| | Commercial timbers |
Nomenclature etc. FABACEAE-MIMOSOIDEAE. Trade and local names: angelim pedra verdadeiro, faveira grande, angelim falso, faveira dura, faveira ferro (BR). Not protected under CITES regulations.
Description based on 5 specimens. Tree. Geographic distribution: tropical South America (Amazon region only).
General. Heartwood basically brown to red. Sapwood colour distinct from heartwood colour. Odour distinct (very unpleasant and persistent). Density 0.9–1.2 g/cm³.
Vessels. Wood diffuse porous. Vessels in multiples, commonly in short (2–3 vessels) radial rows. Two distinct vessel diameter classes absent. Average tangential vessel diameter 160–200 µm. Average number of vessels/mm² 3–7. Perforation plates simple. Intervessel pits alternate, average diameter (vertical) 5–7 µm, pits vestured. Vessel-ray pits with distinct borders, similar to intervessel pits. Tyloses absent. Other deposits present (dark reddish brown as well as occasionally light coloured contents).
Tracheids and fibres. Fibres very thick-walled. Fibre pits mainly restricted to radial walls, simple to minutely bordered.
Axial parenchyma. Axial parenchyma banded. Bands marginal (or seemingly marginal). Bands fine (mostly just 1–2 cell rows). Axial parenchyma apotracheal (frequently isolated parenchyma cells, non-crystalliferous), or paratracheal. Apotracheal axial parenchyma diffuse and diffuse-in-aggregates. Paratracheal axial parenchyma aliform and confluent. Aliform parenchyma of the lozenge type. Axial parenchyma as strands. Average number of cells per strand: 2–5.
Rays. Rays 5–8 per tangential mm, multiseriate, (2–)3 cells wide. Height of large rays up to 500 µm. Rays composed of a single cell type (homocellular) and two or more cell types (heterocellular); homocellular ray cells procumbent. Heterocellular rays with square and upright cells restricted to marginal rows, mostly 1 marginal row of upright or square cells. Rays predominantly homocellular, rarely heterocellular.
Storied structures. Storied structure absent.
Mineral inclusions. Crystals not observed. Silica not observed.
Physical and chemical tests. Heartwood fluorescent (pale or bright yellow). Water extract not fluorescent; colour of water extract colourless to brown. Heartwood extractives leachable when in contact with water. Ethanol extract fluorescent (pale or bright yellow). Colour of ethanol extract colourless to brown, or red. Froth test positive. Splinter burns to partial ash, or to charcoal (in most cases, covered by a thin layer of dark grey ash).
Illustrations. • Macroscopic images. transverse (ca. 10x). radial (natural size). • 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’.
