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Nomenclature etc. MALVACEAE (BOMBACACEAE). Syn.: Bombax brevicuspe Sprague, B. chevalieri Pellgr. Trade and local names: kondroti (FR, CI, DE), alone (DE, GA, CG), akagaouan, kouobene (CI), kuntunkun, anyinakobin (GH), kingue, zuihn (LR), bouma, boumadanga (CM), ogumalanga, koma (GA), n'demo (CG). Not protected under CITES regulations.
Tree. Geographic distribution: tropical Africa (West Africa).
General. Growth ring boundaries distinct. Heartwood basically brown to red; without streaks. Sapwood colour distinct from heartwood colour. Density 0.35–0.46–0.56 g/cm³.
Vessels. Wood diffuse porous. Vessels in multiples, commonly in short (2–3 vessels) radial rows. Average tangential vessel diameter 160–295–395(–450) µm. Average number of vessels/mm² 1–5. Perforation plates simple. Intervessel pits alternate, average diameter (vertical) 9–11 µm. Occasionally also some opposite intervessel pits. Vessel-ray pits with reduced borders or apparently simple, different from intervessel pits, horizontal to vertical, of uniform size or type, of the same type in adjacent elements. Occasionally pits of two sizes in one ray cell. Tyloses present, thinwalled.
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres very thin-walled to of medium wall thickness. Average fibre length 1970–2685–3940 µm. Fibre pits common in both radial and tangential walls, simple to minutely bordered. Fibres non-septate.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma apotracheal, or paratracheal. Apotracheal axial parenchyma diffuse and diffuse-in-aggregates. Paratracheal axial parenchyma scanty. Axial parenchyma fusiform and as strands. Average number of cells per strand: 4–8.
Rays. Rays 6–8 per tangential mm, multiseriate, 4–8 cells wide. Height of large rays up to 500 µm. Rays composed of two or more cell types (heterocellular). Heterocellular rays with square and upright cells restricted to marginal rows, mostly 1 marginal row of upright or square cells. Sheath cells absent.
Storied structures. Storied structure present, all rays storied, axial parenchyma storied, vessel elements storied, fibres storied. Number of ray tiers per axial millimetre 1.5–1.8. Highest rays extending over two stories.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present, prismatic, located in axial parenchyma cells. Crystal-containing axial parenchyma cells not chambered. Number of crystals per cell or chamber one, or more than one (rarely). Silica not observed.
Illustrations. • Transverse section. • Tangential section. • Radial section.
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., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2000 onwards. Commercial timbers: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval. In English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish. Version: 9th April 2019. delta-intkey.com’.
