weed in cultivated ground, 1,350 meters or less; Izabal;

Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Guatemala. Western Mexico; British

Honduras; Honduras; Jamaica and Cuba; Colombia and Venezuela.

A small, very slender annual with prostrate or procumbent stems 40 cm. long

or less, branched from the base, the branches glabrous or puberulent; leaves small,

the petiolar gland small, slender-stipitate; stipules lanceolate, acuminate, 4-6 mm.

long, striate-nerved; leaflets 4-9 pairs, oblique-oblong, 4-8 mm. long, rounded and

mucronate at the apex, glabrous, few-nerved, the costa somewhat excentric;

peduncles axillary, filiform, mostly longer than the leaves; sepals broadly lanceo-

late, 4-5 mm. long, acute, sparsely pilose; petals pale yellow, equaling or slightly

longer than the sepals; legume oblong-linear, 1.5-2.5 cm. long, flat, elastically

2-valvate, 3 mm. wide, sparsely pilose with long spreading hairs, few-seeded.

Cassia sianiea Lam. Encycl. 1: 648. 1785. Sciacassia siamea

Britton in Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 252. 1930.

Native of the East Indies; sometimes planted for ornament in

Guatemala, especially in Zacapa and Izabal, and in the latter depart-

ment naturalized abundantly, especially about deserted town sites;

planted also in other parts of Central America and in tropical

America generally.

A tree of 6-12 meters or more with a dense and rather broad crown, the bark

pale, the branchlets puberulent; stipules small, caducous; leaves eglandular, short-

petiolate; leaflets 6-14 pairs, oblong or lance-oblong, 3-7 cm. long, 1-2 cm. wide,

obtuse or rounded at the apex and mucronate, sometimes emarginate, chartaceous,

glabrous and lustrous above, glabrous or minutely sericeous beneath; flowers

bright yellow, racemose, the racemes corymbose-paniculate, few-many-flowered,

the pedicels 3 cm. long or shorter; sepals suborbicular, 5-6 mm. long, puberulent;

petals 12-16 mm. long; legume linear, coriaceous, compressed, 20-25 cm. long,

1-1.5 cm. wide, puberulent or glabrate, 2-valvate.

Cassia simplex Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 27: 199. 1928.

Chamaecrista simplex Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 103. 1916.

Moist slopes in pine forest, about 150-800 meters; Izabal (about

Quirigua); Huehuetenango. Panama; Colombia.

Plants annual, erect, slender, simple or with few branches, puberulent with

short incurved hairs, a meter high or less; stipules linear-lanceolate, 1-1.5 cm. long,

attenuate, ciliate; leaves short-petiolate, the glands of the petiole 1-2, scutellate,

sessile; leaflets 15-25 pairs, linear-oblong, 5-8 mm. long, glabrous, sometimes

ciliate, obtuse and mucronate, conspicuously nerved, the costa excentric; peduncles

very short, axillary; sepals lanceolate, 5-6 mm. long, acuminate; petals yellow,

slightly longer than the sepals; legume linear, 3-4 cm. long, 4 mm. wide, hirsute,

flat, elastically 2-valvate.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 127

Cassia Skinneri Benth. Trans. Linn. Soc. 27: 542. 1871.

Phragmocassia Skinneri Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 245. 1930.

Escoba.

Mostly on dry rocky plains and hillsides, 150-1,350 meters; type

from some unspecified locality in Guatemala, Skinner; Zacapa;

Chiquimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa. Southern Mexico; Salvador.

A shrub or small tree, 6 meters high or less, the young branchlets densely short-

pilose; stipules setaceous, 12 mm. long, deciduous; leaf rachis bearing a slender

gland between the lowest or lower leaflets; leaflets 4-7 pairs, cuneate-obovate or

oblong, 2-5 cm. long, rounded at the apex, glabrous above, pilose beneath, at

least on the veins; flowers very large, yellow, solitary in the leaf axils or crowded

at the ends of the branches, long-pedicellate; sepals green, oval or rounded, 8 mm.

long, almost glabrous; petals 2.5-3 cm. long, sparsely puberulent; legume com-

pressed, 10-15 cm. long, 8-10 mm. wide, puberulent at first, indehiscent, slightly

constricted between the seeds, many-seeded, articulate between the seeds.

Easy of recognition because of the jointed pods, unlike those of

any other Central American species. This is the type of the genus

Phragmocassia Britt. & Rose.

Cassia spectabilis DC. Cat. Hort. Monsp. 90. 1813. Pseudo-

cassia spectabilis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 230. 1930.

Moist forest or thickets, sometimes in second growth, 1,450

meters or less ; Alta Verapaz ; Jutiapa ; Guatemala. Southern Mexico ;

British Honduras to Panama; Colombia and Venezuela.

A tree, sometimes 18 meters high but usually lower, the young branchlets

pilosulous; stipules linear, somewhat persistent; leaves large, eglandular; leaflets

6-15 pairs, oblong-lanceolate, 3-7 cm. long, acuminate, glabrous or glabrate

above, sparsely or densely pilosulous beneath; flowers yellow, racemose, the

racemes few-many-flowered, axillary and forming terminal panicles 20-30 cm.

long; sepals orbicular, 5-7 mm. long, puberulent; petals 1.5-2.5 cm. long; ovary

glabrous; legume terete, indehiscent, coriaceous, glabrous, 15-30 cm. long, 1 cm.

thick, septate between the seeds; seeds numerous, lenticular, transverse.

The tree often is planted for shade and ornament along the

Atlantic lowlands of Central America. In Honduras it is known by

the names "candelillo" and "frijolillo" ; "pisabed" (British Hon-

duras). The bark is light brown; wood whitish, turning pale yellow

on exposure to air; heartwood brownish.

Cassia stenocarpa Vogel, Syn. Cass. 68. 1837. Chamaecrista

stenocarpa Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 104. 1916. Tama-

rindillo; Cuchillito; Colhat (Peten, Maya, fide Lundell) ; Escoba (fide

Aguilar).

128 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Brushy slopes or fields, frequently in second growth, often in

open places or in savannas, occasionally on sandbars along streams,

sometimes in thin forest, 1,350 meters or less; reported from Pete"n;

Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Sacatepe"quez ;

Quich^ ; Quezaltenango. Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and

Panama; West Indies; northern South America.

Plants essentially annual but sometimes persisting, erect to almost prostrate,

sometimes much branched, a meter high or less, the stems densely pilose with

spreading hairs; stipules narrowly lanceolate, 10-14 mm. long; leaves short-

petiolate, the petiolar gland long-stipitate; leaflets 10-25 pairs, linear or linear-

oblong, 8-18 mm. long, 2-2.5 mm. wide, mucronate, glabrous or nearly so, often

ciliate, the costa somewhat excentric; peduncles solitary or in fascicles of 2-3,

axillary, 4-8 mm. long; sepals lanceolate, 6-8 mm. long, acute; petals yellow, 8 mm.

long or less; legume linear, 2.5-5 cm. long, 4-5 mm. wide, flat, elastically 2-valvate,

pilose with rather long, spreading hairs, many-seeded.

Called "canilla de zanate" in Salvador. In Guatemala this name

is given frequently to any obscure plant that has no general common

name, or at least none known to the person questioned, and is fre-

quently thus given to shield a person's ignorance, which he does not

wish to admit. It is doubtful that there is any Central American

plant known regularly by the name "canilla de zanate."

Cassia stenocarpoides (Britton) Lund ell, Phytologia 1: 215.

1937. Chamaecrista stenocarpoides Britton in Britt. & Rose, N.

Amer. Fl. 23: 293. 1930.

Moist or rather dry thickets or open slopes or fields, sometimes

in pine-oak forest, 900-2,100 meters; Alta Verapaz; Chiquimula;

Santa Rosa; Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez; Chimaltenango; Quezal-

tenango. Costa Rica.

Plants essentially annual but sometimes persisting, erect, a meter high or less,

herbaceous or somewhat suffrutescent at the base, the branches densely short-

pilose above with mostly brownish hairs; stipules narrowly lanceolate, 6-9 mm.

long, ciliate, striate-nerved, long-acuminate; leaves short-petiolate, the petiolar

gland obconic, sessile or nearly so; leaflets 10-20 pairs, oblong-linear, 7-12 mm.

long, 2-2.5 mm. wide, obtuse or rounded and mucronate, ciliate, glabrous or

sparsely pubescent, the costa somewhat excentric; peduncles axillary, mostly

solitary, 1-1.5 cm. long; sepals lanceolate, acuminate, 6-7 mm. long, appressed-

pilose; petals yellow, 10 mm. long; legume linear, 3-5.5 cm. long, 4-5 mm. wide,

pilosulous with incurved and somewhat appressed hairs, flat, elastically 2-valvate.

Cassia Tagera L. Sp. PI. 376. 1753. Chamaecrista Tagera

Standl. Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 104. 1916. Frijolillo (fide

Aguilar).

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 129

Oak-pine forest or brushy slopes or fields, often in savannas,

sometimes a weed in cultivated ground, 2,000 meters or less; Pete"n;

Alta Verapaz; El Progreso; Izabal; Chiquimula; Jutiapa; Santa

Rosa; Guatemala. Southern Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador

and Panama; South America.

Plants perennial from a thick root, herbaceous, the stems mostly 40 cm. long

or less, prostrate, densely leafy, glabrous or pubescent; stipules ovate-lanceolate,

4-10 mm. long, cordate, acuminate; leaves small, the petiolar gland stipitate;

leaflets 2-3 pairs, cuneate-obovate, 5-10 mm. long, subcoriaceous, usually 2-nerved,

glabrous, obliquely rounded at the apex, the veins prominent and reticulate, the

costa ex centric; peduncles filiform, sometimes longer than the leaves; sepals ovate,

acute, 2-2.5 mm. long; petals yellow, little longer than the sepals; stamens 4-5;

legume oblong, flat, 12 mm. long or less, 3-4 mm. wide, 1-4-seeded, sparsely

appressed-pilosulous.

Cassia tomentosa L. f. Supp. PI. 231. 1781. Adipera tomentosa

Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 241. 1930. Retama.

Brushy hillsides, often along roadsides or in barren rocky places,

sometimes planted about dwellings, 1,500-2,900 meters; Chimalte-

nango; Totonicapan; Quezaltenango; San Marcos; Huehuetenango.

Southern Mexico; western and southern South America.

Usually a shrub of 1-2 meters but sometimes a tree of 7 meters, the branches

tomentose; stipules small, linear, caducous; leaf rachis bearing glands between

some or all the leaflets; leaflets 6-8 pairs, oblong, 1-5 cm. long, obtuse and often

mucronate, green above, sparsely pilosulous, pale beneath, densely yellowish-

tomentose; peduncles few-flowered, shorter than the leaves, axillary or clustered

at the ends of the branches; sepals orbicular, pubescent, 9 mm. long; petals yellow,

12-15 mm. long; 3 of the stamens longer than the others, the anthers slightly

curved, erostrate; ovary densely lanate; legume linear, 8-12 cm. long, 7 mm. wide,

stipitate, compressed but thick, pilosulous; seeds numerous, transverse, lustrous,

5 mm. long.

This species has a rather unusual distribution, being confined

to the Pacific cordillera of Central and South America, but absent

from Costa Rica and Panama, where it might be expected to occur.

In Guatemala it is found only at high elevations and is a charac-

teristic plant in Los Altos, where it remains green and flowers at

seasons when most plants are withered. It flowers in the highlands

in places where it is frosted or frozen every night during the height

of the verano.

Cassia Tora L. Sp. PI. 376. 1753. Emelista Tora Britt. & Rose

ex Britt. & Wils. Sci. Surv. Porto Rico 5: 371. 1924. Ejotil (Izabal);

Ejote de invierno (Zacapa).

130 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Mostly in waste ground, often in dry to wet thickets, or a weed

in cultivated ground, 1,000 meters or less; Izabal; Zacapa; Jalapa;

Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Solola; to be expected in all the lowland depart-

ments, but apparently not widespread in Guatemala. Southern

United States; Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and Panama;

West Indies; South America; naturalized in the Old World tropics.

Plants annual or essentially so, erect, stout, glabrous or almost so, usually a

meter high or less; stipules linear-subulate, 1-1.5 cm. long; petiole bearing a slender

gland between the lowest leaflets; leaflets 2-4 pairs, oblong-obovate to broadly

obovate, 1.5-5 cm. long, rounded or obtuse at the apex, often mucronate, glabrous

or sometimes appressed-pilose beneath; peduncles short, axillary, few-flowered;

sepals unequal, oblong to rounded, 5-8 mm. long; petals yellow, twice as long as

the sepals; perfect stamens 6-7; legume linear, tetragonous in cross section, usually

15-20 cm. long, 3-5 mm. thick, 2-valvate, falcate or almost straight, with strongly

thickened margins; seeds numerous, longitudinal, compressed, lustrous, 5 mm.

long.

Called "frijolillo" in Salvador, and probably also in Guatemala.

The leaves are said to have the same purgative properties as the

official drug senna, which is obtained from various Old World species

of Cassia. In India C. Tora is sometimes cultivated for its seeds,

used as a mordant in dyeing cloth blue. The seeds are sometimes

used in Mexico and Central America as a coffee substitute and it is

stated that they have been exported from the tropics to Europe for

adulterating that article.

Cassia undulata Benth. in Hook. Journ. Bot. 2: 76. 1840.

Chamaefistula undulata Pittier, Trab. Mus. Com. Venez. 3: 151.

1928. Palo barajero (fide Aguilar).

Wet forest or thickets, often in second growth, 1,100 meters or

less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Escuintla; Solola. Southern

Mexico; British Honduras to Panama; northern South America.

A shrub or small tree, often somewhat scandent, the branches angulate,

short-pilose or almost glabrous; stipules lanceolate, often falcate; glands present

on the leaf rachis between both pairs of leaflets; leaflets obliquely lanceolate or

ovate, 4-10 cm. long, acute or acuminate, deep green and lustrous above, glabrous,

little paler beneath, thinly sericeous with minute hairs; racemes short and few-

flowered, axillary and in terminal corymbiform panicles, the bracts large, green,

persistent; sepals rounded, 7-8 mm. long, sericeous; petals 12-14 mm. long,

greenish yellow; perfect stamens 7; Qvary sericeous; legume terete, 10-18 cm.

long, 1 cm. thick or more, rostrate, glabrous, finally dehiscent along one suture,

the valves fragile and often rupturing irregularly, the numerous seeds transverse,

surrounded by abundant pulp.

In British Honduras, at least, the leaves are used like those

of senna.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 131

Cassia uniflora Mill. Gard. Diet. ed. 8. no. 5. 1768. C. orni-

thopoides Lam. Encycl. 1 : 644. 1785. C. sericea Swartz, Prodr. Ind.

Occ. 66. 1788. Sericeocassia uniflora Britton in Britt. & Rose, N.

Amer. Fl. 23: 246. 1930. Chipilin de coyote; Frijolillo bianco; Fri-

jolillo.

Moist or dry, open or brushy plains or hillsides, often a weed in

cultivated ground, 200-1,000 meters; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa;

Guatemala (Estancia Grande); Huehuetenango. Mexico; British

Honduras; Salvador; Greater Antilles; Venezuela; Galapagos

Islands.

An erect annual, a meter high or less, simple or branched, pilose throughout

with rather long, appressed, mostly brownish hairs; stipules linear-subulate, 5-20

mm. long; leaves small, petiolate, with long stipitate glands between one or more

pairs of leaflets; leaflets 2-4 pairs, oblong to broadly obovate, 2-5 cm. long, rounded

and mucronate at the apex, somewhat narrowed to the obtuse base, glabrate above;

peduncles short, axillary, few-flowered; sepals rounded, 6 mm. long; petals yellow,

twice as long as the sepals; perfect stamens 7; legume linear, 2.5-5 cm. long, 4 mm.

wide, the margins thick and continuous, the valves turgid, deeply impressed

between the seeds and ultimately separating into joints; seeds numerous, oblong,

truncate at each end.

The Maya name of Yucatan is reported as "tulub-bi-yan" or

"xtuab." The plant is abundant about Zacapa, where it often

forms dense stands of wide extent on the plains. It is seldom seen

except when there is plentiful moisture, for it withers as soon as the

soil becomes dry.

Cassia Wilsonii (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Field Mus. Bot. 10:

219. 1931. Chamaecrista Wilsonii Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

290. 1930. Escoba.

Moist or dry thickets or open slopes or fields, sometimes in pine-

oak forest, or on sea beaches, occasionally a weed in cultivated

ground, 2,200 meters or less; Izabal; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Jutiapa;

Santa Rosa; Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez. British Honduras; Hon-

duras (type from Tela).

Plants annual or sometimes persistent, herbaceous, erect to procumbent, a

meter high or less, often much branched, the stems pilose; stipules lanceolate,

acuminate, 4-8 mm. long; petiolar gland long-stipitate; leaflets 6-13 pairs, linear-

oblong, obtuse or rounded at the apex and aristate, glabrous, ciliate, 8-12 mm. long,

1.5-2.5 mm. wide, conspicuously nerved, the costa excentric; peduncles axillary,

mostly 6 mm. long or shorter; sepals lanceolate, acuminate, sparsely pilose, 6-9

mm. long; petals little longer than the sepals, yellow; legume flat, elastically

2-valvate, 3-5 cm. long, 5 mm. wide, thinly pilose with short subappressed hairs.

This has been reported from British Honduras as Cassia steno-

carpa Vog.

132 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Cassia xanthophylla (Britt. & Rose) Lundell, Phytologia 1:

215. 1937. Isandrina xanthophylla Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23:

269. 1930.

Known only from the type, Casillas, Santa Rosa, 1,300 meters,

Heyde & Lux 4471.

Young branchlets, petioles, leaf rachis, and inflorescence densely yellowish-

tomentose, in age glabrate; stipules caducous; leaves eglandular; leaflets 3 pairs,

ovate or ovate-lanceolate, membranaceous, acute or acuminate, rounded at the

•base, 6-8 cm. long, deep green and glabrate above, densely yellowish-pubescent

beneath; flowers racemose, the racemes axillary, 10-15 cm. long; sepals glabrous,

4-5 mm. long; petals 7-10 mm. long; anthers pilose.

This has been reported from Guatemala as C. atomaria. We

have seen no material of the species, which is of rather questionable

validity.

Cassia xiphoidea Bertol. Fl. Guat. 415. 1840. Peiranisia

Deamii Britton in Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 261. 1930 (type

from Gualan, Zacapa, C. C. Deam 291). C. gualanensis Lundell,

Carnegie Inst. Wash. Publ. 478: 212. 1937. Escobilla; Escobo;

Barbon; Flor amarilla; Moco; Guachipilin (Guatemala, probably

an erroneous name).

Moist or dry, usually brushy plains and hillsides, often in pine-

oak forest, 1,800 meters or less, most common at low elevations;

Zacapa; Jalapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala (type

from Volcan de Pacaya, Veldsquez); Chimaltenango; Retalhuleu.

Honduras.

A shrub or small tree of 1-5 meters, the slender branches sparsely or densely

short-pilose; stipules small, setaceous; petiole bearing a gland between the lowest

leaflets; leaflets 2-5 pairs, sometimes more numerous, 1-3.5 cm. long, thin, oblong

to broadly obovate, rounded or obtuse at the apex, green above, pilosulous or

almost glabrous, pale beneath, sparsely or often very densely pilose; peduncles

slender, mostly axillary and 2-flowered, the pedicels 1-2 cm. long; sepals oval or

suborbicular, unequal, 9 mm. long or less, glabrate; petals bright yellow, 2-3 cm.

long; legume linear, 8-12 cm. long, 3-4 mm. wide, stipitate, flat, 2-valvate,

pilosulous with subappressed hairs, many-seeded.

Called "comayagua" in Honduras. The material referred here is

somewhat variable, and possibly should be subdivided, in which

case there are probably available several names applied by Britton

and Rose to plants of Mexico or other parts of Central America.

Those authors list C. xiphoidea as a doubtful species, but the plant

here described is the only Guatemalan one agreeing with Bertoloni's

diagnosis. The branches of this and related species frequently are

used for making rough brooms or brushes.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 133

Ceratonia Siliqua L. Algarrobo. Two trees of the carob are

planted in La Aurora Park in Guatemala City. Native of the eastern

Mediterranean region, but now planted in many regions of the earth.

The pods, known as "St. John's bread," contain a sweet edible pulp,

and sometimes are imported into the United States from the Mediter-

ranean area. The tree is a large one with pinnate leaves and small,

dark-red flowers, the pods commonly 10-30 cm. long, containing

numerous large seeds.

Cercis Siliquastrum L. Native of the Mediterranean region. We

have received flowering specimens from Guatemala, probably col-

lected in La Aurora Park, Guatemala. It is a small tree with reni-

form, long-petiolate leaves, the small rose-purple flowers clustered

in the leaf axils. At least two species of this genus are native in the

United States and Mexico.

CRUDIA Schreber

Unarmed trees; leaves odd-pinnate, the leaflets alternate, usually coriaceous;

stipules small and caducous or foliaceous and persistent; flowers small, racemose,

the racemes simple and terminal or lateral on young branchlets; bracts and bract-

lets small, caducous; calyx tube short, the 4 segments membranaceous, imbricate,

reflexed in anthesis; petals none; stamens 10, free, the filaments filiform; anthers

ovate or oblong, the cells longitudinally dehiscent; ovary short-stipitate, the stipe

free in the bottom of the calyx or affixed obliquely to the tube, few-ovulate; style

filiform, short or elongate, the stigma small, terminal; legume oblique-orbicular to

ovate or broadly oblong, compressed and flat, coriaceous, 2-valvate, the margins

often thickened; seeds 1-2, large, without endosperm; cotyledons flat, the radicle

short, straight.

About 15 species, mostly in tropical America, a few in the East

Indies and tropical Africa. Two others have been described from

Central America, one from Salvador, the other Nicaraguan. The

generic name has sometimes been written Crudya.

Crudia lacus Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus. Bot. 22: 339. 1940.

Known only from the type: Dept. Izabal, shores of Lago de

Izabal, on side opposite San Felipe, between Punta Dos Reales and

Punta de Lechuga, Steyermark 39611.

A tree, glabrous except on the flowers; leaflets 4, on petiolules 3 mm. long,

slightly asymmetric, the lower ones somewhat smaller, subcoriaceous, lance-oblong

or ovate-oblong, 5-9.5 cm. long, 2-4 cm. wide, acute or subacuminate with an

obtuse tip, obtuse or almost rounded at the base and unequal, green and somewhat

lustrous above; racemes terminal, solitary, dense, many-flowered, short-peduncu-

134 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

late, the rachis 5-6 cm. long, the pedicels 3-4 mm. long; sepals rounded-ovate, soon

deciduous, sparsely pilose; ovary densely tomentulose, the style glabrous, 5 mm.

long; legume 1-seeded, suboval to semiorbicular, 4-6.5 cm. long, 2.5-3.5 cm. wide,

densely brownish-tomentulose, prominently reticulate-veined, somewhat rounded

at each end, apiculate at the apex.

CYNOMETRA L.

Unarmed trees; leaves even-pinnate, the leaflets 1-few pairs, coriaceous,

oblique; stipules caducous; flowers small, racemose, the racemes short, axillary

or lateral, sometimes borne on the trunk; lower bracts ovate, dry, imbricate,

finally deciduous, those of the raceme small ; bractlets none or membranaceous and

colored; calyx tube short, the 4-5 lobes thin, imbricate, reflexed in an thesis; petals

5, subequal or the lowest minute, imbricate; stamens usually 10, free, the filaments

filiform; anthers small, uniform, the cells longitudinally dehiscent; ovary sessile or

short-stipitate, free in the bottom of the calyx or obliquely inserted on the tube,

2-ovulate; style filiform, the stigma terminal, truncate or capitate; legume arcuate-

ovoid or subreniform, rarely straight, turgid or somewhat compressed, rugose,

verrucose, or rarely smooth, 2-valvate; seed filling the cavity, thick or compressed,

the hilum ventral ; endosperm none, the cotyledons thick-carnose, the radicle very

short, straight, included.

About 30 species, in the tropics of both hemispheres. Probably

two other species are found in Costa Rica and Panama, and one

other has been described from southern Mexico.

Leaflets mostly very obtuse C. colimensis.

Leaflets short-acuminate or long-acuminate C. retusa.

Cynometra colimensis Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 220.

1930. Acaal.

Along river banks, about 200 meters; Alta Verapaz (Rio Icvolay,

between Rio Apia and Rio Soctela, northwest of Cubilgiiitz, Steyer-

mark 45034). Western and southern Mexico.

A tree of 8-15 meters, the trunk sometimes 35 cm. or more in diameter, the

branches slender, glabrous; leaves on very short petioles, the 2 leaflets very asym-

metric, chartaceous, semiovate or semielliptic, mostly 3.5-5 cm. long, obtuse,

glabrous, with somewhat elevated, reticulate venation; flowers in short few-

flowered dense racemes, the slender pedicels mostly 8-10 mm. long; sepals ovate

or oval, 3 mm. long; stamens longer than the sepals; young legume puberulent;

mature fruit brown, very densely lenticellate, turgid, about 2 cm. long and 1.5

cm. broad.

It is questionable whether this differs in any essential respect

from C. oaxacana Brandegee.

Cynometra retusa Britt. & Rose in Standl. Trop. Woods 7:

5. 1926. Pata de cabro.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 135

Wet forest, often at or near the edge of tidal streams, 400 meters

or less; Alta Verapaz; Izabal (type from Entre Rios, S. J. Record 1).

British Honduras; Atlantic coast of Honduras.

A tree, reported to attain a height of 30 meters and a trunk diameter of a

meter, but usually less than half as large, glabrous except in the inflorescence;

leaf buds covered with large ovate striate bracts; stipules filiform, 8-10 mm. long,

caducous; petiole 4-8 mm. long; leaflets 2, obliquely oblong, 6-15 cm. long, 3-4.5

cm. wide, abruptly short-acuminate or long-acuminate, with an obtuse subemargi-

nate tip, very oblique at the base, coriaceous, lustrous, reticulate-veined, especially

beneath; flowers densely fasciculate in the leaf axils, the slender pedicels 1 cm.

long or shorter, puberulent; calyx globose in bud, short-pilose; petals white, 5 mm.

long, the stamens slightly longer, glabrous; ovary densely pilose; legume variable,

sometimes subglobose, sometimes strongly compressed, 1.5-2.5 cm. long, brown,

glabrate.

Called "fruta de danto" in Honduras. The trunk is often sup-

ported by buttresses. The tree grows most often at the very edge

of the water, often leaning out across it. The new leaves are light-

colored and conspicuous. The heartwood is pale brown, merging

into the lighter-colored sap wood, hard, strong, tough, fairly straight-

grained, fine-textured, not durable; locally it is employed in making

charcoal.

DELONIX Rafinesque. Poinciana

Unarmed trees; leaves bipinnate, not stipulate, the leaflets small, very numer-

ous; flowers large and showy, orange to scarlet, in terminal or axillary, corymbose

racemes; calyx deeply 5-lobate, the lobes subequal, valvate; petals 5, long-unguicu-

late, broad; stamens 10, declinate, the filaments distinct, the anther cells longitudi-

nally dehiscent; ovary sessile, many-ovulate, the style slender or short, the stigma

truncate, ciliolate; legume broadly linear, hard and woody, compressed, 2-valvate,

almost solid between the transverse oblong seeds; endosperm present, the cotyle-

dons thick.

Three species, all African.

Delonix regia (Bojer) Raf. Fl. Tell. 2: 92. 1836. Poinciana

regia Bojer in Hook. Bot. Mag. pi. 2884- 1829. Arbol de fuego;

Flor de fuego; Acacia; Framboyan; Guacamayo.

Native of Madagascar, but now planted for ornament in most

tropical regions; in Guatemala planted commonly for shade and

ornament in most lowland regions, especially in the lower Motagua

Valley, the Oriente, and on the Pacific plains; rarely if ever planted

at middle elevations; on the Pacific plains and foothills often grow-

ing along roadsides, and frequently naturalized in thickets and other

places remote from dwellings.

136 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

A tree with a broad spreading depressed crown, seldom more than 12 meters

high, the trunk often almost a meter in diameter, with indications of incipient

buttresses at the base, the bark thin, grayish brown, the branchlets pubescent;

leaves large and fern-like, 30-50 cm. long, the pinnae 10-25 pairs; leaflets 20-40

pairs, oblong, 4-10 mm. long, rounded at each end, strigillose or almost glabrous;

pedicels stout, 4-8 cm. long; calyx 2 cm. long, glabrous; petals spreading and often

reflexed, 5-7 cm. long, flame-red, often mottled with orange, the blades very broad;

stamens shorter than the petals; legume 40-60 cm. long, 5-7 cm. wide, dark brown

or blackish, very hard and woody.

Although a great favorite in tropical and subtropical regions,

as for instance in Florida, the royal poinciana has little to recommend

it. It is extremely showy during its blooming period, which, how-

ever, is only a brief one, in Guatemala in the late months of the dry

season or after the first rains. During the rest of the year it is a

somewhat ungainly tree with clumsy branches that are brittle and

easily broken, leafless during the dry season. The huge pendent

pods hang on the tree for a long time. The wood is almost white,

weak, soft, and light in weight.

DIALIUM L.

Unarmed trees; leaves odd-pinnate, the leaflets few, mostly alternate, coria-

ceous to membranaceous, the stipules small and inconspicuous; flowers small, cymu-

lose, the cymes arranged in axillary or terminal panicles, the bracts and bractlets

small, caducous; calyx tube very short, the 5 lobes much imbricate, herbaceous or

petaloid; petals 1-2 and small, or none; stamens 2, rarely 3, free, the filaments

short; anthers oblong, erect, affixed near the base, the cells longitudinally dehiscent;

ovary sessile in the bottom of the calyx, or on a short stipe more or less adnate to

the calyx, 2-ovulate; style short, subulate, the stigma terminal, small; legume

ovoid-orbicular or subglobose, slightly compressed or almost terete, indehiscent,

the exocarp hard or fragile, the endocarp usually pulpy; seed 1, more or less com-

pressed, with endosperm; cotyledons flat, foliaceous or thin-carnose, the radicle

short, straight.

About 10 species, in the tropics of both hemispheres. Only one

species occurs in North America.

Dialium guianense (Aubl.) Sandwith in A. C. Smith, Lloydia

2: 184. 1939. Arouna guianensis Aubl. PI. Guian. 16. pi. 5. 1775.

A. divaricata Willd. Sp. PI. 1: 156. 1797. D. divaricatum Vahl, Enum.

PI. 1: 303. 1805. Paleta; Tamarindo; Palo deLacandon; Tamarindo

prieto; Chate, Uapake (Peten, Maya, fide Lundell); Cuatchi (Quecchi).

Dense wet mixed forest, 350 meters or less; Peten; Alta Verapaz;

Izabal; Huehuetenango. Southern Mexico; British Honduras, along

the Atlantic coast to Panama; Guianas and Brazil.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 137

A large tree, often 30 meters high, with a trunk 60 cm. in diameter, the trunk

buttressed, the bark thin, smooth, the tree glabrous throughout except on the fruit;

leaflets 5-7, petiolulate, ovate or lance-ovate, 3-8 cm. long, rather abruptly

acuminate or attenuate-acuminate, obtuse or rounded at the base, rather thin;

panicles large and many-flowered, often 20-30 cm. long, the pedicels 1-2 mm. long;

calyx segments obtuse, 2.5-3 mm. long; legume short-stipitate, obovoid to almost

globose, 1.5-3 cm. long, broadly rounded at the apex, very slightly compressed or

almost terete, brown, densely and minutely fulvous-tomentulose or in age glabrate,

the pericarp thin, brittle, the mesocarp thick and fibrous; seeds blackish brown,

somewhat compressed, lustrous, 1 cm. long.

Called "ironwood" and "wild tamarind" in British Honduras;

"canillo" (Honduras); "guapaqui" (Chiapas); "paqui," "paque"

(Oaxaca, Veracruz). This is one of the most abundant timber trees

of the Atlantic lowlands of Central America and one of the most

useful. On the North Coast of Guatemala it often constitutes a

large element of the forest, and in coastal Nicaragua it prob-

ably forms about 15 per cent of the forest. The wood is uniform

brown or reddish brown, deepening in color upon exposure, the sap-

wood thick, almost white; odor and taste none or at least not dis-

tinctive; specific gravity 0.90, weighing about 56 pounds per cubic

foot; grain somewhat interwoven, the texture rather fine; not easy

to work, finishes smoothly, very tough, strong, and durable. In

Guatemala and other parts of Central America it is utilized for fence

posts, bridge timbers, railroad ties, house construction, cart wheels,

piling, and other purposes. It is too hard and has not enough figure

to make it suitable for furniture. The logs will not float. The

fibrous pulp surrounding the seeds is said to be edible, and it is much

sought by peccaries and other animals. The fruit is produced in

such abundance that it often covers the ground beneath the trees.

In recent publications the name of the tree has been cited as Dialium

guianense (Aubl.) Steud., but, as shown by Sandwith, in error, since

the name really intended by Steudel was Dialium guineense. This is

not the first time that these two regions, Guinea and Guiana, so far

apart but with such easily confounded names, have been confused

in botanical and more general literature.

HAEMATOXYLON L.

Glabrous trees; stipules often spinose, or the branches armed with large stout

spines; leaves even-pinnate, or sometimes bipinnate; flowers small, yellow, in

short lax axillary racemes, the bracts minute and inconspicuous; bractlets none;

calyx tube short, the 5 segments subequal, imbricate; petals 5, oblong, spreading,

the uppermost within the others; stamens 10, free, straight, the filaments pilose

at the base; anthers uniform, the cells longitudinally dehiscent; ovary short-

stipitate, free in the bottom of the calyx, 2-3-ovulate, the style filiform, the stigma

138 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

small, terminal; legume lanceolate, flat and compressed, membranaceous, not dehis-

cent at the sutures but opening by a longitudinal slit along the middle of each

valve; seeds transverse, oblong; endosperm none, the cotyledons bilobate, the

radicle straight.

The genus consists of only two species.

Racemes elongate, usually many-flowered; pedicels equaling or shorter than the

flowers; petals 5-6 mm. long H. campechianum.

Racemes short and few-flowered; pedicels longer than the flowers; petals 7-8 mm.

long H. Brasiletto.

Haematoxylon Brasiletto Karst. Fl. Columb. 2: 27. pi. 114.

1862-69. H. boreale Wats. Proc. Amer. Acad. 21: 426. 1886.

Campeche; Brasil; Palo de brasil; Espinita.

Dry rocky brushy hillsides, 200-1,200 meters; Zacapa; Chiqui-

mula; El Progreso; Baja Verapaz; Guatemala (Fiscal); Huehue-

tenango (region of Santa Ana Huista). Western Mexico; Salvador

to Costa Rica; Colombia and Venezuela.

Usually a shrub of 2-3 meters, sometimes a tree as much as 9 meters high,

the stout branches often tortuous and armed with long hard spines as much as

2 cm. long, the trunk crooked and deeply fluted, branching from near the base,

the bark grayish or medium brown; leaves short-petiolate, the leaflets usually 6,

broadly cuneate-obovate, mostly 1-2.5 cm. long, firm, often deeply emarginate,

acute at the base, the nerves and veins very numerous and parallel, conspicuous,

reticulate; racemes short-pedunculate, few-flowered, as broad as long, the pedicels

very slender, 1-2 cm. long, glabrous or nearly so; petals yellow, 7-8 mm. long, the

stamens almost as long; legume narrowly lance-oblong, 2-6 cm. long, 8-10 mm.

wide, acute or obtuse, thin, delicately reticulate-veined.

The shrub is abundant on the dry hills and plains through the

lower Motagua Valley, especially in the region between El Rancho

and Salama, where it is easy to recognize because of the deeply

fluted trunk and the abundance of persistent characteristic pods,

unlike those of any other member of the Leguminosae. The species

has been reported by Lundell from Pete"n, where it is said to grow

in logwood swamps of that area, in association with H. campechi-

anum, but this is probably an error. H. Brasiletto grows everywhere

in Mexico, Central America, and South America, as far as known,

in dry rocky places rather than in swamps. If the two species were

found growing together, they could scarcely be regarded as distinct,

since they are at best none too easily separable, except by the wood,

which seems to have distinct properties in the two species. Some

authors have considered H. Brasiletto and H. boreale as distinct, but

the available material from South and Central America shows no

obvious differences of any degree. According to Tejada, a decoction

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 139

or infusion of the plant is employed in Guatemala for treating

erysipelas and inflammation of the stomach.

The heartwood is rich orange when fresh, turning to dark red

upon exposure. In the trade it usually is known by the name

"brazilette" (from Spanish brasileto), usually is classed with brazil-

wood, Caesalpinia echinata, and supplies brasilin and not the

hematin crystals of H. campechianum. Wood from Nicaragua is

known locally as "brasil" and in the trade as "Nicaragua wood" or

"hypernic," the latter applied to a superior quality. The wood was

first shipped to England from the Atlantic side of Nicaragua,

although it grows abundantly also on the Pacific side. It was sold

in England at one time at £140 per ton, double the price then pre-

vailing for logwood. It dyes a bright red that is very beautiful.

Large amounts of the wood have been shipped to the United States

from Mexico.

Haematoxylon campechianum L. Sp. PI. 384. 1753. Cam-

peche; Palo de Campeche; Palo de tinta; Tinta. Logwood.

Growing abundantly in swamps called tintales, often of great

extent, in central and northern Pete"n, and reported also from north-

western Alta Verapaz, perhaps in error. Yucatan Peninsula of

Mexico; northern British Honduras; Honduras(?); West Indies,

perhaps introduced there.

A small gnarled tree, generally 8 meters high or less, often only a shrub, the

trunk crooked, deeply fluted, the bark light gray, the branches spreading, often

armed with stout spines 1.5 cm. long or less, glabrous throughout or practically so;

leaves short-petiolate, the leaflets 2-4 pairs, firm, cuneate-obovate, 1-3 cm. long,

rounded or deeply emarginate at the apex, cuneate at the base, finely many-

nerved, lustrous above, slightly paler beneath; racemes mostly dense and many-

flowered, narrow, short-pedunculate, 2-12 cm. long, the pedicels filiform, 4-6 mm.

long; petals yellow, narrowly obovate, 5-6 mm. long, the stamens of about the

same length; legume lance-oblong, 2-5 cm. long, 8-12 mm. wide, mostly rounded

or very obtuse at the apex, acute at the base, delicately veined.

The Maya name is "ec." This is one of the important trees of

the Yucatan Peninsula and has had a profound influence upon the

history of the region. Logwood and mahogany are the reasons for

the present existence of the British colony of Belize in Central

America, since this region was occupied centuries ago by British

settlers in search of these two woods. Privateers at first obtained

their supply by capturing Spanish vessels sailing from Campeche

for Spain but later found it easier to obtain the woods from cuttings

on the shore. Thus sprang up the settlement of Belize. In early days

140 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

logwood sold in England for as much as £500 per ton, but by 1883

it had dropped to £25-£35. It still is an important article of export

from the whole area of its occurrence, and from 1924-27 the average

annual export from British Honduras was 563 tons, valued at about

£25 per ton. The tree grows rapidly and easily from seeds and soon

reproduces itself where cut. It is exported in the form of billets

3 feet long. It is too heavy to float and is carried along the coast in

small boats, or floated down the rivers in "bark logs" or floating

cradles made of cabbage palm. The heartwood, the only part of

commercial importance, is bright red at first, becoming darker upon

exposure; sap wood thin, white or yellowish, sharply defined; has

the odor of violets (Viola) when fresh; taste sweetish; very hard and

heavy, the specific gravity about 1.00; weight about 62 pounds per

cubic foot; grain irregular and somewhat interwoven, the texture

fine; hard to cut, finishes smoothly, takes a high polish, is strong but

rather brittle, is highly durable.

Logwood is used as a dye, and its use became known in Europe

soon after the discovery of Mexico. It had long been used by the

Indians of Mexico and Central America for coloring cotton cloth

and other articles. Early attempts to use the dye in Europe were

not successful because no method was known of making the color

permanent. For this reason its importation into England was pro-

hibited in 1581 by a law that was not repealed for almost a hundred

years, long after the discovery of a process for making a fast dye

from the extract, but during this prohibition the wood often was

imported clandestinely under the name "blackwood" or other terms.

In the United States the imported wood is reduced mechanically

into small bits and the dye extracted by boiling in water. The

peculiar coloring principle, haematoxylin, forms an orange-red

solution with boiling water, becoming yellowish as it cools and

recovering its former hue when treated; if left alone it finally turns

black. Various colors can be obtained according to the mordants

used, but the color for which it is most employed is black, obtained

by alum and iron bases. It is employed also for manufacturing

inks and in small amounts for medicinal purposes. It is an official

drug of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, being used as an astringent,

particularly for treating dysentery and diarrhea. In Central America

it has long been utilized for the same purpose. The Lacandon

Indians of western Peten employ the wood for arrow shafts. Con-

siderable amounts of the wood, cut in small pieces, may be seen in

the Guatemalan markets, especially at Momostenango. It is

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 141

employed there for coloring wool for the textiles for which that area

is famous. When questioned as to its origin, the Indian traders

state that it comes from Coban (where it does not grow) or from the

frontera mexicana.

HYMENAEA L.

Large unarmed trees; stipules caducous; leaves petiolate, 2-foliolate, the

leaflets coriaceous; flowers large or medium-sized, whitish, in small short dense

corymbiform terminal panicles, the bracts and bractlets caducous; calyx cam-

panulate, the 4 lobes coriaceous, imbricate; petals 5, sessile, oblong or obovate,

subequal, the uppermost lobe within the others and often larger; stamens 10, free,

glabrous, the anthers uniform, oblong, longitudinally dehiscent; ovary short-

stipitate, the stipe adherent to the calyx tube, few-ovulate; style filiform, the

stigma small, terminal; legume obliquely obovoid or broadly oblong, very thick

and hard or subterete, indehiscent; seeds few, the testa osseous; endosperm none;

cotyledons thick, carnose, the radicle short, straight.

About 25 species, in tropical America, only the following in

North America.

Hymenaea Courbaril L. Sp. PI. 1192. 1753. H. Candolleana

HBK. Nov. Gen. & Sp. 6: 323. 1824. Guapinol; Cuapinol; Hoja de

cuchillo (Jutiapa); Copinol; Palo Colorado; Pacay (Pete*n); Pac

(Quecchi); Pacoj (Baja Verapaz).

Chiefly in rather dry forest, on hillsides or plains, 1,300 meters

or less, chiefly at 900 meters or lower; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Baja

Verapaz; El Progreso; Izabal; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla;

Guatemala; Suchitepe"quez ; Retalhuleu; Quezaltenango; Huehue-

tenango; doubtless in San Marcos. Western and southern Mexico;

British Honduras to Salvador and Panama; West Indies; South

America.

A small to large tree, sometimes 30 meters high with a trunk more than a meter

in diameter, usually with small buttresses, the crown rounded or spreading, the

bark smooth, grayish brown, the inner bark reddish brown, exuding a pale gum,

glabrous except in the inflorescence; leaves short-petiolate, the leaflets sessile,

lance-oblong to oblong-ovate, inequilateral, 4-9 cm. long, acute or short-acuminate,

very unequal at the base, coriaceous, lustrous, closely reticulate-veined, penni-

nerved; panicles dense, with few or numerous flowers, the pedicels short and thick;

calyx densely puberulent, the tube 8 mm. long, the lobes oblong, 1.5 cm. long;

petals whitish, thin, gland-dotted, equaling the calyx lobes; stamens whitish, 3 cm.

long; legume broadly oblong, very hard and woody, dark brown, scarcely com-

pressed, usually somewhat roughened, about 11 cm. long and half as broad; seeds

few, oblong, 2-3 cm. long.

Called "locust" in British Honduras. The name "guapinol" and

its variants are of Nahuatl derivation, signifying "tree pinol," in

142 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

allusion to the sweet, mealy, whitish, edible substance surrounding

the seeds. This is much eaten in some regions, and in Guatemala

the ripe pods are sold commonly in the markets for this purpose,

often at a relatively high price. A caserio in Escuintla has been

named Guapinol, and one in Santa Rosa, Los Guapinoles. The

specific name Courbaril is derived from a vernacular name of South

America. The pulp or meal of the fruit is used to flavor atol and other

beverages. One of the products of the tree is a pale yellow or reddish,

resin-like gum known in the trade as South American copal. The

exudations from the trunk run to the ground and harden into lumps

that eventually become buried in the soil, and it is said that a barrel-

ful of them may sometimes be obtained from a large tree. A softer,

less useful gum may be obtained directly from incisions in the trunk.

The copal is used abroad and also locally for preparing varnish. It

is sold in most of the Guatemalan markets, especially those of the

highlands, in the form of small round cakes, wrapped in corn husks,

to be burned as incense in the churches. Large amounts of it are

used thus in Guatemala, as any one may well believe who has

observed the Indian worshipers at Chichicastenango or San Fran-

cisco El Alto. A decoction of the bark is used in Honduras as a

substitute for quinine, and the tree finds other applications in domes-

tic medicine. When the pulp is fermented in water it is reported

to yield a liquor similar to beer, and it is so utilized in various parts

of Central America.

The wood is dark brown to orange, often with darker streaks,

deepening in color upon exposure; sap wood rather thick, dingy white,

yellowish, or pinkish; without distinctive odor or taste; hard and

heavy, the specific gravity 0.80-1.05; weight 50-65 pounds per cubic

foot; grain fairly straight to irregular, of medium texture; tough

and strong, not easy to work, finishes smoothly but does not take a

high polish; fairly durable. In Guatemala and elsewhere in Central

America the wood is used commonly for making sugar-mill and other

mill machinery, looms, cart wheels, boats, balls, furniture, and cabi-

network. The wood was formerly well known in European markets,

but it is seldom exported now. The bark of old trees, formerly at

least, was used for making bark canoes. Removed in a single piece,

it was sewed together with rope or other cordage, calked with gum or

resin, and then shaped with wooden crosspieces. Canoes large

enough to carry 25 to 30 men are said to have been made in this

manner. The tree is a handsome one because of its dense clean

foliage and makes a good shade tree.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 143

PARKINSONIA L.

Shrubs or small trees, armed with spines, the branches green; leaves bipinnate

but appearing pinnate, almost sessile, the rachis very short, spinulose-tipped, the

pinnae 1-2 pairs, the rachis very long and narrow, compressed, striate, green, the

leaflets numerous, very small, entire; flowers large, yellow, racemose; calyx tube

short, the 5 segments narrow, subequal; petals 5, spreading, subequal; stamens 10,

distinct, the filaments villous at the base; anthers uniform, versatile, the cells

longitudinally dehiscent; ovary short-stipitate, many-ovulate, the style subfili-

form, the stigma small, terminal; legume linear, coriaceous, striate-nerved, 2-val-

vate; seeds longitudinal, oblong, the endosperm corneous; cotyledons flat.

A single species occurs in America. One other has been described

from South Africa.

Parkinsonia aculeata L. Sp. PI. 375. 1753. Sulfato; Sulfatillo;

Palo de rayo.

A native of tropical America, but the native habitat uncertain;

scarcely native in Guatemala or elsewhere in Central America, but

possibly native in Mexico; planted occasionally in Guatemala, and

more or less naturalized in some localities; known from Baja Verapaz,

El Progreso, Jutiapa, and Quiche", and doubtless planted in some

other departments.

A shrub or small tree, seldom more than 6 meters high, with an open crown,

the trunk often crooked, the bark brown, smooth, the younger branches bright

green, at first sparsely and inconspicuously pilose; spines stout, 3 cm. long or

shorter; pinnae 1-2 pairs, resembling sessile pinnate leaves, 20-40 cm. long, the

leaflets 10-25 pairs, linear to obovate, often early deciduous; racemes rather few-

flowered and lax, the very slender pedicels 5-20 mm. long, the flowers glabrous;

calyx 6-8 mm. long; petals bright yellow, twice as long as the calyx; legumes

pendent, glabrous, 5-15 cm. long, 8 mm. broad, few-seeded, much constricted

between the seeds; seeds about 1 cm. long.

It is barely possible that this tree is native about Lago de Giiija

(Jutiapa), where it grows plentifully along the margins of streams

and on lake shores. Elsewhere in Central America it is rarely seen

except where evidently planted. It is distinctive in appearance

because of its bright yellow flowers, green branches, and sparse,

pale, usually drooping foliage. The branches of wild plants often

are hollow and inhabited by ants. The wood is hard, close-grained,

light brown with yellowish sapwood, with a specific gravity of about

0.60. In some regions it is used for fuel, and it has been utilized for

making paper. The foliage, young branches, and pods are eaten by

stock.

Peltophorum inerme (Roxb.) Naves is in cultivation at Finca

Moca, Solola, and possibly elsewhere. It is not uncommon in the

144 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Canal Zone, where it makes a good shade tree. It is a native of the

East Indies, a tree of about 30 meters at Finca Moca, with large

deciduous bipinnate leaves, the very numerous leaflets oblong and

1-2 cm. long. The showy, bright yellow flowers are borne in large,

axillary and terminal panicles, the calyx covered with dense ferru-

ginous pubescence. The pods are flat, indehiscent, 5-8 cm. long,

1-4-seeded, narrowly winged on the margins, the valves con-

spicuously nerved.

PHYLLOCARPUS Riedel

Tall unarmed trees; leaves even-pinnate, the leaflets large and broad, few or

numerous; stipules narrow, deciduous; flowers scarlet, racemose, the racemes

short, clustered on the older wood at defoliate nodes; bracts and bractlets caducous;

calyx tube very short, the segments 4, subequal, imbricate; petals 3, obovate,

imbricate, the uppermost one within the others and smaller; stamens 10, the

filaments free above, the anthers uniform, ovate, versatile; ovary stipitate, free

in the bottom of the calyx, few-ovulate, the style filiform, somewhat clavate at

the apex, the stigma small, terminal; legume oblong, compressed and flat, thin,

indehiscent, the upper suture winged; seeds large, oval, compressed, the radicle

straight.

Two species, the other Brazilian.

Phyllocarpus septentrionalis Donn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 55:

433. 1913. Flor de mico; Guacamayo.

Dry, rocky, thinly forested hillsides or ravines, 100-900 meters;

Zacapa (type from Gualan, Wilmatte P. Cockerell); El Progreso.

A tree of 12-35 meters with a broad spreading crown, the branchlets, petioles,

and racemes puberulent or almost glabrous; stipules falcate-lanceolate, 5-7 mm.

long, acute, brown; leaves deciduous; leaflets 4-6 pairs, elliptic, 8 cm. long and 3.5

cm. wide or smaller, acute to very obtuse, obtuse and somewhat asymmetric at the

base, green and glabrate above, paler beneath and pubescent or finally glabrate;

racemes short and few-flowered, mostly in clusters of 2-4, the pedicels 10-15 mm.

long, articulate near the base and bearing 2 small bractlets; sepals 9-11 mm. long,

elliptic to orbicular, dark red, ciliate; stamen sheath 12 mm. long, the filaments

14-17 mm. long, bright red, the anthers 2-2.5 mm. long; ovary about 3-ovulate;

legume 1-2-seeded, 12-17 cm. long, 4-4.5 cm. wide, the thin wing 10-12 mm. wide;

seeds oval, 2.5 cm. long, 1.5 cm. wide.

The flowers are said to be fragrant. It is possible that the tree

occurs in the north coast of Honduras, where the senior author once

saw inaccessible flowering trees that probably belonged to this genus.

P. septentrionalis has been introduced into cultivation in Florida,

Panama, and elsewhere, but little information is available as to

how it has fared there. It flowers in Panama; hence must have

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 145

attained a good size. In general appearance and in the color of its

blossoms this tree suggests the poinciana (Delonix) and is almost

equally showy. It blooms at the height of the dry season, in January

and February. The tree is apparently in cultivation in La Aurora,

Guatemala.

POEPPIGIA Presl

Large unarmed trees; leaves odd-pinnate, the leaflets numerous, small;

flowers yellow, small, in small paniculate cymes, the bracts and bractlets narrow,

membranaceous, caducous; calyx tube campanulate, the 5 segments subequal,

scarcely imbricate, more or less connate above the disk; petals 5, imbricate, sub-

equal, oblong, the uppermost within the others; stamens 10, free, the filaments

glabrous, almost straight; anthers ovate or oblong, versatile, the cells longitudinally

dehiscent; ovary stipitate, many-ovulate, the stipe obliquely inserted in the calyx

tube; style short, conic or incurved, the stigma small, terminal; legume oblong-

linear, membranaceous, compressed and flat, indehiscent, narrowly winged along

the upper suture; seeds transverse, ovate, compressed; endosperm none, the cotyle-

dons flat, foliaceous, cordate at the base.

A single species, in tropical America.

Poeppigia procera Presl, Symb. Bot. 1: 16. pi. 8. 1830. Plumillo.

Moist mixed forest, about 400 meters; Suchitepe"quez ; Retal-

huleu; to be expected in all the Pacific coast departments. Southern

Mexico; Salvador; Honduras; Cuba; Colombia to Brazil.

A shrub or tree, sometimes 12 meters high or more, with a trunk 30-35 cm. in

diameter, the young branchlets and leaf rachis rather sparsely puberulent or

pilosulous; stipules linear, 5-7 mm. long, deciduous; leaves 10-30 cm. long; leaflets

about 20 pairs, oblong, 1-2 cm. long, glabrous or nearly so, slightly paler beneath,

rounded at the apex; panicles small, dense, many-flowered, the flowers pedicellate;

calyx 4 mm. long, sparsely puberulent, the lobes broadly ovate, obtuse or subacute;

petals spatulate-oblong, 8-10 mm. long, obtuse; filaments shorter than the petals,

glabrous; ovary pilose; legume glabrous, 4-9 cm. long, 1-1.5 cm. wide, very thin,

obtuse and apiculate, acute at the base, long-stipitate, brownish.

Known in Salvador as "tepemiste," "quebracho bianco,"

"memble," and "frijolillo." The wood is hard, the sapwood white,

the heartwood reddish and beautifully veined. It is employed in

Salvador for axles of carts, railroad ties, and other purposes. The

flowers are said to be much frequented by bees.

SCHIZOLOBIUM Vogel

Tall unarmed trees; leaves very large and fern-like, bipinnate, the leaflets

small, numerous; flowers yellow, large and showy, racemose, the racemes axillary

or in terminal panicles, the bracts minute; bractlets none; calyx tube obliquely

turbinate, the lobes subequal, imbricate, reflexed in anthesis; petals 5, unguiculate,

146 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

ovate or rounded, subequal, imbricate, the uppermost one within the others;

stamens 10, free, subdeclinate, the filaments scaberulous at the base, the anthers

uniform, the cells longitudinally dehiscent; ovary subsessile, affixed to one side

of the calyx tube, many-ovulate; style filiform, the stigma minute, terminal;

legume compressed, spatulate, 2-valvate, 1-seeded, the outer coat firm-coriaceous,

separating from the thin membranaceous inner one; seed 1, borne near the apex of

the legume, large, oblong, compressed, with endosperm; cotyledons compressed

and flat, the radicle exserted, straight.

The genus consists of a single species.

Schizolobium parahybum (Veil.) Blake, Contr. U. S. Nat.

Herb. 20: 240. 1919. Cassia parahyba Veil. Fl. Flum. 168. 1825;

Icon. 4: pi. 71. 1827. S. excelsum Vog. Linnaea 11: 399. 1837.

S. Kellermanii Pittier, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 18: 232. 1917

(type from San Felipe, Retalhuleu, W. A. Kellerman 5566). Plumillo;

Plumajillo; Zorra; Cucte (Alia Verapaz); Copte (Pete"n, Maya);

Guanacaste (Pete"n).

Wet to dry, mixed forest, on plains or hillsides, often in second

growth, 900 meters or less; Pete"n; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Santa

Rosa; Escuintla; Solola; Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu; San Marcos;

doubtless also in Jutiapa, and probably in Quezaltenango. Southern

Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and Panama; South America.

A medium-sized to large tree, frequently 30 meters high, the trunk to 50 cm.

or more in diameter, often with high buttresses, the outer bark thin, greenish gray,

the inner bark pinkish, the crown broad, usually rather flat-topped; bractlets and

petioles glabrous, viscid, the petiole bearing a large conic gland below the apex;

leaves very large, on young trees as much as a meter long, the pinnae about 20

but variable in number; leaflets 15-20 pairs or more, narrowly oblong, 2-3.5 cm.

long, green above, glabrous, lustrous, pale beneath, rather densely sericeous,

obtuse or rounded and mucronate at the apex, obtuse at the base; flowers rather

pale yellow, mostly in very large, terminal panicles, the branches sparsely pilo-

sulous or almost glabrous, the pedicels elongate, articulate above the middle;

calyx sparsely strigillose with blackish hairs, 1 cm. long, the lobes obtuse; petals

1.5-2 cm. long, narrow; stamens about equaling the petals; legume flat, glabrous,

8-12 cm. long, 2.5-5 cm. wide, long-attenuate to the base, rounded at the apex,

coarsely reticulate-veined and somewhat rugose; seed oval, 20 mm. long and 12

mm. wide, strongly compressed, blackish brown.

Known in British Honduras as "quam" or "zorra"; "chapulal-

tapa" (Salvador); "tambor" (Honduras); "judio" (Veracruz);

"gavilan" (Nicaragua); "quon" (Miskito dialect of Nicaragua).

The names "quon" and probably also "quam" are derived from the

local name of the curassow (Crax globicera), which is said to feed

almost exclusively on the seeds when they are available. The tree

is abundant in various parts of Guatemala, but especially along the

North Coast. It is very showy and handsome during its brief

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK:. FLORA OF GUATEMALA 147

blooming season, when the trees, usually leafless, become one huge

mass of color, visible from a great distance. Young plants, 2-3

meters high or more, usually are unbranched and bear at the apex a

cluster of huge fern-like leaves, so that at a short distance they

remind one of tree ferns. The young stems and petioles usually are

covered with a viscous exudate that adheres to the fingers. Engle-

sing, who collected material along the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua,

states that the seeds, unlike those of many other Leguminosae,

seldom are attacked by insects, and it is perhaps on this account

that the tree is so common in second growth. The wood has a strong

fecal odor when freshly cut, but when dry is without distinctive odor

or taste; it is white, light and soft or moderately so, the softest speci-

mens rather spongy but tough; grain variable from straight to

decidedly roey, rather coarse-textured; wood saws rather woolly, is

rather difficult to finish smoothly, is perishable in contact with the

ground. It is not used locally but has been suggested as a promising

source of paper pulp, especially because the tree grows with great

rapidity.

SWARTZIA Schreber

Unarmed trees or shrubs, usually glabrous or nearly so; leaves odd-pinnate

or 1-foliolate, the leaflets coriaceous or herbaceous; stipules usually minute;

flowers yellow, racemose, the racemes mostly short, sometimes paniculate, the

peduncles sometimes 1-flowered; bracts caducous, generally minute, the bractlets

small; calyx tube very short or none, the calyx closed and entire before anthesis,

variously ruptured in flower; petal usually 1, the standard, broad, ruffled, the other

petals absent, or the 2 lateral ones present but minute; stamens numerous, free or

nearly so, declinate and incurved-ascending, the filaments filiform; anthers uniform

or nearly so, affixed near the base, the cells longitudinally dehiscent; ovary stipi-

tate, usually incurved, several-ovulate, attenuate to the style, the stigma terminal

and small or rarely capitate; legume ovoid or elongate, subterete or rarely com-

pressed, coriaceous or carnose, 2-valvate or indehiscent; seeds reniform, ovoid, or

globose, sometimes arillate, the cotyledons thick; radicle usually very short and

inflexed.

About 125 species, in tropical America. Britton and Rose

recognize 18 species from Central America, but the true number is

probably less than half as many. It is difficult to find stable charac-

ters for separating the species, and many of those used by those

authors are obviously unimportant.

Petals none; leaflets 11-15 S. cubensis.

Petal 1; leaflets 1-7.

Leaflets 3-7 in all or most of the leaves.

Leaflets 3 or sometimes only 1 ; leaf rachis broadly winged . . . S. guatemalensis.

Leaflets usually 5-7; leaf rachis very narrowly winged S. Standleyi.

148 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Leaflet only 1 in all or most of the leaves.

Petiole broadly winged, the wing 4-7 mm. wide near the apex.

S. guatemalensis.

Petiole very narrowly winged S. ochnacea.

Swartzia cubensis (Britt. & Wils.) Standl. Carnegie Inst. Wash.

Publ. 461: 61. 1935. S. Lundelln Standl. loc. cit. (type from La

Libertad, Pete"n, C. L. Lundell 3613). Llora-sangre ; Cataox, Buluche

(Maya).

Common on limestone hills, 300 meters or less; Pete"n. Tabasco;

Campeche; Yucatan; British Honduras; Cuba.

A tree of 12 meters or more, the trunk 45 cm. in diameter, the young branch-

lets brownish-tomentulose; leaf rachis puberulent, very obscurely winged near the

apex of the node; leaflets 11-13, short-petiolulate, subcoriaceous, oblong or nar-

rowly lance-oblong, 3-8 cm. long, somewhat narrowed to the obtuse or rounded

apex, rounded or very obtuse at the base, glabrous above or nearly so, rather

densely and minutely sericeous beneath or in age glabrate, the venation promi-

nulous and closely reticulate; racemes solitary or geminate, usually arising from

defoliate nodes, lax and few-flowered, much shorter than the leaves, the rachis

puberulent, the pedicels short; flower buds ellipsoid, 6 mm. long; petals none;

legume usually 1-seeded, oblique-ellipsoid, 2-4.5 cm. long, glabrous, 2 cm. thick.

Known in British Honduras as "northern rosewood" or "bastard

rosewood"; "catalox" (Campeche). A red sap exudes when the

trunk is cut. The wood is white. The seed is subtended by an

aril that is white at first but turns red in age.

Swartzia guatemalensis (Donn. Smith) Pittier, Journ. Wash.

Acad. Sci. 11: 159. 1921. S. myrtifolia var. guatemalensis Donn.

Smith, Bot. Gaz. 33: 251. 1902. Tounatea guatemalensis Britt. &

Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 346. 1930. Sosokhe (Alta Verapaz).

Wet to rather dry forest or thickets, 700 meters or less; endemic;

Alta Verapaz (type from Cubilgliitz, Tuerckheim 7839); Retalhuleu;

Huehuetenango.

An almost glabrous shrub or small tree, sometimes 6-12 meters high, the

branchlets strigose at first; leaf rachis and petiole broadly winged, the wing 4-7

mm. wide at the apex, narrowed below, reticulate- veined; leaflets 1-3, glabrous or

practically so, oblong-lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, mostly 5-16 cm. long, acumi-

nate or long-acuminate, obtuse at the base, bright green, lustrous; racemes 2-5-

flowered, strigose, the slender pedicels 12-15 mm. long; flower buds ellipsoid, the

calyx 1 cm. long, splitting into 3 irregular lobes; petal 1 cm. long, 2 cm. wide; ovary

long-stipitate, 6-8-ovulate.

Swartzia ochnacea DC. Me"m. Le"g. 405. 1825. S. macrosperma

Bertol. Mem. Accad. Bologna 11: 203. 1861 (type from Volcan de

Agua, Velasquez). Tounatea ochnacea Britton, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 344.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 149

1930. T. macrosperma Britt. & Rose, loc. cit. T. hondurensis

Britton, loc. cit. (type collected near Tela, Honduras). S. simplex

var. continentalis Urban, Symb. Ant. 5: 364. 1908.

Moist forest or thickets, 1,000 meters or less; Santa Rosa;

Escuintla; Solola; Suchitepe'quez; Quezaltenango; San Marcos;

doubtless in Izabal. Southern Mexico; British Honduras to Panama.

A shrub or tree, usually 12 meters high or less, often flowering when only a

shrub, glabrous throughout or nearly so, the young branchlets sometimes sparsely

appressed-pilosulous; petiole 5-12 mm. long, very narrowly winged; stipules

filiform, 4-7 mm. long, deciduous; leaflet 1, elliptic-oblong or lance-oblong to

elliptic, 6-15 cm. long, acute or short-acuminate with obtuse tip, obtuse at the

base, bright green, usually lustrous; racemes few-flowered, the slender pedicels

1-2.5 cm. long; petal yellow, 2.5-3.5 cm. wide, ruffled; ovary glabrous; legume

oblong or ovoid, 2-3 cm. long or larger, long-rostrate, subterete, bright red or

orange, 1-2-seeded; seeds large, black, surrounded by a white or reddish aril.

Called "naranjillo" in Honduras. Several other synonyms of

this species have been published from Costa Rica and Panama.

The Guatemalan plant has been reported as S. grandiflora Swartz,

and has been confused with S. simplex (Swartz) Spreng. of the West

Indies, from which it probably is specifically distinct.

Swartzia Standleyi (Britt. & Rose) Standl. Trop. Woods 34:

40. 1933. Tounatea Standleyi Britt. & Rose, N. Amer. Fl. 23: 347.

1930.

Chiefly in wet mixed forest, sometimes in Manicaria swamps,

600 meters or less; Izabal (type collected near Puerto Barrios,

Standley 25069). British Honduras.

A rather slender shrub or small tree, sometimes 10 meters high, the branchlets,

leaf rachis, and racemes densely short-pilose or puberulent; petiole and rachis

terete, not or very obscurely winged; leaflets 5-7, or sometimes fewer in part of the

leaves, oblong-lanceolate to ovate, thin, 4-10 cm. long, abruptly acuminate or

long-acuminate, obtuse or acute at the base, puberulent on both surfaces or finally

glabrate, the venation elevated and closely reticulate; racemes few-flowered, the

pedicels in fruit 1-2 cm. long; legume ovoid or ellipsoid, 2-5 cm. long, strigillose or

glabrate, orange or orange-red, 1-3-seeded, long-rostrate, long-stipitate, subterete.

This, like S. ochnacea, usually grows in dense wet forest, some-

times occurring in abundance. The flowers are not conspicuous

because as a rule they are few in number, but the pods often attract

attention because of their brilliant coloring in red, orange, or yellow.

TAMARINDUS L. Tamarind

Unarmed trees; leaves even-pinnate, the leaflets small, numerous; stipules

minute, caducous; flowers small, yellow tinged with red, racemose at the ends of

150 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

the branches; bracts and bractlets ovate-oblong, colored, caducous; calyx tube

narrowly turbinate, the 4 lobes strongly imbricate, membranaceous; upper 3

petals subequal, imbricate, the uppermost one within the others and narrower, the

2 lowest ones minute, setaceous or scale-like; perfect stamens 3, connate into a

sheath, the filaments short; anthers oblong, the cells longitudinally dehiscent;

ovary stipitate, the stipe adnate to the calyx, many-ovulate; style elongate,

rather thick, the stigma terminal, truncate, subcapitate; legume oblong or linear,

somewhat incurved, thick, subcompressed, indehiscent, the epicarp crustaceous,

fragile, the mesocarp pulpy, the endocarp thick, coriaceous, septate between the

seeds; seeds obovate-orbicular, compressed, with a thick testa; endosperm none;

cotyledons thick, the radicle short, straight, included.

The genus consists of a single species.

Tamarindus indica L. Sp. PI. 34. 1753. Tamarindo.

Native of tropical Asia, probably of India, but now cultivated

in most tropical regions, and in America often becoming naturalized;

planted generally in the lowlands of Guatemala and naturalized in

many localities, chiefly at 1,200 meters or less; Pete'n; Zacapa; Chi-

quimula; El Progreso; Baja Verapaz; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla;

Suchitepe*quez; Retalhuleu; San Marcos; doubtless also in other

departments.

A handsome tree, often 15 meters high or more, with widely spreading or

rounded, dense crown, the trunk thick, often twisted, sometimes a meter or more

in diameter, often with conspicuous long roots upon the surface of the ground, the

bark brown; young branchlets puberulent; leaves short-petiolate, glabrous or

nearly so; leaflets 10-18 pairs, oblong, 12-25 mm. long, rounded or retuse at the

apex, obliquely obtuse or subtruncate at the base; racemes few-several-flowered,

mostly shorter than the leaves, the slender pedicels 6-10 mm. long; calyx 8-10

mm. long; larger petals slightly longer than the calyx; legume 5-15 cm. long, 2 cm.

broad, brown and scaly; seeds brown, lustrous, 1 cm. broad.

The tamarind, a well-known tree through much of the lowlands

of Central America, is planted commonly for shade and for its edible

pods. It makes a fine shade tree, growing well with no attention.

In Guatemala it is particularly conspicuous in the lower Motagua

Valley, and especially at Zacapa, one of whose barrios has long been

known as El Tamarindal because of the many giant tamarind trees

there. In India a yellow dye is obtained from the leaves, and the

seeds, young leaves, and flowers are used for food. Large quantities

of the ripe pods are seen in Guatemalan markets, often far above

the regions where the trees grow, as at Quezaltenango. The juicy,

acidulous, pleasantly flavored pulp of the pods is eaten, or more often

it is employed to prepare a cooling beverage like lemonade, or to

flavor ices and sweetmeats. It gives a popular flavor to some of the

carbonated aguas gaseosas so much consumed in Guatemala. The

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 151

pulp is official in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia and is reported to con-

tain sugar and acetic, tartaric, and citric acids. The Maya name

of the tree is reported as "pachuhuc" from Yucatan. The wood is

fine-grained, dirty white or yellowish, with a specific gravity of

about 0.94.

ZOLLERNIA Martius

Unarmed trees or large shrubs; leaves simple, coriaceous, often dentate or

serrate, the petiole very short; stipules rigid; flowers small, racemose, the racemes

axillary or in terminal panicles; bracts small, the bractlets minute or none; calyx

tube very short, the limb before anthesis entire and acuminate, cleft and reflexed

in anthesis or deciduous; petals 5, imbricate, the standard broader than the other

petals and outermost; stamens usually 10, subhypogynous, the filaments very

short; anthers uniform, linear, acuminate, affixed near the base, the cells longi-

tudinally dehiscent; ovary subsessile or stipitate, many-ovulate, the style short,

subulate, the stigma small, obliquely terminal; legume ovoid, thick, 2-valvate;

seeds solitary or few, ovate or orbicular, compressed; endosperm none; cotyledons

broad, the radicle short, inflexed.

About 8 species of the genus are known. All except the follow-

ing are confined to Brazil.

Zollernia Tango Standl. Trop. Woods 19: 6. 1929.

Wet forest, at or near sea level; Izabal. British Honduras;

Atlantic coast of Honduras.

A very large tree, the trunk deeply fluted, glabrous or nearly so except in the

inflorescence; stipules binate, linear-oblong, 2-3 mm. long, rigid, obtuse, persistent;

leaves alternate, the petiole 2-4 mm. long; blades narrowly oblong or elliptic-

oblong, 5-17 cm. long, 1.5-6 cm. wide, short-acuminate or long-acuminate,

unequal at the base and acute or obtuse, coriaceous, remotely serrate with ap-

pressed or salient teeth, lustrous above, the veins prominent and closely reticulate,

slightly paler beneath; racemes axillary, fasciculate, half as long as the leaves, lax

and few-flowered, the axis puberulent, the slender pedicels 3-5 mm. long; upper

portion of the calyx apparently circumscissile, the persistent portion broadly

campanulate, thin, 3.5 mm. long, glabrous; petals white, 8 mm. long; stamens twice

as long as the calyx tube; fruit globose, green, 2-3 cm. in diameter, glabrous,

smooth, broadly rounded at each end; seed 1, ellipsoid, 1.5-2 cm. long.

Known in Honduras and British Honduras by the name "tango."

The flowers are sweet-scented, with an odor similar to that of sweet

peas (Lathyrus odoratus). The heartwood is chocolate-brown, the

sapwood thick, yellowish, exceedingly hard and heavy, rather fine-

textured, finishes very smoothly, and is very strong. It is suitable

for tool handles. In Honduras it is utilized for cabinetwork and

construction, also for ax handles.

152 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

III. PAPILIONATAE

Key to the tribes

Stamens free 1. Sophoreae.

Stamens united, or 1 of them sometimes free from the others.

Valves of the fruit breaking into joints, or sometimes continuous but the fruits

then produced in the ground 6. Hedysareae.

Valves of the fruit continuous; fruits never produced in the ground.

Leaves digitately 3-foliolate 2. Genisteae.

Leaves pinnately 3-many-foliolate, if digitate with more than 3 leaflets.

Plants tendril-bearing, or scandent and with even-pinnate leaves.

7. Vicieae.

Plants never tendril-bearing, never scandent and with even-pinnate leaves.

Leaflets 3, or rarely only 1.

Fruit very small, often shorter than the calyx, indehiscent or dehiscent,

sometimes spirally coiled, not linear and 2-valvate; leaflets often

denticulate; flowers solitary, umbellate, or capitate. .3. Trifolieae.

Fruit much longer than the calyx, usually linear or oblong, never

spirally coiled, 2-valvate; leaflets entire or lobate, never denticu-

late.

Plants usually scandent; flowers racemose or fasciculate.

8. Phaseoleae.

Plants not scandent or twining; flowers capitate or umbellate.

4. Loteae.

Leaflets 5 or more in all or most of the leaves, rarely fewer.

Fruit usually large, indehiscent, membranaceous to coriaceous,

ligneous, or drupaceous; usually large shrubs or trees or woody

vines 9. Dalbergieae.

Fruit dehiscent, never ligneous or drupaceous, sometimes indehiscent

but then small and 1-2-seeded, or membranaceous-inflated ;

plants often or mostly herbaceous, never woody vines . 5. Galegeae.

1. Sophoreae

Petal 1; ovules 2; fruit short, compressed, narrowly winged along the upper

suture Ateleia.

Petals 5.

Ovule 1; fruit with a large basal wing; leaflets pellucid-punctate.

Leaflets acute; anthers longer than the filaments Myroxylon.

Leaflets rounded or retuse at the apex; anthers shorter than the filaments.

Myrospermum.

Ovules 2 or more; fruit not winged; leaflets not pellucid-punctate.

Stamens long-exserted Sweetia.

Stamens not exserted.

Ovary and fruit sessile Ormosia.

Ovary and fruit stipitate Dussia.

2. Genisteae

Leaflets more than 3; flowers usually blue Lupinus.

Leaflets 3, or the leaves often simple, 1-foliolate, or wanting; flowers yellow.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 153

Stamen tube cleft on one side; legume inflated Crotalaria.

Stamen tube not cleft; legume flat Spartium.

3. Trifolieae

Fruit usually spirally coiled, often armed with spines Medicago.

Fruit not coiled, unarmed.

Leaves pinnately 3-foliolate Melilotus.

Leaves digitately 3-foliolate Trifolium.

4. Loteae

A single genus in Guatemala Lotus.

5. Galegeae

Hairs of the pubescence usually attached by the middle; connective of the anther

appendaged Indigofera.

Hairs of the pubescence attached by the base; connective of the anther not

appendaged.

Seeds usually 1-2; leaflets usually conspicuously dotted with dark glands.

Seed 1 ; large shrub or small tree Apoplanesia.

Seeds 2 or rarely more.

Stamens diadelphous; trees Eysenhardtia.

Stamens monadelphous; herbs or shrubs Dalea.

Seeds several or numerous; leaflets not gland-dotted.

Seeds strophiolate; shrubs Harpalyce.

Seeds estrophiolate.

Legume inflated and bladder-like; shrubs or trees with yellow flowers.

Diphysa.

Legume not inflated.

Inflorescence terminal or leaf-opposed.

Style barbate only at the apex Tephrosia.

Style barbate along the inner side Barbieria.

Inflorescence axillary.

Legume transversely septate within; plants herbaceous or suffrutescent.

Style glabrous; plants glaucous or glaucescent Sesbania.

Style barbate; plants not glaucous Cracca.

Legume not transversely septate within.

Plants herbaceous, small, decumbent Astragalus.

Plants trees or large shrubs.

Style coiled Lennea.

Style straight or slightly curved.

Style barbate Coursetia.

Style glabrous or nearly so Gliricidia.

6. Hedysareae

Fruit not articulate, subterete, produced below the surface of the soil .... Arachis.

Fruit usually articulate and compressed, produced above the ground.

Leaflets 3 or 4, rarely only 1.

154 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Leaflets 4.

Plants scandent; bracts of the inflorescence small and inconspicuous.

Poiretia.

Plants not scandent; bracts large, green, conspicuous Zornia.

Leaflets 3 or rarely only 1.

Stipels present at the base of the petiolules; flowers purple, pink, or white.

Desmodium.

Stipels none; flowers bright yellow Stylosanthes.

Leaflets 5 or more in all or most of the leaves.

Terminal joint of the fruit samaroid, with a large terminal wing; more or less

woody vines; leaflets 5 Nissolia.

Terminal joint of the fruit not winged.

Legume not articulate; slender annuals; leaflets numerous, about 20 pairs.

Climacorachis.

Legume articulate.

Plants scandent; leaflets usually 9 Chaetocalyx.

Plants not scandent.

Legume tetragonous; shrubs; leaflets 3-5 Pachecoa.

Legume compressed; leaflets usually more than 5, often very numerous.

Aeschynomene.

7. Vicieae

Leaves without tendrils; a slender woody vine Abrus.

Leaves, at least some of them, terminated by tendrils; plants herbaceous.

Legume turgid, not compressed.

Leaflets dentate; style filiform Cicer.

Leaflets entire; style dilated above .Pisum.

Legume compressed and flat.

Stamen sheath oblique at the apex; style barbate at the apex Vicia.

Stamen sheath not oblique at the apex; style longitudinally barbate along

one side Lathyrus.

8. Phaseoleae

Flowers not closely resembling those of a bean or pea, either the standard or the

keel much larger than normal.

Plants trees or shrubs, often armed with prickles; standard much larger than

the other petals Erythrina.

Plants woody vines, unarmed; keel much larger than the other petals. . .Mucuna.

Flowers closely resembling those of a bean or pea.

Style barbate about the apex or along one side.

Keel spirally coiled.

Peduncles 1-flowered Minkelersia.

Peduncles few-many-flowered Phaseolus.

Keel almost straight or arcuate, not spirally coiled.

Rachis of the inflorescence not nodose; vines or erect shrubs or herbs.

Clitoria.

Rachis of the inflorescence conspicuously nodose; herbaceous or woody vines.

Flowers yellow Vigna.

Flowers usually purple, not yellow.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 155

Lower margin of the legume conspicuously glandular-serrulate and

rough Dolichos.

Lower margin of the legume not glandular-serrulate .... Pachyrrhizus.

Style glabrous.

Rachis of the inflorescence conspicuously nodose.

Vexillar stamen free.

Calyx 4-lobate Galactia .

Calyx 4-lobate but the uppermost lobe 2-dentate Calopogonium.

Vexillar stamen more or less united with the others.

Calyx almost equally 4-lobate Dioclea.

Calyx conspicuously 2-labiate Canavalia.

Rachis of the inflorescence not nodose.

Ovules 1-2 ; flowers usually yellow.

Seeds transverse; plants not twining Eriosema.

Seeds longitudinal; plants twining Rhynchosia.

Ovules numerous.

Plants erect shrubs; leaflets gland-dotted beneath Cajanus.

Plants herbaceous or, if suffrutescent, twining; leaflets not gland-dotted

beneath.

Corolla less than 8 mm. long; bracts deciduous; standard not append-

aged Teramnus.

Corolla more than 1 cm. long; bracts usually persistent; standard

appendaged at the base.

Calyx tube cylindric Cologania.

Calyx tube broadly campanulate Centrosema.

9. Dalbergieae

Leaflets alternate.

Anther cells erect and dehiscent by a short terminal slit or divergent and

dehiscent by longitudinal slits Dalbergia.

Anther cells parallel, longitudinally dehiscent.

Calyx obtuse at the base; fruit samaroid, with a large apical wing, rarely

circinnate and not winged; flowers usually purple Machaerium.

Calyx acute at the base.

Flowers yellow; fruit suborbicular, winged on all sides Pterocarpus.

Flowers pinkish white; fruit with a large terminal wing Vatairea.

Leaflets opposite.

Fruit with 4 longitudinal wings Pisddia.

Fruit not winged, or with a single wing along the margin.

Flowers yellow; leaves opposite Platymiscium.

Flowers not yellow; leaves alternate.

Legume compressed and flat Lonchocarpus.

Legume not compressed.

Fruit drupaceous, subglobose, 1-seeded; leaflets numerous Andira.

Fruit dry, elongate, usually several-seeded, sometimes 1-seeded and

globose; leaflets usually 5 Muellera.

156 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

ABRUS L.

Slender woody vines; leaves small, even-pinnate, the leaflets numerous,

exstipellate, the petiole terminated by a bristle; flowers racemose, terminal or

axillary on short branches, fasciculate at the nodes of the rachis, small, pink or

whitish; calyx truncate, the teeth very short, the 2 upper ones subconnate;

standard ovate, narrowed into a short claw more or less adherent to the stamen

tube; wings narrowly falcate-oblong, the keel arcuate, longer and broader than the

wings; stamens 9, connate into a cleft sheath, the anthers uniform; ovary subses-

sile, many-ovulate, the style short, incurved, not barbate, the stigma capitate;

fruit oblong or linear, compressed, bivalvate, subseptate within between the seeds;

seeds subglobose or short-oblong, lustrous.

About 5 species, in the tropics of both hemispheres, only one of

them in North America.

Abrus precatorius L. Syst. ed. 12. 472. 1767.

Moist or wet thickets or forest, at or little above sea level;

British Honduras; southern Mexico; Costa Rica; West Indies;

South America; tropical Asia and Africa.

A small or large vine, often climbing over tall trees, the branches sparsely

short-pilose or almost glabrous; leaflets 10-20 pairs, oblong, deciduous, 1-2 cm.

long, rounded at each end, sparsely and minutely appressed-pilose; racemes short,

crowded, many-flowered; calyx 2-4 mm. long; corolla pinkish, 9-12 mm. long;

fruit oblong, 4 cm. long or shorter, 3-5-seeded; seeds small and bean-like, bright

scarlet, with a large black spot at the hilum.

Called "John Crow bead" in British Honduras; "peonia"

(Yucatan); "oxoac" (Yucatan, Maya). Other English names are

"bead-vine," "wild licorice," and "crab's-eyes." The strong coarse

stems are sometimes used as a substitute for twine. The stems and

especially the roots have the flavor and odor of licorice, and they are

reported to have been used in some regions as a substitute for it.

The root is said to contain glycyrrhizin, the same principle found in

commercial licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra L.). The leaves are sensitive

to changes in the intensity of light, drooping to a vertical position

during the night and rising to a horizontal position in the morning.

The plant has been reported to be poisonous to stock. The seeds

are known to be poisonous, having been employed in the Old World

for criminal poisoning of human beings, and are said to contain

abric acid and two proteid poisons, one of which has received the

name "abrine." The seeds are very handsome and often are strung

to make bracelets and necklaces. Because of their uniform size,

they have been much used in the Orient as weights by jewel mer-

chants, and it is even stated that the carat was based upon the weight

of Abrus seeds. In Central America, as far as we have observed,

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 157

the plant is a rare one, found but infrequently along the Atlantic

coast. In southern Florida it sometimes becomes a pernicious weed,

especially in orange groves. Such a grove seen by the senior author

a few years ago was one great tangle of the vines, so densely inter-

laced that it had been found impractical to harvest the fruit. The

grove resembled a gigantic spider web.

AESCHYNOMENE L.

Herbs, erect or procumbent, sometimes shrubs; leaves odd-pinnate, the leaflets

numerous or few, small, entire, ( not stipellate; stipules setaceous or lanceolate;

flowers small, yellow, often striped with dark red or purple, racemose, the racemes

axillary or rarely terminal, simple or branched; bracts mostly stipuliform, the

bractlets appressed to the calyx; calyx lobes subequal or connate to form a bila-

biate calyx, the upper lobe entire or 2-fid, the lower one entire or 3-fid; standard

orbicular, short-unguiculate; wings obliquely obovate or oblong, about equaling

the standard; keel obovate and slightly incurved or narrow and strongly incurved,

the petals sometimes barely coherent; stamens connate, the anthers uniform;

ovary stipitate, 2-many-ovulate, the style incurved, naked, the stigma terminal;

legume stipitate, composed of 2-many flat or somewhat convex joints, smooth or

muricate, indehiscent or rarely dehiscent along the lower suture.

About 70 species, chiefly in tropical regions and mostly American.

Probably all the Central American species are covered by the follow-

ing treatment.

Stipules conspicuously produced below the point of insertion and more or less

auriculate.

Leaflets acute or acutish, the costa close to the margin.

Joints of the fruit 5 mm. wide, sparsely ciliate but otherwise glabrous.

A. tricholoma.

Joints of the fruit about 3 mm. wide, usually hirsute, or at least pubescent.

A. americana.

Leaflets very obtuse, the costa central.

Fruit and stems sparsely or densely hispid A. virginica.

Fruit and stems glabrous, or the stems rarely very sparsely pilose.

Pedicels glabrous; flowers 10-12 mm. long; bracts entire A. Deamii.

Pedicels finely and densely setulose-hispidulous; flowers 7-8 mm. long;

bracts dentate A. sensitiva.

Stipules not produced below the point of insertion.

Costa of the leaflets ex centric, often very close to the margin; plants woody or

suffrutescent.

Leaflets acute, the costa very close to one margin A. compacta.

Leaflets obtuse, mucronate, the costa excentric but not very close to either

margin A. fascicularis.

Costa of the leaflets central or nearly so.

Plants woody throughout A. nicaraguensis.

Plants herbaceous.

158 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Plants glabrous or nearly so, without viscid pubescence, erect.

A. paniculata.

Plants viscid-hirsute or viscid-pilose with spreading hairs, usually pro-

cumbent or decumbent.

Stipe of the fruit several times longer than the calyx; joints of the fruit

6-8 A. falcata.

Stipe of the fruit shorter than the calyx or but little exceeding it; joints

of the fruit 2-3.

Joints of the fruit 2; racemes mostly shorter than the leaves.

A, hystrix.

Joints of the fruit 3; racemes longer than the leaves.

Joints of the fruit densely white-tomentose A, eriocarpa.

Joints of the fruit glabrous or very sparsely pilose. . . .A. brasiliana.

Aeschynomene americana L. Sp. PI. 713. 1753. A. americana

var. longifolia Micheli in Bonn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 20: 284. 1895

(type from Casillas, Santa Rosa, Heyde &Lux 4172). A. floribunda

Mart. & Gal. Bull. Acad. Brux. 10, pt. 2: 180. 1843. Pega-ropa;

Toronjolillo (fide Aguilar).

Common in dry or wet thickets or fields, often in cultivated

ground, frequent in ditches and other wet places, sometimes in

pine-oak forest, 2,000 meters or less, most common at low elevations;

Alta Verapaz; Izabal; El Progreso; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jalapa;

Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez ; Chi-

maltenango; Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu; Huehuetenango; doubtless

also in several other departments. Mexico; British Honduras to

Salvador and Panama; West Indies; South America.

Annual or essentially so, erect and sometimes more than a meter high, usually

somewhat lower, sometimes decumbent or spreading, often bushy-branched, the

stems striate, usually rather densely hirsute with yellowish, somewhat viscid hairs;

stipules conspicuous, linear-lanceolate, striate, long-attenuate, produced at the

base far below the point of attachment; leaflets numerous, linear or linear-oblong,

mucronate, denticulate near the apex, glabrous, conspicuously nerved, the costa

close to one of the margins, 5-15 mm. long; inflorescence lax, few-flowered, viscid-

hirsute, sometimes rather dense and congested, 6-8 mm. long, buff with purplish

streaks or dull purple almost throughout, usually long-pedicellate; fruit short-

stipitate, composed of 4-8 joints, these almost semicircular, about 3 mm. broad,

sparsely or densely pubescent or often viscid-hirsute.

Called "plumon" and "pie de paloma" in Salvador. The plant

is one of the most common weeds of the Central American lowlands,

and in Guatemala it extends well up into the mountains. It is most

plentiful in roadside ditches and other wet places but often forms

vast stands in old cornfields. Guatemalan material exhibits con-

siderable variation in pubescence and form of the inflorescence and

fruit, so much that it may be possible to find some means of segre-

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 159

gating one or two species from typical A. americana. However, the

apparent differences or variations do not seem to be altogether

constant. There is much variation in corolla color. In some colonies

all the plants have buff corollas while in others the corollas are dull,

rather dark purple.

Aeschynomene brasiliana (Poir.) DC. Prodr. 2: 322. 1825.

Cassia biflora Mill. Card. Diet. ed. 8. 1768, not L. 1753. Hedysarum

brasilianum Poir. Encycl. 6: 448. 1804. A. biflora Fa we. & Rendle,

Fl. Jam. 4: 27. 1920.

Rocky open plains or hillsides, or brushy rocky slopes, sometimes

in pine forest, 500-1,500 meters; Chiquimula; Jalapa; Escuintla;

Guatemala. Southern Mexico; Costa Rica; Panama; West Indies;

South America.

Plants annual, procumbent, often much branched, the stems sometimes a

meter long, usually densely viscid-pilose; stipules small, striate, not extended

below the point of attachment; leaves small, the leaflets 5-8 pairs, oblong-obovate,

8-12 mm. long, 4-6 mm. wide, rounded at the apex, glabrous on the upper surface

or nearly so, densely short-pilose beneath; inflorescence laxly paniculate, longer

than the leaves, few-flowered, viscid-pilose; flowers buff, 7 mm. long; pods normally

3-jointed, sometimes with 1 or 4 joints, reflexed, the joints about 3 mm. broad,

usually with at least a few short whitish hairs on the faces.

Aeschynomene compacta Rose, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 5:

191. 1899.

Dry brushy slopes, 250-400 meters; Zacapa (Rio Hondo, Steyer-

mark 29500). Michoacan to Oaxaca.

A shrub 1-1.5 meters high with slender or rather thick branches, these whitish-

strigose; stipules linear-attenuate, striate, stiff, not prolonged below the point of

attachment; leaves small, the leaflets usually 20 pairs or more, linear-oblong and

somewhat falcate, mostly 5-7 mm. long, acute, glabrous above, whitish-pilose

beneath, crowded, the costa adjacent to one of the margins; inflorescence mostly

1-flowered, the flowers short-pedicellate, butter-yellow, 8 mm. long, the standard

pilose outside; fruit pubescent, the joints usually 2-3, about 4 mm. wide, almost

free and connected only by a very narrow isthmus.

Aeschynomene Deamii Rob. & Bartl. Proc. Amer. Acad. 43:

52. 1907. Zinzinacax (Pet<§n, Maya).

In marshes or in floating islands of vegetation, growing in water,

at or little above sea level; Pete"n; Izabal (type from San Felipe,

Lago de Izabal, C. C. Deam 26). British Honduras.

Plants herbaceous or suffrutescent, sometimes 3.5 meters high, branched,

glabrous or nearly so; stipules small, subulate; leaflets about 18 pairs, linear-

oblong, 1 cm. long, rounded and mucronate at the apex, glabrous, inconspicuously

160 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

veined; inflorescences 2-7-flowered, in anthesis much shorter than the leaves, the

flowers long-pedicellate; bracts ovate, herbaceous, scarious-margined, acute;

calyx glabrous, 2-parted, 9 mm. long; corolla glabrous, yellow, 12 mm. long;

fruit about 10 cm. long and 6.5 mm. wide, glabrous, the margins thick, slightly

undulate, not constricted between the seeds, the joints about 12.

Aeschynomene eriocarpa Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus. Bot.

23: 9. 1943.

Moist or dry, open or brushy, often rocky slopes, 200-800 meters;

endemic; Zacapa (type collected near Santa Rosalia, 2 miles south

of Zacapa, Steyermark 29313) ; Jutiapa.

A prostrate annual, abundantly branched, slender, the stems densely white-

pilose with short spreading hairs, a very few longer viscid hairs intermixed;

stipules very small, broadly ovate, acute, striate-nerved; leaves small, the leaflets

3-4 pairs, broadly oblong-obovate, 5-8 mm. long, 3-5 mm. wide, broadly rounded

at the apex, obtuse at the base, glabrous above, pilose beneath with rather long,

slender, subappressed, whitish hairs; inflorescences longer than the leaves, few-

flowered or sometimes racemose and with numerous flowers, the rachis often

strongly zigzag, densely whitish-pilose and with a few longer viscid hairs, the bracts

very broadly ovate, obtuse, pilose; calyx 3 mm. long, densely short-pilose; corolla

yellow, 7 mm. long, the standard sparsely pilosulous; joints of the fruit usually 3,

sometimes 2, very densely white-tomentose, the joints connected by a very narrow

isthmus, semiorbicular.

Aeschynomene falcata (Poir.) DC. Prodr. 2: 322. 1825.

Hedysarum fakatum Poir. Encycl. 6: 448. 1804. A. elegans Schlecht.

& Cham. Linnaea 5: 583. 1830.

Stony fields or brushy slopes, often in pine forest, sometimes in

marshes, 1,600 meters or less; Alta Verapaz; Izabal; Jalapa; Jutiapa;

Escuintla; Sacatepe*quez; Suchitepe'quez; Huehuetenango. Southern

Mexico; Costa Rica; Panama; South America.

Plants probably annual, erect or usually procumbent, a meter long or less,

often much branched, the stems densely hispid and often with some viscid pubes-

cence; stipules lanceolate, striate, acuminate, not produced at the base; leaflets

mostly 4-9 pairs, obovate-oblong, 6-10 mm. long, rounded at the apex, sparsely

appressed-pilose, slightly paler beneath, reticulate- veined; inflorescence mostly

longer than the leaves, lax, several-flowered, densely viscid-hispid, the bracts

small, lance-ovate; flowers 6 mm. long, deep yellow or buff, the standard sparsely

appressed-pubescent; legume borne on a very long, slender stipe, the joints 4-8,

sparsely puberulent, 2-3 mm. wide, deeply constricted at the point of junction

with the next joint.

Aeschynomene fascicularis Schlecht. & Cham. Linnaea 5:

584. 1830.

Moist or dry, brushy, rocky slopes, in thin forest or in thickets,

1,400 meters or less; Pete*n; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jutiapa. Mexico.

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 161

A slender shrub 2 meters high or less, often simple, commonly with a few

long, slender, sparsely leafy branches, the stems whitish-strigose; stipules linear-

lanceolate, long-attenuate, striate, short-pilose; leaflets numerous, oblong-linear,

mostly 9-12 mm. long, rounded and mucronate at the apex, glabrous above, pilose

beneath with lax whitish hairs, the nerves and veins conspicuous beneath and

reticulate, the costa distinctly ex centric but remote from both margins; flowers

solitary or fasciculate in the leaf axils, dull yellow, short-pedunculate, 9-12 mm.

long, the standard short-pilose; legume 5 mm. wide, deeply constricted between

the seeds, the joints sparsely pilose with short pale appressed hairs.

The Maya name is recorded from Yucatan as "cabalpich," and

the plant is called also "pegapega." It is said to be eaten there by

cattle, but as it occurs in Guatemala the plants are too few to be of

any importance as forage.

Aeschynomene hystrix Poir. Diet. Suppl. 4: 77. 1823.

Open, often rocky, moist or dry slopes, 700-1,600 meters; Jutiapa;

Escuintla; Huehuetenango. Southern Mexico; British Honduras;

Panama; South America.

Plants herbaceous, annual or perennial, procumbent, the slender stems pilose

or viscid-hispid, often much branched; stipules lanceolate, subulate-acuminate,

striate, not produced at the base; leaflets usually 10-12 pairs, oblong, 6-8 mm.

long, rounded at the apex and apiculate, rather thick, glabrous above, appressed-

pilose beneath, reticulate- veined; racemes simple or often branched from the base,

mostly shorter than the leaves, the bracts small, ovate; flowers 5 mm. long, yellow;

joints of the fruit 2, puberulent or pilose, scarcely 3 mm. wide, separated by a

narrow isthmus.

Aeschynomene nicaraguensis (Oerst.) Standl. Trop. Woods

34: 41. 1933. Brya nicaraguensis Oerst. Kjob. Vid. Medd. 13. 1853

(type from Nicaragua). A. Calderoniana Standl. Journ. Wash.

Acad. Sci. 14: 93. 1924 (type from Santa Ana, Salvador).

Chiquimula, Cerro Socorro, southeast of Concepcion de las

Minas, 1,700 meters, Steyermark 31117. Salvador; Nicaragua.

A slender shrub 2-2.5 meters high, sparsely branched, the young branchlets

densely puberulent; stipules very small, ovate, deciduous; leaflets 5-10 pairs,

oval-oblong or oblong-obovate, 9-18 mm. long, 5-8 mm. wide, rounded at the apex,

obliquely rounded at the base, sparsely setose-strigose when young but soon

glabrate, the venation somewhat prominent beneath and laxly reticulate; racemes

few-flowered, shorter than the leaves, the flowers dark purple or dull yellow with

purple stripes; calyx 2-2.5 mm. long, appressed-pilose; standard 6-7 mm. long,

densely sericeous; joints of the fruit 1-2, semiorbicular, 10-15 mm. long, 6-8 mm.

wide, densely whitish-strigillose or finally glabrate.

Aeschynomene paniculata Willd. ex Vogel, Linnaea 12: 95.

1838. A. laevis Mart. & Gal. Bull. Acad. Brux. 10, pt. 2: 180. 1845,

not Noronha, 1790.

162 FIELD IANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Grassy or rocky, open slopes, sometimes in hilly pine forest, 1,400

meters or less; Izabal; Zacapa; Chiquimula; Jutiapa. Southern

Mexico; British Honduras; Salvador; South America.

Plants erect, herbaceous, usually or always annual, a meter high or usually

lower, sparsely branched, the stems very slender and wiry, sparsely leafy, striate,

glabrous or nearly so; stipules small, lanceolate, striate, acute, not produced at

the base; leaflets commonly 30-50 pairs, 6 mm. long or less, linear-oblong, obtuse

or rounded at the apex; racemes lax, terminal and paniculate, the bracts minute,

ovate; flowers pale yellow or whitish, striped with purple; calyx 3 mm. long;

corolla 8 mm. long, the standard almost glabrous; legume short-stipitate, the

joints 4-6, glabrous or minutely appressed-pilose, about 3 mm. wide, separated

by a very narrow isthmus.

Called "lengua de pajaro" in Salvador.

Aeschynomene sensitiva Swartz, Prodr. Veg. Ind. Occ. 107.

1788. Toronjilillo (fide Aguilar).

Wet fields, marshes, or along streams, 1,400 meters or less, chiefly

at very low elevations; Izabal; Baja Verapaz; Jalapa; Escuintla;

Guatemala; San Marcos. Mexico; British Honduras to Panama;

West Indies; South America; Africa.

An erect herb, 2 meters high or less, branched, the stems glabrous or somewhat

glandular-scabrous; stipules produced at the base, obtuse or aristate-acute,

deciduous; leaflets 15-20 pairs, oblong, 6-15 mm. long, obtuse or rounded at the

apex, glabrous; racemes often longer than the leaves, lax, few-flowered, the bracts

small, deciduous; flowers 7-8 mm. long, yellow striped with dark red or brown,

the standard brown; legume 4-8 cm. long, 4-6 mm. wide, glabrous, very slightly

constricted between the numerous articulations, slender-stipitate.

Aeschynomene tricholoma Standl. & Steyerm. Field Mus.

Bot. 23: 10. 1943.

Damp thickets or brushy rocky slopes, 400-1,200 meters; Zacapa;

Chiquimula (type collected on the divide on the road from Zacapa

to Chiquimula, Standley 73714); Jutiapa (near Jutiapa); endemic.

An erect annual a meter high or less, branched, the stems densely viscid-

hispid; stipules linear-attenuate, produced at the base, striate, pectinate-dentate,

hispidulous; leaves small, the leaflets about 23 pairs, linear-oblong, 5-10 mm. long,

obtuse or subacute and mucronate at the apex, denticulate on one side near the

apex, glabrous, the costa strongly excentric, the nerves prominent beneath;

racemes elongate, lax, several-flowered, about equaling the leaves, the branches

viscid-hispidulous, the bracts lance-ovate, long-acuminate, coarsely dentate, the

teeth tipped with long yellowish setae; flowers deep yellow striped with purple-

brown, about 7 mm. long, the calyx bilabiate, glabrous; standard glabrous; legume

glabrous except on the margins, there very sparsely ciliate, slightly curved on one

margin, deeply constricted on the other, the joints usually 4, sometimes 5, semi-

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 163

orbicular, rather prominently and laxly reticulate-veined, the stipe little exceeding

the calyx.

In general appearance as well as in most details this is like

A. americana, but the fruit characters seem to be sufficient to justify

its specific segregation.

Aeschynomene virginica (L.) B.S.P. Prel. Cat. N. Y. 13.

1888. Hedysarum virginicum L. Sp. PI. 750. 1753. A. hispida Willd.

Sp. PI. 3: 1163. 1800.

Wet thickets or fields, often in ditches or sandy river beds, often

growing in shallow water, 1,350 meters or less; Zacapa; Jutiapa;

Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Retalhuleu; San Marcos; Huehuetenango.

Southern United States; Mexico; Honduras; Panama; West Indies;

South America.

An erect annual, often much branched, 1.5 meters high or less, the stems

viscid-hispid or in age often glabrate, hispidulous above, at least sparsely so;

stipules ovate, acuminate, 8 mm. long or less, deciduous; leaflets 12-25 pairs,

oblong or linear-oblong, 6-15 mm. long, obtuse or rounded at the apex, glabrous,

the venation inconspicuous; racemes few-flowered; flowers dull yellow with orange

spots or often salmon-red, 1 cm. long; standard glabrous; legume linear, 2.5-4.5

cm. long, 6 mm. wide, sparsely hispidulous or almost glabrous, slender-stipitate,

only slightly constricted between the joints, these 5-10, almost square, easily

separable, thick.

The leaflets in this as in most of the other species are somewhat

sensitive to touch, folding together when the leaves are disturbed

and probably also at night.

ANDIRA Lamarck

Usually large trees, unarmed, the leaves alternate, odd-pinnate, the leaflets

generally opposite, the stipels setaceous or none; flowers mostly violaceous,

scattered along the branches of a large terminal panicle, often densely crowded,

subsessile; bracts and bractlets small, caducous; calyx truncate, the teeth short

or obsolete; standard suborbicular, not appendaged; wings almost straight, oblong,

obtuse, free; keel petals similar to the wings, not connate; vexillar stamen free or

rarely connate with the others to form a sheath, the anthers versatile; ovary

stipitate or rarely subsessile, 2-4-ovulate or sometimes 1-ovulate; style short,

incurved, the small stigma terminal; fruit drupaceous, ovoid, indehiscent, the

endocarp ligneous; seed 1, pendulous, the radicle very short, straight, superior.

Perhaps 30 species, in tropical America and Africa. One other

Central American species has been described from Panama. The

only other species of continental North America, A. Galeottiana

Standl., of Mexico, has been collected in Tabasco and is to be

expected in northern Pete"n.

164 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

Andira inermis (Swartz) HBK. Nov. Gen. & Sp. 6: 385. 1823.

Geoffraea inermis Swartz, Prodr. Veg. Ind. Occ. 106. 1788. A.

excelsa HBK. loc. cit. Almendro; Almendro cimarron; Guacamayo

(Izabal).

Wet to rather dry forest, on hillsides, plains, or in swamps, often

abundant along stream banks, and frequent in pastures, sometimes

on limestone, 900 meters or less; Pete*n; Alta Verapaz; Baja Verapaz;

El Progreso; Izabal; Zacapa; Jutiapa; Santa Rosa; Escuintla;

Guatemala; Solola; Suchitepe"quez ; Retalhuleu; San Marcos. South-

ern Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and Panama; West Indies;

South America; western Africa.

A large tree, sometimes 35 meters tall, with a thick trunk sometimes almost a

meter in diameter, the crown spreading or rounded, often very dense, the branchlets

sparsely pilose or glabrate; bark medium brown, the inner bark light pinkish

brown; stipules linear-subulate, 2 cm. long or less, deciduous; leaves large, glabrous

or nearly so; leaflets usually 9-11, oblong to ovate, mostly 5-8 cm. long, acute or

acuminate, obtuse or rounded at the base, subcoriaceous, short-petiolulate, the

nerves and veins obscure; panicles 15-30 cm. long, many-flowered, tomentose;

calyx 3 mm. long, dark purple; corolla reddish purple, the standard 1 cm. long,

glabrous; fruit usually oval, sometimes subglobose, 2.5-4 cm. long or when fresh

even larger.

Sometimes known in Salvador by the names "almendro macho,"

"almendro del rio," "almendro months," or "almendro real";

"yabo," "yaba" (Yucatan); "maca colorada," "pacay," "macayo,"

"moca" (Tabasco); "cabbage-bark," "cornwood," "black blossom-

berry," "carbon," "chaperno," "barley wood" (British Honduras);

"iximche" (British Honduras, Maya). The wood is heavy, hard,

strong, durable, and susceptible of a high polish; varying in color

from yellowish to rose-colored, brown, or almost black; resistant to

decay and insects. It is valued for construction purposes and wheel-

wright work. The name "cabbage-bark" is given to the tree because

the ragged, somewhat unsightly bark suggests the trunks of some

of the cabbage palms. The fresh bark has a disagreeable odor and

mucilaginous taste. Together with the seeds it is used as a purgative,

vermifuge, and narcotic (not in Guatemala, so far as known), but in

large doses it is said to be a dangerous poison. The seeds are reported

to contain a poisonous alkaloid. The almendro is one of the common

trees of the Guatemalan lowlands and occurs in great abundance in

some regions, especially on the Pacific plains, where the trees often

form small, almost pure stands. The trunk frequently is supported

by buttresses, which sometimes are 3 meters high. The tree is a

handsome and showy one in flower, in March and April. The flowers

are visited by myriads of bees, whose humming often becomes so

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 165

loud as to make one chary of approaching the tree. Fallen flowers or

petals often form a dense carpet beneath the trees. The fruits with

their large seeds doubtless are eaten by pigs and other animals,

although no data are at hand regarding the subject.

APOPLANESIA Presl

Small trees, glandular-punctate; leaves odd-pinnate, the leaflets numerous,

entire, exstipellate; stipules minute; flowers small, in terminal and axillary panicles,

the bracts minute; calyx membranaceous, the lobes subequal, obtuse, accrescent

in fruit and reticulate- veined; petals of about equal length, unguiculate, the

standard obovate-oblong, reflexed; wings obliquely linear, the keel petals free,

spatulate, obtuse, undulate; stamens 10, connate at the base into a short cleft

sheath, the anthers uniform; ovary sessile, 1-ovulate, the style filiform, glabrous,

the stigma oblique-capitate; fruit semiorbicular, compressed, half-included,

coriaceous, gland-dotted, rugose, apiculate.

One other species has been described from Venezuela.

Apoplanesia paniculata Presl, Symb. Bot. 1: 63. pi. 41. 1831.

Madre de flecha.

Dry, brushy or thinly forested, often rocky hillsides or plains,

mostly at 200-300 meters; Zacapa; El Progreso. Western and

southern Mexico.

A small or medium-sized tree, commonly 6-9 meters high, with a rather broad,

rounded crown, the branchlets glabrate; leaflets 5-8 pairs, oval or oblong, petiolu-

late, 1-7 cm. long, rounded or emarginate at the apex, rounded at the base,

sparsely or densely black-dotted, at least beneath, puberulent or velutinous-

pilosulous when young; panicles rather dense and many-flowered, about equaling

the leaves, finely pubescent, the flowers short-pedicellate, racemose, white; calyx

in anthesis 3 mm. long, in age pale green and 6-10 mm. long, dotted with black

glands, the lobes suberect, rounded at the apex; fruit small and nut-like,

puberulent.

The Maya names of Yucatan are "kiik-che" and "chulul." The

latter signifies "bow," and the wood is said to have been used com-

monly among the Mayas for making bows. The name given the

tree in Zacapa evidently alludes to a similar use there. Apparently

the same use was spread into remote regions, for in western Mexico

the tree is often called "palo de arco." The bark is reported to yield

a yellow dye. The tree is abundant about Zacapa, where at the end

of the rainy season the trees are conspicuous for a few days because

of their dense masses of white flowers.

ARACHIS L. Peanut

Prostrate, chiefly annual herbs; leaves odd-pinnate, the leaflets usually 5,

exstipellate; stipules adnate at the base to the petiole; flowers crowded in a dense

166 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

sessile axillary spike, sessile in the axis of a leaf or of an auriculate bract, or short-

pedicellate; bractlets at the base of the calyx linear; calyx tube filiform, the lobes

membranaceous, the 4 upper ones connate, the lowest one slender, distinct; petals

and stamens inserted at the apex of the tube, the standard suborbicular, the

wings free, oblong, the keel incurved, rostrate; stamens connate to form a closed

tube, the alternate anthers elongate, subbasifixed, the others short and versatile;

ovary sessile at the base of the calyx tube, 2-3-ovulate, after anthesis stipitate by

the greatly elongate, rigid torus and continuous with it, terminated at the apex

by a stigma-like callus; style long-filiform, the stigma minute; legume ripening

beneath the soil, oblong, thick, reticulate, indehiscent, subtorulose, continuous

within, the pericarp spongious; seeds 1-3, irregularly ovoid; cotyledons thick,

carnose, the radicle very short, suberect.

About 7 species, all natives of South America, chiefly of southern

Brazil.

Arachis hypogaea L. Sp. PI. 741. 1753. Mani; Mania; Caca-

huate, Cacahuete (seldom used in Guatemala, but understood, at

least, by many persons). Peanut.

Native of southern Brazil; cultivated commonly in Guatemala,

chiefly in the mountains but sometimes at low elevations.

An annual, with spreading hairs on the stems and petioles; leaflets obovate or

broadly oblong, 2.5-5 cm. long, rounded and minutely mucronate at the apex,

ciliate, glabrous above, pilose or glabrate beneath; calyx tube 2-4 cm. long, the

limb 5 mm. long; corolla golden yellow, the standard 1 cm. long; fruit borne on a

stiff stalk 5-7 cm. long.

The peanut, grown in such vast amounts in the United States

for food and as a source of oil and stock feed, is not well known in

Central America. The only country in which it is at all common is

Guatemala, which has an abundance of sandy soil suitable for its

cultivation. It is grown in substantial amounts in the Oriente and

very commonly in the highlands, at middle or rather high elevations.

The seeds are eaten either raw or roasted, and large sacks of them

may be seen in most of the markets, especially at holiday times.

Candy made from the nuts and panela (raw sugar) also is seen com-

monly, especially in Coban. The roasted nuts usually are hard and

damp, so hard as to be dangerous to the teeth, although that would

not discourage people who are accustomed to eating raw habas

(ViciaFaba). The Direccion de Agricultura reports the Guatemalan

peanut production for 1938-39 as 950,800 pounds. More than half

of this amount came from the Department of Guatemala, with

smaller amounts from Chiquimula and San Marcos. In central

Guatemala the peanut is called mania more often than mani, the

latter being the current term in other parts of Central America and

STANDEE Y AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 167

in Cuba. Zayas believes that this term is of Antillean origin, because

it was used by some of the earliest writers, such as Las Casas. The

names "cacahuate" and "cacahuete," of Nahuatl derivation, signi-

fying "ground cacao," are used commonly in Mexico. It is not

known at what period the peanut was introduced into Central

America, but its cultivation can not be very ancient. A caserio of

Jutiapa bears the name of Cacahuatal (peanut plantation), and

one in Chiquimula is called Cacahuatepeque, "peanut mountain."

It would be interesting to know how the latter name, pure Nahuatl,

originated. Peanuts could be grown profitably on a large scale in

Guatemala and other parts of Central America to supply oil for

cooking, since shortening is one of the principal imports of these

countries. Freshly roasted peanuts seem to be little appreciated

in Central America, where hot peanuts are rarely if ever obtainable.

At a fiesta in San Juan Ostuncalco, a man was observed selling hot

peanuts boiled for a short time in cane sirup, but they were so hard

as to be all but inedible.

•

ASTRAGALUS L.

Chiefly annual or perennial herbs; leaves normally odd-pinnate, the leaflets

entire, not stipellate; stipules free or adnate to the petiole; flowers mostly small,

violet, purple, whitish, or pale yellow, racemose, spicate, or umbellate, the pedun-

cles usually axillary; bracts commonly small and membranaceous; calyx tubular,

the teeth subequal; petals long-unguiculate, the standard erect, ovate, the wings

oblong; keel equaling the wings or slightly shorter, almost straight, obtuse;

vexillar stamen free, the others connate, the anthers uniform; ovary sessile or

stipitate, many-ovulate, the style filiform, straight or incurved, not barbate, the

stigma small, terminal; legume sessile or stipitate, 2-valvate or rarely indehiscent,

membranaceous to coriaceous, 1-2-celled; seeds generally reniform, not strophio-

late, the funicle filiform.

One of the largest genera of Leguminosae, represented by perhaps

a thousand species, only one of which is native in Central America.

Many species occur in Mexico.

Astragalus guatemalensis Hemsl. Biol. Centr. Amer. Bot. 1:

264. 1880. Atelophragma guatemalensis Rydb. Bull. Torrey Club

55: 159. 1928. Tarayche (fide Aguilar).

Moist thickets, open banks, dry rocky thickets, sometimes along

sandy stream beds, often in oak forest, 1,800-3,500 meters; El

Progreso; Jalapa; Guatemala; Sacatepe"quez (type from Volcan de

Fuego, Salvin &Godman); Chimaltenango; Huehuetenango ; Totoni-

capan; Quezaltenango; San Marcos. Chiapas; Honduras.

168 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

A slender perennial, the stems 50 cm. long or less, prostrate or procumbent,

sparsely strigose; stipules scarious, deltoid, 6-9 mm. long, connate; leaflets 25-33,

elliptic to oblong or obovate, 5-15 mm. long, truncate or retuse at the apex,

glabrous above, sparsely short-strigose beneath; peduncles slender, 4-10 cm. long,

the racemes dense, 2-4 cm. long; calyx rather densely pilose with short black hairs,

the tube 3 mm. long, the subulate teeth 2 mm. long; corolla lilac or purple, 9-10

mm. long; legume glabrous, ellipsoid, short-stipitate, about 15 mm. long and 5-7

mm. wide, acute at each end, thick-walled, 2-celled; seeds 6-8, brown, 2.5 mm. long.

An inconspicuous plant, common at middle and high elevations

in many parts of the Occidente.

ATELEIA Mocino & Sess4

Unarmed shrubs or small trees; leaves odd-pinnate, the leaflets subcoriaceous,

the stipules minute and inconspicuous; flowers small, white, racemose, the racemes

axillary, simple or paniculate; bracts minute; bractlets none; calyx truncate or

with very small teeth; petal 1 (the standard), unguiculate, cucullate; stamens free,

the anthers uniform, ovate; ovary short-stipitate, 2-ovulate, the stigma subsessile,

inflexed; legume stipitate, semiorbicular, compressed and flat, membranaceous,

probably indehiscent, narrowly winged along the upper suture; seed ovate-reni-

form, compressed; cotyledons flat, carnose, the radicle rather long, inflexed.

About 7 species, 3 in Mexico, the others in the West Indies and

South America.

Ateleia cubensis Griseb. Mem. Amer. Acad. Sci. II. 8: 180. 1861.

British Honduras, in open places or in swampy forest, almost

certainly occurring in Pete'n. Campeche; Cuba.

A tree, sometimes 9 meters high with a trunk 20 cm. in diameter, the branches

light brownish, with numerous large elevated lenticels, puberulent at first; leaflets

about 9, petiolulate, elliptic or elliptic-oblong, 2.5-5.5 cm. long, obtuse or narrowly

rounded at the apex, obtuse at the base, often lustrous above, glabrous, puberulent

beneath when young; racemes very numerous, mostly simple, densely brownish-

puberulent, mostly shorter than the leaves, many-flowered, the flowers short-

petiolate, cream-colored, fragrant; calyx 2-2.5 mm. long, very broad, subacute

at the base, densely puberulent, truncate; petal 5 mm. long; stamens long-exserted;

fruit 1-seeded, samara-like, long-stipitate, glabrous, 1.5-2 cm. long, 10-12 mm.

wide, rounded at the apex, acute or acuminate at the base.

9

The Maya name "tuxche" is recorded from British Honduras.

BARBIERIA DC.

More or less woody shrubs or vines; leaves odd-pinnate, the leaflets numerous,

thin, entire, the stipels subulate; stipules subulate-acuminate; flowers large, in

terminal and axillary racemes, in groups of 2-3 along the rachis, the bracts and

bractlets subulate-acuminate; calyx large, tubular, the teeth subulate-attenuate,

subequal; standard oblong, attenuate at the base into a claw, naked within; lower

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 169

petals long-unguiculate, the wings oblong, adherent to the keel and shorter than

it; keel obtuse, about equaling the standard; vexillar stamen free, the others con-

nate into a sheath, the anthers uniform; ovary sessile, many-ovulate, the style

elongate, barbate along the inner side, the stigma small, terminal; legume linear,

straight, flat and compressed, bivalvate, septate within between the seeds, trans-

verse-impressed outside between the seeds; seeds transverse-oblong, not strophio-

late, the funicles very short.

The genus consists of a single species.

Barbieria pinnata (Pers.) Baill. Hist. PI. 2: 263. 1870. Galactia

pinnata Pers. Syn. PI. 2: 302. 1807. Clitoria polyphylla Poir. in Lam.

Encycl. Suppl. 2: 300. 1811. B. polyphylla DC. Me'm. Le'gum. 242.

1825.

Wet forest or thickets, 250-350 meters; Alta Verapaz. Southern

Mexico; British Honduras; western South America; Greater Antilles.

An erect or scandent shrub with slender branches, the branches brown, densely

hirsute with long brown ascending hairs; stipules 1 cm. long or shorter, erect;

leaflets about 15, opposite, short-petiolulate, oblong or ovate-oblong, 2.5-6.5 cm.

long, rounded at each end, glabrous above except along the costa, there sparsely

hirsute, pale beneath, densely pilose with long appressed hairs; flowers red, 5.5 cm.

long, short-pedicellate; calyx 2.5 cm. long, 6 mm. broad, densely puberulent and

sparsely long-hirsute, the lobes half as long as the tube, narrow, with almost

filiform tips; petals glabrous; legume 3.5 cm. long and 6 mm. wide, puberulent

and hirsute.

The plant must be a rare one in continental North America,

since very few collections, apparently, ever have been made.

CAJANUS DC.

Plants erect, suffrutescent, abundantly pubescent; leaves pinnately 3-foliolate,

exstipellate, the leaflets entire, resinous-punctate beneath; stipules caducous;

flowers rather large, yellow and purple, scattered along the short axis of axillary

pedunculate racemes; bracts caducous; bractlets none; calyx lobes acute or acumi-

nate, the 2 upper ones connate to form a 2-dentate lobe; standard orbicular,

reflexed, appendaged at the base with 2 reflexed auricles; wings obliquely obovate,

the keel incurved at the apex, obtuse; vexillar stamen free, the others connate,

the anthers uniform; ovary subsessile, many-ovulate, the style thickened above

the middle, not barbate, slightly dilated below the oblique terminal stigma; legume

linear, obliquely acute, compressed, bivalvate, the valves transversely impressed

between the seeds, scarcely septate within; seeds subcompressed, the hilum lateral,

oblong, not strophiolate.

The genus consists of a single species.

Ca janus bicolor DC. Cat. Hort. Monsp. 85. 1813. Cytisus

Cajan L. Sp. PI. 739. 1753. Cajanus indicus Spreng. Syst. Veg. 3:

170 FIELDIANA: BOTANY, VOLUME 24

248. 1826. Cajanus Cajan Millsp. Field Mus. Bot. 2: 53. 1900.

Alberja; Arbeja; Chicharo (Pete"n); Gandul; Cachito; Frijol chino;

Frijol japones.

Native of the Old World tropics, perhaps of tropical Asia, culti-

vated for its seeds in most tropical regions, and often naturalized

in tropical America. Grown commonly in Guatemala, mostly at

1,500 meters or lower, and more or less naturalized in hedges and

thickets in many places.

Plants stiffly erect, branched, 1-3 meters high, often decidedly woody below;

leaves on rather short petioles, the leaflets narrowly elliptic to lanceolate, 4-9 cm.

long, acute or acuminate, puberulent above and grayish green, densely pale-

tomentulose beneath, conspicuously nerved; flowers about 2 cm. long; calyx 1 cm.

long, densely pubescent, the lowest lobe longer than the others; petals yellow, the

standard often purplish outside; legume about 5-seeded, 5-8 cm. long, 12 mm.

wide, long-rostrate, narrowed at the base; seeds gray or brownish, 7-8 mm. long.

Sometimes called "frijol de palo" in Salvador. The most common

English name is "pigeon pea." In some parts of the earth this is

an important food plant, and in India it is said to rank third in

importance among the leguminous plants grown for food. In

Central America it is of rather minor importance, but in Guate-

mala it is planted commonly at lower elevations, sometimes in fields

of several acres. It is more favored perhaps by the West Indian

residents of the Atlantic coast of Central America than by the

Indian and Spanish population. However, it is grown in some

quantity about Guatemala and Antigua and more commonly on the

Pacific plains and foothills. Once established, the plants bear for

several years and produce their seeds constantly. The seeds usually

are eaten green and always are removed from the pods, but quantities

of the dry seeds are sold in the markets, at least in part for use as

food. In the Pacific bocacosta this plant often is grown as shade

for young coffee bushes before the normal shade of leguminous

trees is established.

CALOPOGONIUM Desvaux

Scandent herbs, or sometimes large, somewhat fruticose vines; leaves pinnately

3-foliolate, stipellate; flowers small or medium-sized, mostly bluish or violaceous,

the peduncles axillary, fasciculate-racemose, elongate or short, the rachis nodose,

the pedicels very short; bracts and bractlets small, caducous; buds not acuminate;

2 upper lobes of the calyx distinct or connate to form one 2-dentate one; standard

obovate, with small inflexed auricles at the base; wings narrow, adherent to the

keel, the keel shorter than the wings, obtuse; vexillar stamen free, the others con-

nate, the anthers uniform; ovary sessile, several-many-ovulate, the style filiform,

not barbate, the stigma terminal, capitate; legume linear, flat and compressed or

STANDLEY AND STEYERMARK: FLORA OF GUATEMALA 171

at maturity biconvex, bivalvate, septate between the seeds; seeds orbicular, some-

what compressed, not strophiolate.

About 12 species, in tropical America. Only the following are

known from Central America.

Stems and legumes hirsute with long, stiff, spreading, usually brownish hairs.

C. mucunoides.

Stems and legumes not hirsute, or sometimes short-hirsute, the pubescence mostly

appressed and whitish, the hairs short.

Racemes greatly elongate and many-flowered, usually 20-30 cm. long or more;

leaflets large, mostly 4-7 cm. wide, very densely sericeous or tomentose

beneath C. caeruleum.

Racemes shorter than the leaves, few-flowered; leaflets mostly 2 cm. wide or

narrower, sparsely strigose or glabrate beneath.

Leaflets mostly oval or broadly ovate, sometimes lance-oblong, rounded or

obtuse at the apex C. galactioides.

Leaflets lanceolate, long-acuminate C. lanceolatum.

Calopogonium caeruleum (Benth.) Hemsl. Biol. Centr. Amer.

Bot. 1: 301. 1880. Stenolobium caeruleum Benth. Ann. Wien. Mus. 2:

125. 1837. Chorreque.

Dry to wet thickets, 1,800 meters or less, chiefly in the tierra

caliente; Alta Verapaz; El Progreso; Zacapa; Jalapa; Jutiapa;

Santa Rosa; Escuintla; Suchitepe"quez; Retalhuleu; San Marcos.

Southern Mexico; British Honduras to Salvador and Panama;

northern South America.

A large or small vine, climbing over shrubs or small trees, sometimes prostrate,

herbaceous or somewhat woody below, the stems rather stout, terete, densely

tomentose or short-pilose with short, whitish or brownish hairs, the nodes often

greatly elongate; leaves long-petiolate, the leaflets broadly rhombic or rounded-

rhombic, sometimes broadly ovate, mostly 5-9 cm. long, subacute to obtuse or

narrowly rounded at the apex, commonly broadly rounded at the base, entire,

conspicuously nerved, very densely pilose on both surfaces with appressed or short

and spreading, whitish or fulvous hairs; racemes very long, 20-40 cm. long or more,

stout, much interrupted, the flowers in few-flowered fascicles, sessile or short-

pedicellate; calyx 4-5 mm. long, densely pilose, the lobes acuminate; petals viola-

ceous, the standard glabrous, 1 cm. long; legume 5-7 cm. long, 7 mm. wide, acute

or obtuse and apiculate, sessile, several-seeded, densely puberulent or short-pilose