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(Last Modified On 1/29/2013)
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(Last Modified On 1/29/2013)
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Species
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PACHIRA AQUATICA Aubl.
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PlaceOfPublication
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Hist. P1. Gui. Fr. 726, t.291, 292. 1775
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Reference
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A. Robyns, Bull. Jard. Bot. Rtat Brux. 33: 234, pl. 8, jig. 9-11. 1963.-Fig. 3.
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Synonym
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Carolinea princeps L. f., Suppl. P1. Syst. Veg. 314. 1781. Pachira grandiflora Tussac, Fl. Antilles 4: 12, pl. 3, 4. 1827. Carolinea macrocarpa Schlecht. & Cham., Linnaea 6: 423. 1831. Pachira macrocarpa (Schlecht. & Cham.) Walp., Rep. Bot. Syst. 1: 329. 1842. Pachira longiflora Hook., Curt. Bot. Mag. 76:t.4549. 1850. Pachira aquatica var. a surinamensis Decne., Fl. Serres 23: 46. 1880. Bombax aquaticlum (Aubl.) K. Schum. in Engd. & Prantl, Nat. Pflanzenfam. 3(6): 62. 1895. Bombax macrocarpum (Schlecht. & Cham.) K. Schum. in Engl. & Prantl, loc. cit. 62. 1895. Pachira pustulifera Pittier, Repert. Sp. Nov. 13: 315. 1914. Pachira villosula Pittier, loc. cit. 316. 1914. Bombax rigidifolium Ducke, Arch. Jard. Bot. Rio de Janeiro 4: 127. 1925. Pachira aquatica var. occidentalis Cuatr., Rev. Acad. Coblomb. Cienc. 9: 169. 1954.
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Description
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Tree 5-23 m. high, the trunk attaining 25-60(-90) cm. in diam., sometimes buttressed, the crown spreading, the bark smooth, grayish to more or less brownish. Leaves 5- to 9-foliolate, the petiole terete, often longitudinally furrowed, dilated at both ends, 4-23.5 cm. long, glabrous; leaflets petiolulate, the petiolule thick, 0.3-2.5 cm. long, often furrowed above and glabrous; blade elliptic to oblong, sometimes lanceolate or slightly obovate, acute or rounded and more or less decurrent at the base, caudate-acuminate, caudate-apiculate or rounded-apiculate and generally mucronulate at the apex, 5-28.5 cm. long and 2.5-14.5 cm. wide, chartaceous to coriaceous, the margins sometimes slightly recurved, generally bright and glabrous above, dull, glabrous or sometimes scatteringly reddish-lepidote or finely tufted- pubescent or seldom lepidote and puberulous beneath, the nerves prominent es- pecially beneath. Flowers solitary or sometimes 2- to 3-nate, attaining 17.5-35 cm. long, the pedicel terete, 1-5.5 cm. long and 0.3-1.1 cm. thick, glabrous to shortly yellowish-brown-tufted-puberulous; receptacle 5-glandular, shortly puberulous to tomentellous with yellowish-brown tufted hairs; calyx campanulate, sometimes campanulate-tubiform, truncate or 5-apiculate, sometimes slightly 5-undulate- apiculate, 1.2-2.1 cm. long and 1.3-2 cm. in diam., shortly puberulous to tomen- tellous with yellowish-brown tufted hairs outside, silky-villose inside; petals acute to more or less obtuse, 17-34 cm. long and 0.8-2.1 cm. wide, greenish, yellowish or whitish, puberulous on both sides; stamens 200-260, 16-31 cm. long, whitish below and scarlet above, the staminal column 4.5-12 cm. long and 0.45-0.8 cm. in diam., tufted-puberulous; outer whorl with 5 dichotomous, epipetalous phalanges, each phalanx with numerous filaments; inner whorl with 5 episepalous phalanges, each phalanx with only 2-8 filaments; anthers ca. 3-5.5 mm. long, reddish; ovary pyri- form, 5-sulcate, ca. 0.5-1 cm. long and 0.45-1 cm. broad, shortly whitish-villose; style more or less dilated and 5-sulcate at the base, 19-31 cm. long, white below and reddish above, villous on the third inferior; stigma lobulate, the lobes ca. 2-3 mm. long. Capsule subglobose, ellipsoid to oblong-ellipsoid, shallowly 5-sulcate longitudinally, rounded to obtuse and emarginate at the apex, 12.5-30 cm. long and 6-10(-12) cm. in diam., the valves to 1. cm. thick, yellowish-brown-scabrous-puber- ulous outside, silky-villous inside; seeds generally 4- to 5-angular, 2-3.2 cm. x 2.2- 6 cm. x 2-2.2 cm., the testa brownish.
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Habit
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Tree
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Distribution
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From southern Mexico (Veracruz, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Yucatan) through Central America to Ecuador, northern Peru (Loreto) and northern Brazil (Para, Maran- hao); generally riparious, growing along the often (periodically) inundated river banks and lake shores or at the edge of woods, always on moist ground; often cultivated throughout tropical America and in some isles of the Antilles: Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti and Trinidad; also cultivated in Africa and Asia.
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Specimen
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BOCAS DEL TORO: vicinity of Chiriqui Lagoon, Water Valley, von Wedel 1478, 7806, 2157; Western River, von Wedel 2703, 2783, 2792. CANAL ZONE: Chagres, Isthmus of Panama, Fendler 311; Mojinga swamp near mouth of River Chagres, below 1 m., Allen 857, 859; Gatun, Hayes 622; forest along the Rio Indio de Gatun, near sea level, Pittier 2777; Barro Colorado Island, Aviles 40, Frost 149; Summit, Plant Introduction Gardens, Harvey 5275, Steyermark s.n.; Ahorca Lagarto to Culebra, Cowell 375. COL6N: between France Field, Canal Zone and Catival, Standley 30382; along river at Portobelo, Christopherson 401. DARIEN: along Rio Tuira below El Real and Piriaque Island, Stern, Chambers, Dwyer, Ebinger 971. PANAMA: near Chepo, Kluge 29; banks of Mamoni River, below La Capitana, alt. 20-25 m., Pittier 4578.
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