| | CITESwoodID: descriptions, illustrations, identification and information retrieval |
Nomenclature. Family: FABACEAE-CAESALPINIOIDEAE. Synonym(s): Swartzia fistuloides; S. madagascariensis. Further trade and local names: oken (GA); boto (CI); n'guessa (CF); kissamba (CG); nsakala (CD); snake bean (ZW). Code according to DIN EN 13556: SZXX.
CITES(EU) status of protection. Not protected.
Similar timbers. Guibourtia spp. (Bubinga); Dalbergia spp.
Geographic distribution. Tropical Africa. B. fistuloides: West Africa (Ivory Coast to the Congo basin; B. madagascariensis: West Africa (Gambia to Nigeria), East Africa (Mozambique, Tansania), southern Africa (Zimbabwe).
Growth rings, colour, grain, etc. Growth ring boundaries indistinct or absent. Heartwood basically brown, red, yellow, purple; with streaks, or without streaks. Sapwood distinct from heartwood colour. Wood heavy and hard (0.9–1.05 g/cm3). Interlocked grain present (very pronounced).
Hardwood vs softwood. Vessels (pores) present (= hardwood).
Vessels (pores). Wood diffuse-porous. Vessels (pores) in multiples; commonly in short (2–3 vessels) radial rows. Vessels medium to large (110–140–170 µm); few (10–20). Tyloses absent. Other deposits in heartwood vessels (pores) present.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma present; banded and not banded. Parenchyma bands not (only) marginal; wide; much wider than rays. Other macroscopically visible types of axial parenchyma: aliform lozenge type, confluent.
Rays. Rays narrow. Large rays commonly less than 1 mm high.
Storied structure. Storied structure present. Tiers regular (horizontal or slightly inclined); 3–5 per axial millimetre.
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood not fluorescent. Water extract fluorescent (weakly bluish green); colour shade of water extract colourless to brown. Ethanol extract fluorescent (bright purplish blue); colour shade of ethanol extract colourless to brown, or red (reddish to orange brown). Froth test positive. Splinter burns to full ash; colour of ash white to grey.
Additional information. • Transverse section + wood surface. Transverse section ca. 10x. Radial surface, natural size.
The interactive key allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting specified attributes, summaries of attributes within groups of taxa, and geographical distribution.
Cite this publication as: ‘Richter, H.G., Gembruch, K., and Koch, G. 2014 onwards. CITESwoodID: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval. In English, French, German, and Spanish. Version: 4th April 2023. www.delta-intkey.com’.
