| Caryocar | |
|---|---|
| |
| Pekea-nut (Caryocar nuciferum) | |
| |
| Caryocar brasiliense | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Malpighiales |
| Family: | Caryocaraceae |
| Genus: | Caryocar F.Allam. ex L. |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Caryocar (souari trees) is a genus of flowering plants, in the South American family Caryocaraceae described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1771. It is native primarily to South America with a few species extending into Central America and the West Indies.
Caryocar consists of trees that yield a strong timber. Some of the species within the genus Caryocar have edible fruits, called souari-nuts or sawarri-nuts. The most well-known species is probably the Pekea-nut (C. nuciferum). In Brazil the Pequi (C. brasiliense) is most popular; it has a variety of uses, not the least among them being the production of pequi oil. Furthermore, some species are used by indigenous peoples to produce poisons for hunting.
- Species
- Caryocar amygdaliferum Mutis - Colombia, Panama
- Caryocar amygdaliforme G.Don - Ecuador, N Peru
- Caryocar brasiliense A.St.-Hil. - Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay
- Caryocar coriaceum Wittm. - N Brazil
- Caryocar costaricense Donn.Sm. - Costa Rica
- Caryocar cuneatum Wittm. - Brazil
- Caryocar dentatum Gleason - NW Brazil, Bolivia
- Caryocar edule Casar. - Bahia, Rio de Janeiro
- Caryocar glabrum (Aubl.) Pers. - French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil
- Caryocar microcarpum Ducke - Lesser Antilles, French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil, Bolivia
- Caryocar montanum Prance - Guyana, Bolívar, Roraima
- Caryocar nuciferum L. - Pekea-nut, Butter-nut of Guinea - St. Kitts, St. Vincent, French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Venezuela, N Brazil
- Caryocar pallidum A.C.Sm. - NW Brazil, S Venezuela, Bolivia
- Caryocar villosum (Aubl.) Pers. - French Guiana, Venezuela, N Brazil, Colombia
References
- 1847 illustration from Flore des serres et des jardins de l’Europe by Charles Lemaire and others. Gent, Louis van Houtte, 1847, volume 3 (plate 183-184).
- ^ Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
- Linnaeus, Carl von. 1771. Mantissa Plantarum 2: 154, 247
- Tropicos, Caryocar L.
- Hoehne (1946)
External links
- Hoehne, F.C. (1946). Frutas Indígenas . Instituto de Botânica da Secretaria de Agricultura, Indústria e Comércio de São Paulo.
- photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, collected in Panama, Caryocar amygdaliferum
- photo of Caryocar costaricense, taken in Costa Rica by Reinaldo Aguilar
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