| Julbernardia seretii | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Genus: | Julbernardia |
| Species: | J. seretii |
| Binomial name | |
| Julbernardia seretii (De Wild.) Troupin | |
| Synonyms [2] | |
Berlinia seretiiDe Wild. Contents | |
Julbernardia seretii, commonly known as the Congo zebrawood, is a species of legume in the family Fabaceae. It is found in tropical West and Central Africa. [3]
Julbernardia seretii is a large tree growing to a height of 40 m (130 ft). The trunk is straight and cylindrical, up to 170 cm (5.6 ft) in diameter, and without branches for more than half its height. [4] The flowers are white and fragrant, [4] and the fruits are large pods, the seeds weighing about 4 g (0.14 oz). [5]
This tree is a constituent of tropical rainforest in Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola. [4]
In the Ituri Rainforest, in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the dominant trees are J. seretii and Gilbertiodendron dewevrei , while in the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, J. seretii and Cynometra alexandri are the most abundant. [5]
The seeds of this tree fall to the ground and dispersal is limited to a distance of up to 40 m (130 ft) from the edge of the crown. G. dewevrei has larger seeds (30 g (1 oz)) with more limited dispersal ability. In general, in forests where they are both present, J. seretii has the more numerous, faster growing seedlings but G. dewevrei the greatest presence in the canopy. The seedlings of both species can tolerate low light conditions, but among the saplings 50 cm (20 in) or taller, growth ceases in a higher proportion of J. seretii and mortality rates are considerably higher. This species also has a significantly lower lifespan than G. dewevrei. [5]
The timber of Julbernardia seretii, known as "Congo zebrawood" in the export trade, is dark brown and used in joinery, furniture, cabinet work and as a veneer. It also has uses in construction, boat building, flooring, carving and turnery, as well as being used for making ladders, toys, agricultural implements, tool handles and other items. The bark is used to make sandals, cords, containers and roof tiles. [4]
Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF), also known as tropical moist forest, is a subtropical and tropical forest habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature.
Juniperus procera is a coniferous tree native to mountainous areas in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It is a characteristic tree of the Afromontane flora.
Microberlinia bisulcata is a species of plant in the family Fabaceae, a lowland rainforest tree that is found only in Cameroon. It is threatened by habitat destruction and exploitation. Common names include African zebrawood, tigerwood, zebrano and zingana.
Eusideroxylon is a genus of evergreen trees of the family Lauraceae. The genus is possibly monotypic; it includes one accepted species and one that is "unresolved". It is present in coastal and montane rainforests of Southeast Asia, and in laurel forest habitat. Eusideroxylon are hardwood trees reaching up to 50 metres in height with trunks over 2 metres in diameter, producing commercially valuable timber. The wood of E. zwageri is impervious to termites, and can last up to 100 years after being cut. Due to extensive logging, it is listed as vulnerable in the IUCN Red List of IUCN, and conservation efforts are underway, with several countries banning imports.
Milicia excelsa is a tree species from the genus Milicia of the family Moraceae. Distributed across tropical Central Africa, it is one of two species yielding timber commonly known as African teak, iroko, intule, kambala, moreira, mvule, odum and tule.
Elaeocarpus bancroftii, commonly known as Kuranda quandong, Johnstone River almond, ebony heart, grey nut, or nut tree is a large rainforest tree in the family Elaeocarpaceae which is endemic to Queensland. It has coriaceous leaves, attractive white flowers and relatively large fruit containing an edible kernel.
Michelsonia is a genus of tree in the legume family, Fabaceae, where it is classified in the subfamily Detarioideae. It is a monotypic genus, the only species being Michelsonia microphylla. It is native to the tropical rain forests of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The wood is used locally for construction work.
Simarouba amara is a species of tree in the family Simaroubaceae, found in the rainforests and savannahs of South and Central America and the Caribbean. It was first described by Aubl. in French Guiana in 1775 and is one of six species of Simarouba. The tree is evergreen, but produces a new set of leaves once a year. It requires relatively high levels of light to grow and grows rapidly in these conditions, but lives for a relatively short time. In Panama, it flowers during the dry season in February and March, whereas in Costa Rica, where there is no dry season it flowers later, between March and July. As the species is dioecious, the trees are either male or female and only produce male or female flowers. The small yellow flowers are thought to be pollinated by insects, the resulting fruits are dispersed by animals including monkeys, birds and fruit-eating bats and the seeds are also dispersed by leaf cutter ants.
Pentaclethra macroloba is a large and common leguminous tree in the genus Pentaclethra native to the wet tropical areas of the northern Neotropics, which can form monocultural stands in some seasonally flooded habitats. It has giant, bipinnate leaves shaped like feathers. It uses seed dispersal by water to establish itself in new areas, having floating seeds that are left behind after the waters recede after floods or tides. It has hard timber which is not very resistant to rot in the tropics, but it can be treated, has a pretty pink-red colour when dry, and has a number of uses. Oil used in cosmetics is extracted from the large seeds. In the northern Amazon region the bark is used in herbal medicine as an antivenom, and in the Guianas the bark has been used as a fish poison. Despite their toxicity, the seeds are eaten by variegated squirrels, parrots and macaws, and serve as the nurseries of the larvae of the moth Carmenta surinamensis.
Monodominance is an ecological condition in which more than 60% of the tree canopy comprises a single species of tree. Monodominant forests are quite common under conditions of extra-tropical climate types. Although monodominance is studied across different regions, most research focuses on the many prominent species in tropical forests. Connel and Lowman, originally called it single-dominance. Conventional explanations of biodiversity in tropical forests in the decades prior to Connel and Lowman's work either ignored monodominance entirely or predicted that it would not exist.
Angraecum gabonense is a species of comet orchid that can be found in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.
Strombosia pustulata is a species of tree in the family Olacaceae. It is native to the rainforests of tropical West and Central Africa. Common names for this tree include itako in Nigeria, afina in Ghana, poé in Abé spoken in Côte d'Ivoire and mba esogo in Equatorial Guinea.
Erythrophleum ivorense is a species of leguminous tree in the genus Erythrophleum found in the rainforests of tropical West and Central Africa. The tree has many uses; the timber is used for heavy construction, for making charcoal and for firewood, the bark is used for tanning and in traditional medicine, and both bark and seeds are poisonous and used for hunting.
Gilbertiodendron dewevrei is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae, native to tropical rain forests in Central Africa. It is often the dominant tree species of the Guineo-Congolian rainforest. The timber is traded as limbali, and is used for construction, flooring and railway sleepers. It is also used for making boats, furniture, tool handles and joinery and for making charcoal.
The Guineo-Congolian region is a biogeographical region in Africa straddling the Equator and stretching from the Atlantic Ocean through the Congo Basin to the Congo / Nile divide in Rwanda and Burundi. Formerly, this region was largely covered in rain forest, on both well-drained sites and in swamp forests, but little undisturbed primary forest now remains, having been replaced in many areas by savanna and secondary-growth forest.
Brachystegia laurentii, a plant in the family Fabaceae, is a species of large tree found in western Cameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo. It has a dense, umbrella-shaped crown. The wood is known as bomanga and has many uses in building and construction.
Pouteria adolfi-friedericii is a species of plant in the family Sapotaceae, a tall, tropical forest tree. It is found in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The specific name adolfi-friedericii was given in honour of Duke Adolf Friedrich of Mecklenburg, a German explorer in Africa. Its trade name muna is taken from Gĩkũyũ mũna.
Parkia bicolor, the African locust-bean, is a species of flowering plant, a tree in the family Fabaceae. It is native to tropical West and Central Africa. Its natural habitats are tropical moist lowland forests, swampland, woodland and savannah.
Palaquium galactoxylum, commonly known as Cairns pencil cedar, Daintree maple or red silkwood, is a species of very large tree in the family Sapotaceae which is endemic to rainforests of New Guinea and northern Australia. It can produce spectacularly large buttress roots.
Chrysophyllum africanum is a medium sized tree within the Sapotaceae family. It is sometimes known as the African Star Apple along with the closely related Chrysophyllum albidum. Both species have similar leaf indumentum and are widespread in the Lower and Upper Guinea forest mosaic.
