Byrsonima crassifolia (L.) Kunth, Malpighiaceae

Click on an image for links to BIGGER PICTURES

Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Evaluate, score: 5 (Go to the risk assessment)

Other Latin names:  Malpighia crassifolia L.

Common name(s): [more details]

English: cao cimun, craboo, golden-spoon, maricao cimun

French: maurissi

Spanish: chaparro, indano, nancé, peraleja, yoco

Habit:  shrub/tree

Description:  "A shrub or tree, often fruiting when only 1-2 meters high but frequently a tree of 5-10 meters or even higher, the crown rounded or spreading, sometimes rather tall and narrow, the trunk straight or crooked, tall or short, the bark dark brown, rough, the inner bark pinkish; young branches covered with a dense or lax tomentum of rufous hairs; petioles mostly 8-15 mm. long; leaf blades ovate to elliptic or oblong-elliptic, mostly 8-15 cm. long and 4-7 cm. wide but variable in size, acute or acuminate, sometimes rounded and apiculate at the apex, acute or obtuse at the base, usually lustrous and glabrate above, beneath sparsely or densely tomentose with lax, rufous or grayish hairs, chartaceous; racemes equaling or longer than the leaves, many-flowered, sparsely or densely rufous-tomentose; petals yellow, turning dull red, the flower 1.5-2 cm. broad; ovary sparsely sericeous; drupes 8-12 mm. in diameter, dull yellow or tinged with orange, with abundant flesh. (Standley and Steyermark, 1946; 24(5) p. 478).

Habitat/ecology:  In Guatemala (native), moist or dry thickets or open forest, often abundant in pine forest, planted in many regions, mostly at 1,300 meters or less" (Standley and Steyermark, 1946; 24(5) p. 478). In Hawai‘i, "at home in dry, sunny, lowland gardens as well as in cool, wet valleys" (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 382).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Mexico, Central and South America (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island		National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.) (year unknown) (voucher ID: PTBG 5727) Taxon name on voucher: Byrsonima crassifolia
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island		Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.) (1985) (voucher ID: BISH 497576) Taxon name on voucher: Byrsonima crassifolia

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	Australia (continental)	introduced cultivated	Randall, R. P. (2007) (p. 86)
Colombia Colombia	Colombia (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Costa Rica Costa Rica	Costa Rica (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
El Salvador El Salvador	El Salvador (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Guatemala Guatemala	Guatemala (Republic of)	native	Standley, Paul C./Steyermark, Julian A. (1946)
Honduras Honduras	Honduras (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Nicaragua Nicaragua	Nicaragua (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Panama Panama	Panama (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Perú Perú	Perú (Republic of)	native	Macbride, J. Francis (1936) (pp. 13(3/3)866-867)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 21)

Additional information:
Information from Morton, J. 1987. Nance. p. 207-209. In: Fruits of warm climates. Julia F. Morton, Miami, FL.
Information and photos at Discover Life.
Information and photos at Agroforestry Database.

Additional online information about Byrsonima crassifolia is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Byrsonima crassifolia as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Byrsonima crassifolia may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.). 1985. Voucher specimen #BISH497576(Lau, J. 1321).

Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. 2009. A checklist of the total vascular plant flora of Singapore: native, naturalised and cultivated species. Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, National University of Singapore. 273 pp.

Macbride, J. Francis. 1936. Flora of Peru. Field Museum of Natural History, Botanical Series, Vol. XIII. 1936-1971, 6 parts.

National Tropical Botanical Garden (U.S.A. Hawaii. Kalaheo.). 0. Voucher specimen #PTBG5727(Flynn, Tim 3945).

Randall, R. P. 2007. The introduced flora of Australia and its weed status. CRC for Australian Weed Management, Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia. 524 pp.
Also:  Searchable online database at http://weeds.cbit.uq.edu.au/.

Standley, Paul C./Steyermark, Julian A. 1946. Flora of Guatemala. Fieldiana: Botany. Vol. 24, Part V. Chicago Natural History Museum. 502 pp.

Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. 2005. A tropical garden flora: plants cultivated in the Hawaiian Islands and other tropical places. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 908 pp.

U. S. Government. 2011. Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) (on-line resource).

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. 2011. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.