| Alchornea floribunda | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Malpighiales |
| Family: | Euphorbiaceae |
| Genus: | Alchornea |
| Species: | A. floribunda |
| Binomial name | |
| Alchornea floribunda Müll. Arg. | |
Alchornea floribunda is a plant native to tropical Africa. [1] The plant is locally known as Niando. [2]
Alchornea floribunda is a large, straggly shrub that grows into a bush about 4.5 metres (15 ft) tall. [3]
This plant has many traditional uses. The leaves are sometimes cooked and eaten as a vegetable and may be eaten with meat or fish as an antidote to poison. They are also consumed as a remedy for ovarian problems and gastro-intestinal disorders. A decoction of the dried leaves is used to treat diarrhoea and the leaves are pulped to promote the healing of wounds. The dried leaves and fibrous root scrapings are used as a substitute for tobacco. The powdered rootbark is highly prized in traditional medicine as a stimulating intoxicant and aphrodisiac. [3]
This plant is preferentially used by chimpanzees in making tools for catching termites in the Dja Faunal Reserve in south eastern Cameroon. The animals hunt through the forest for the shrub and make short poles out of it. Thicker poles about half a metre long are used to dig into and disturb the termite mound, and thinner, flexible poles are inserted for the angry termites to climb onto. The chimpanzees then scoop the termites clinging to their fishing rods into their mouths. [4]
Compounds contained in Alchornea floribunda include Alchorneine, Alchorneinone, Alkaloids, Anthranilic acid, Gentisinic acid, Isoalchorneine and Yohimbine. [2]
The East Region occupies the southeastern portion of the Republic of Cameroon. It is bordered to the east by the Central African Republic, to the south by Congo, to the north by the Adamawa Region, and to the west by the Centre and South Regions. With 109,002 km² of territory, it is the largest region in the nation as well as the most sparsely populated. Historically, the peoples of the East have been settled in Cameroonian territory for longer than any other of the country's many ethnic groups, the first inhabitants being the Baka pygmies.
Colocasia esculenta is a tropical plant grown primarily for its edible corms, a root vegetable most commonly known as taro, or kalo in Hawaiian. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae which are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and petioles. Taro corms are a food staple in African, Oceanic and South Asian cultures, and taro is believed to have been one of the earliest cultivated plants.
Ziziphus mauritiana, also known as Chinese date, Chinee apple, Indian plum, Indian jujube and dunks is a tropical fruit tree species belonging to the family Rhamnaceae.
Lycium chinense is one of two species of boxthorn shrub in the family Solanaceae. Along with Lycium barbarum, it produces the goji berry ("wolfberry"). Two varieties are recognized, L. chinense var. chinense and L. chinense var. potaninii. It is also known as Chinese boxthorn, Chinese matrimony-vine, Chinese teaplant, Chinese wolfberry, wolfberry, and Chinese desert-thorn.
Cordeauxia edulis is a plant in the family Fabaceae and the sole species in the genus Cordeauxia. Known by the common name yeheb bush, it is one of the economically most important wild plant at the Horn of Africa, but it is little known outside of its distribution area. It is a multipurpose plant, which allows the survival of nomads by providing them with seeds. Further the bush serves forage for livestock, firewood and dye. Its wild population is currently declining. Because it is potentially valuable for other hot, dry regions as a resource for food and fodder, it's recommended to take measures against its extinction.
Diospyros mespiliformis, the jackalberry, is a large dioecious evergreen tree found mostly in the savannas of Africa. Jackals are fond of the fruit, hence the common names. It is a member of the family Ebenaceae, and is related to the true ebony and edible persimmon.
Dja Faunal Reserve, located in south eastern Cameroon, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed in 1987. Causes of inscription include diversity of species present in the park, the presence of five threatened species of mammal, and lack of disturbance within the park. It is managed by Dja Conservation Services (DCS), which is led by a conservator. The Reserve receives significant support for its management from many projects funded by international partners and supporters of conservation in Cameroon.
Vaccinium parvifolium, the red huckleberry, is a species of Vaccinium native to western North America, where it is common in forests from southeastern Alaska and British Columbia south through western Washington and Oregon to central California.
Gnetum africanum is a vine gymnosperm species found natively throughout tropical Africa. Though bearing leaves, the genus Gnetum are gymnosperms, related to pine and other conifers.
Allanblackia floribunda, known in English as 'tallow tree', is a species of flowering plant in the family Clusiaceae that has been long used in traditional African medicine to treat hypertension. It is a common understory tree in rain-forests in western central Africa - from Sierra Leone to W Cameroons, and on into the DR Congo and Uganda. The medium-sized tree is evergreen and dioecious. The wood is said to be resistant to termites but is not particularly durable. It is fairly easy to work and finishes well but it is of little commercial importance though it has appeared on the market in Liberia as ‘lacewood’.
Alchornea cordifolia is a shrub or small tree distributed throughout tropical Africa. The plant is used in traditional African medicine.
Many protected areas in Cameroon are still in pristine condition, mostly because there is less tourism in Cameroon than other regions of Africa. According to reported statistics, there were ten protected areas from 1932 to 1960. Six protected areas were added between 1960 and 1980, five more were added between 1980 and 2004, and eight protected areas are under consideration within a final approval process.
Oroxylum indicum is a species of flowering plant belonging to the monotypic genus Oroxylum and the family Bignoniaceae, are commonly called midnight horror, oroxylum, Indian trumpet flower, broken bones, Indian caper, or tree of Damocles. It can reach a height of 18 metres (59 ft). Various segments of the tree are used in traditional medicine.
The Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee is a subspecies of the common chimpanzee which inhabits the rainforests along the border of Nigeria and Cameroon. Male Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzees can weigh as much as 70 kilos with a body length of up to 1.2 metres and a height of 1.3 metres. Females are significantly smaller.
Combretum glutinosum is a shrub species of the genus Combretum, found in the Sahel belt in parts of Senegal, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali, the Gambia, Niger, Nigeria and Cameroon, across to parts of Sudan. It is known as dooki in Pulaar, Kantakara in Hausa, rat in Wolof and jambakatan kè in Maninka. Its synonyms are Combretum cordofanum Engl. & Diels, C. passargei Engl. & Diels, C. leonense Engl. & Diels.
Cassia sieberiana, drumstick tree, is a tree in the family Fabaceae native to Africa. It ranges from 10–20 metres in height and has very bright yellow flowers. It is used for multiple medical purposes in Africa and is found in the secondary jungle of a forest.
Flemingia macrophylla a is woody leguminous shrub belonging to the genus Flemingia. It is a multipurpose plant widely used in agriculture, crop improvement, fodder, dyes and for various therapeutic purposes. Perhaps, it is the most versatile species of Flemingia in terms of adaptation, medicinal and agricultural applications.
Alchornea hirtella is a shrub or small tree in the genus Alchornea in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is native to tropical Central and Southern Africa.
Combretum hereroense, commonly known as the russet bushwillow and the mouse-eared combretum, is a deciduous shrub or small tree that is found from eastern Africa to northern South Africa. Over its extensive range it is variable with respect to leaf shape, fruit size and indumentum.
Parkia filicoidea Oliv. or African locust bean, is a large, spreading flat-crowned tree to 30 metres tall, the bole of which may be narrowly buttressed to a height of about 3 metres, and up to 120 cm DBH. It occurs in wet evergreen or semi-deciduous forest, sometimes on forest fringes, riverbanks and lakes, termite mounds, at elevations up to 1000 metres from Côte d’Ivoire, east to Sudan and Somalia, Uganda, Kenya, Malawi and south to Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Bark on trunk scaly or smooth, grey to yellow-brown, branchlets glabrous to puberulous.