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Nomenclature etc. CARYOCARACEAE. Trade relvant species: Caryocar brasiliense Cambess., C. edule Casar., C.glabrum (Aubl.) Pers., C. villosum (Aubl.) Pers. Trade and local names: almendra de espinho, grão de cavalo, pequi, piquí, piquiá verdadeiro, p. roxo (BR); almendra (PE, VE); jigua (VE); biquí, huevo de burro (BO); almendrón (CO); almendra con espinas (PE); chawari, arbre de beurre, kassagnan (GF); bat's souari, sawar (GY); suari, soari, sopo oedoe (SM). Not protected under CITES regulations (the species described here), or listed in CITES Annex II (Caryocar costaricense, not traded internationally).
Description based on 7 specimens. Tree. Geographic distribution: Mexico and Central America, tropical South America, southern Brazil.
General. Heartwood basically brown, yellow, white or grey (whitish to pale yellow); occasionally with streaks or without streaks. Sapwood colour mostly similar to heartwood colour. Density 0.8–0.85 g/cm³.
Vessels. Vessels present. Wood diffuse porous. Vessels arranged in no specific pattern, in multiples, commonly in short (2–3 vessels) radial rows. Average tangential vessel diameter (210–)270(–340) µm. Average number of vessels/mm² 2–4. Perforation plates simple. Intervessel pits alternate, average diameter (vertical) 9–13 µm. Vessel-ray pits with reduced borders or apparently simple, different from intervessel pits, rounded or angular or horizontal to vertical, of two distinct sizes or types in the same ray cell, unilaterally compound and coarse. Tyloses present, thinwalled. Other deposits present (in the tyloses).
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres of medium wall thickness to very thick-walled. Fibre pits mainly restricted to radial walls, simple to minutely bordered. Fibres non-septate.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma apotracheal, or paratracheal. Apotracheal axial parenchyma diffuse, or diffuse-in-aggregates. Paratracheal axial parenchyma scanty, or vasicentric. Axial parenchyma as strands. Average number of cells per strand: 4–8.
Rays. Rays 10–15 per tangential mm, multiseriate, 1–3 cells wide. Rays with multiseriate portions as wide as uniseriate portions present, or absent (variable between species). 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 2–4 marginal rows of upright or square cells or with more than 4 marginal rows of upright or square cells.
Storied structures. Storied structure absent.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals present, prismatic, located in ray cells (rarely) or axial parenchyma cells. Crystal-containing ray cells upright and/or square, upright and/or square ray cells chambered. Crystal-containing axial parenchyma cells chambered. Number of crystals per cell or chamber one. Silica not observed.
Physical and chemical tests. Froth test negative.
Illustrations. • Transverse section 1. Caryocar barbinerve. • Transverse section 2. Caryocar villosum. • Tangential section 1. Caryocar villosum. • Tangential section 2. Caryocar glabrum. • Radial section. Caryocar villosum. • Vessel-ray pits. Caryocar villosum.
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’.
