Manilkara

''Manilkara'' is a genus of trees in the family Sapotaceae. They are widespread in tropical and semitropical locations, in Africa, Madagascar, Asia, Australia, and Latin America, as well as various islands in the Pacific and in the Caribbean. A close relative is the genus '' Pouteria''.

Trees of this genus yield edible fruit, useful wood, and latex. The best-known species are '' M. bidentata'' (''balatá''), '' M. chicle'' (chicle) and '' M. zapota'' (sapodilla). ''M. hexandra'' is the floral emblem of Prachuap Khiri Khan Province in Thailand, where it is known as ''rayan''. ''M. obovata'' shares the vernacular name of African pear with another completely different species, '' Dacryodes edulis'', and neither should be confused with '' Baillonella toxisperma'', known by the very similar name, African pearwood.

''Manilkara'' trees are often significant, or even dominant species in their native ecosystems, such as East Deccan dry evergreen forests, Central American premontane tropical wet forests, or together with '' Cynometra'', in the Arabuko Sokoke National Park. ''Manilkara'' fruit are an important food item for various frugivores, in particular birds. The red fruit bat (''Stenoderma rufum'') is the primary – and possibly the only – seed disperser of ''M. bidentata'' in parts of the Caribbean. '' Tuckerella xiamenensis'', a species of peacock mite, was described from a sapodilla tree.

Taxonomy

The generic name, ''Manilkara'', is derived from the Malayalam word ''manil-kara'', a vernacular name for '' M. kauki''; it combines ''Manil'' from ''Manilha'', the Portuguese name of Manila in the Philippines, and ''kara'' meaning "fruit".

Species

Species accepted by Plants of the World Online as of December 2022:

*'' Manilkara adolfi-friederici''
*'' Manilkara bequaertii''
*'' Manilkara bidentata''
*'' Manilkara boivinii''
*'' Manilkara bolivarensis''
*'' Manilkara butugi''
*'' Manilkara capuronii''
*'' Manilkara casteelsii''
*'' Manilkara cavalcantei''
*'' Manilkara celebica''
*'' Manilkara chicle''
*'' Manilkara concolor''
*'' Manilkara dardanoi''
*'' Manilkara dawei''
*'' Manilkara decrescens''
*'' Manilkara discolor''
*'' Manilkara dissecta''
*'' Manilkara doeringii''
*'' Manilkara dukensis''
*'' Manilkara elata''
*'' Manilkara excelsa''
*'' Manilkara excisa''
*'' Manilkara fasciculata''
*'' Manilkara fischeri''
*'' Manilkara fouilloyana''
*'' Manilkara frondosa''
*'' Manilkara gonavensis''
*'' Manilkara hexandra''
*'' Manilkara hoshinoi''
*'' Manilkara huberi''
*'' Manilkara ilendensis''
*'' Manilkara inundata''
*'' Manilkara jaimiqui''
*'' Manilkara kanosiensis''
*'' Manilkara kauki''
*'' Manilkara koechlinii''
*'' Manilkara kribensis''
*'' Manilkara kurziana''
*'' Manilkara letestui''
*'' Manilkara letouzeyi''
*'' Manilkara littoralis''
*'' Manilkara longifolia''
*'' Manilkara longistyla''
*'' Manilkara lososiana''
*'' Manilkara mabokeensis''
*'' Manilkara maxima''
*'' Manilkara mayarensis''
*'' Manilkara microphylla''
*'' Manilkara mochisia''
*'' Manilkara multifida''
*'' Manilkara nicholsonii''
*'' Manilkara obovata''
*'' Manilkara paraensis''
*'' Manilkara pellegriniana''
*'' Manilkara perrieri''
*'' Manilkara pleeana''
*'' Manilkara pobeguinii''
*'' Manilkara pubicarpa''
*'' Manilkara roxburghiana''
*'' Manilkara rufula''
*'' Manilkara sahafarensis''
*'' Manilkara salzmannii''
*'' Manilkara samoensis''
*'' Manilkara sansibarensis''
*'' Manilkara seretii''
*'' Manilkara sideroxylon''
*'' Manilkara smithiana''
*'' Manilkara spectabilis''
*'' Manilkara staminodella''
*'' Manilkara suarezensis''
*'' Manilkara subsericea''
*'' Manilkara sulcata''
*'' Manilkara sylvestris''
*'' Manilkara triflora''
*'' Manilkara udoido''
*'' Manilkara valenzuelana''
*'' Manilkara vitiensis''
*'' Manilkara zapota''
*'' Manilkara zenkeri''

Several species are endangered due to overexploitation and habitat destruction. ''M. gonavensis'' of Haiti and ''M. spectabilis'' of Costa Rica are almost extinct.

References

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{{Authority control

Sapotaceae genera
Pantropical flora
Taxa described in 1763
Taxa named by Michel Adanson