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Nomenclature. Family: MELIACEAE. Other trade relevant species: Species: S. macrophylla, S. mahagoni, S. humilis. Synonym(s): Swietenia humilis: Swietenia bijuga, S. cirrhata; Swietenia macrophylla: Swietenia belizensis, S. candollei, S. tessmannii; Swietenia mahagoni: Cedrela mahagoni, Swietenia acutifolia, S. fabrilis. Further trade and local names: Swietenia macrophylla: Amerikanisches Mahagoni, Honduras-, Tabasco-, Nicaragua-Mahagoni (DE); caoba (cAm), aguano (PA, PE); mogno (BR); orura (VE); zopilote (MX); sapoton (SR); yulu (NI), crura (BO); acajou d'Amérique (FR), American mahogani, baywood (GB), broadleaf mahagony (US). Swietenia mahagoni: West Indian mahogany, Cuba mahogany (US); Swietenia humilis: caoba de Pacífico, coabilla, cóbano (MX), Mexican mahogany, Pacific Coast mahogany (US). Code according to DIN EN 13556: SWMC, Swietenia macrophylla and S. mahagoni.
CITES(EU) status of protection. Listed in Annex II(B).
Similar timbers. Andiroba (Carapa guianensis); Cedro (Cedrela spp.); Tiama (Entandrophragma angolense); Sapeli (Entandrophragma cylindricum); Sipo/Utile (Entandrophragma utile); Bossé (Guarea spp.); Khaya (Khaya spp.); Louro vermelho/wane (Sextonia rubra).
Geographic distribution. Mexico and Central America (S. humilis), Caribbean (S. mahagoni), tropical South America (S. macrophylla except the Amazon basin).
Growth rings, colour, grain, etc. Growth ring boundaries distinct (demarcated by marginal parenchyma bands). Heartwood basically brown, red (light to dark reddish brown). Sapwood distinct from heartwood colour. Wood of medium weight (0.40–0.50–0.65 g/cm3). Interlocked grain present.
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 (90–160–255 µm); very few to few (2–18). Tyloses absent. Other deposits in heartwood vessels (pores) present (dark reddish brown, occasionally white).
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma present; banded and not banded. Parenchyma bands exclusively marginal (or seemingly marginal); narrow to wide. Other macroscopically visible types of axial parenchyma: vasicentric (hardly visible even with a hand lens).
Rays. Rays narrow; of uniform size. Large rays commonly less than 1 mm high.
Storied structure. Storied structure present, or absent (storied ray present in most specimens, also absent in few others). Tiers regular (horizontal or slightly inclined), or irregular; 2 per axial millimetre.
Resin canals. Normal resin canals absent (traumatic resin canals in tangential rows are occasionally present).
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood not fluorescent. Water extract not fluorescent; colour shade of water extract colourless to brown. Heartwood extractives leaching out when in contact with water. Ethanol extract fluorescent (yellowish); colour shade of ethanol extract colourless to brown, or red. Froth test positive. Splinter burns to partial ash; colour of ash white to grey.
Additional information. See also: Informationsdienst Holz Merkblatt Nr. 18. • Transverse section + wood surface. Transverse section ca. 10x. Radial surface, natural size. • Comparison Swietenia spp. vs Carapa guianensis. Swietenia spp. (Echtes Mahagoni, True Mahogany). Carapa guianensis (Andiroba). Swietenia spp. and Carapa guianensis have nearly the same colour, weight and structure (transverse section). Macroscopically, the main difference is in the colour of the marginal parenchyma bands which sharply contrast the ground tissue in Swietenia spp. yet fades into the ground tissue in Carapa guianensis. • Comparison Swietenia spp. vs Cedrela odorata. Swietenia spp. (Echtes Mahagoni, True Mahogany). Cedrela odorata (Cedro). Cedrela and Swietenia timbers are of similar colour and weight and are often mistaken for each other. However, the semi-ringporous Cedrela has large vessels (marked) and is aromatic, the diffuse-porous Swietenia has medium sized pores (marked) and is odourless. • Comparison Swietenia spp. vs Entandrophragma angolense. Swietenia spp. (Echtes Mahagoni, True Mahogany). Entandrophragma angolense (Tiama). Swietenia spp. and Entandrophragma angolense cannot be safely distinguished owing to their nearly identical macroscopic structure. The fact that the marginal parenchyma bands contrast the ground tissue much stronger and the occasional presence of storied rays in Swietenia spp. are of some help in distinguishing the two timbers macroscopically. • Comparison Swietenia spp. vs Entandrophragma cylindricum. Swietenia spp. (Echtes Mahagoni, True Mahogany). Entandrophragma cylindricum (Sapeli). Entandrophragma cylindricum differs from the otherwise very similar Swietenia spp. by the presence of partially banded axial parenchyma between marginal bands (marked). Moreover, Entandrophragma cylindricum has a cinnamon-like fragrance whereas Swietenia species are odourless. • Comparison Swietenia spp. vs Entandrophragma utile. Swietenia spp. (Echtes Mahagoni, True Mahogany). Entandrophragma utile (Sipo, Utile). Entandrophragma utile differs from the otherwise very similar Swietenia spp. by the presence of mostly banded axial parenchyma between marginal bands (marked). Moreover, Entandrophragma utile has fewer and much larger vessels. • Comparison Swietenia spp. vs Guarea spp.. Swietenia spp. (Echtes Mahagoni, True Mahogany). Guarea spp. (Bossé). Guarea spp. can be distinguished easily from the otherwise similar Swietenia timbers on account of the ubiquituous wavy parenchyma bands. Moreover, some Guarea species, for instance the african Guarea cedrata, have a characteristic aromatic odour. • Comparison Swietenia spp. vs Khaya spp.. Swietenia spp. (Echtes Mahagoni, True Mahogany). Khaya spp. (Khaya, African Mahogany). Khaya spp. are very similar to Swietenia spp. in external appearance. The two timber groups differ significantly by the lack of macroscopically visible axial parenchyma in Khaya spp. • Comparison Swietenia spp. vs Sextonia rubra. Swietenia spp. (Echtes Mahagoni, true mahogany). Sextonia rubra (Louro vermelho, Wane). Swietenia spp. und Sextonia rubra are similar external appearance (colour, weight) but easily separated by means of macroscopic features (transverse section). The vessels of Ocotea rubra are larger, filled with tyloses and often arranged in diagonal rows (marked). Moreover, no banded parenchyma is present.
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’.
