''Podocarpus matudae'' is a species of

conifer Conifers are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single ...

in the family Podocarpaceae. It is found in

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

and Mexico.

Description

''Podocarpus matudae'' is an evergreen tree. It can grow to large size, with a bole up to 150 cm in diameter."Podocarpus matudae". Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. Accessed 4 April 2022. ropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Podocarpus+matudae/ref>

Habitat and range

''Podocarpus matudae'' is found in the mountains in eastern, southern, and western Mexico and northern Central America, where it inhabits cloud forests between 800 and 2400 meters elevation. It grows in moist areas with mild temperatures and average annual rainfall of 1,500 to 3,000 mm, including frequent fog at higher altitudes. ''Podocarpus matudae'' generally grows in small and scattered stands among other forest trees, typically oaks (''Quercus'' spp.), along with species of ''

Liquidambar ''Liquidambar'', commonly called sweetgum (star gum in the UK), gum, redgum, satin-walnut, or American storax, is the only genus in the flowering plant family Altingiaceae and has 15 species. They were formerly often treated in Hamamelidaceae ...

, Magnolia, Ostrya'', and ''

Clethra ''Clethra'' is a genus of flowering shrubs or small trees described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753.Jalisco Jalisco (, , ; Nahuatl: Xalixco), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco ; Nahuatl: Tlahtohcayotl Xalixco), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal En ...

and Nayarit in western Mexico, it is typically associated with '' Clusia salvinii, Pinus herrerae,

Pinus douglasiana ''Pinus douglasiana'' is a species of evergreen conifer in the family Pinaceae. It is found only in Mexico. A common name is Douglas pine, but that name is often applied to the more widespread species ''Pseudotsuga menziesii'' which is also know ...

Abies guatemalensis ''Abies guatemalensis'', the Guatemalan fir or ''pinabete'', is an evergreen tree native to Central America and is the southernmost member of the genus ''Abies'' being spread to the south lower than 14° N. Its range is from southern (less from ...

'', and '' Acer'' sp. Its range includes the east-facing slopes of the Sierra Madre Occidental and Sierra Madre de Oaxaca from Tamaulipas to northern Oaxaca states, and the coastal Sierra de Los Tuxtlas mountains in Veracruz. It is also found in the Chiapas Highlands of Mexico's Chiapas state and in the

Sierra Madre de Chiapas The Sierra Madre de Chiapas is a major mountain range in Central America. It crosses El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico and Honduras. The Sierra Madre de Chiapas is part of the American Cordillera, a chain of mountain ranges that consists of an almos ...

of Chiapas, Guatemala, and El Salvador. These eastern and southern populations are classed as subspecies ''Podocarpus matudae'' subsp. ''matudae''.Mill, R. R. (2015). A Monographic Revision of the Genus Podocarpus (Podocarpaceae): III. The Species of the Central America and Northern Mexico Bioregions. ''Edinburgh Journal of Botany'', 72(2), 243-341. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0960428615000050 The population from the mountains of Jalisco and Nayarit states in western Mexico is considered a separate subspecies, ''Podocarpus matudae'' subsp. ''jaliscanus''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5435823 matudae Near threatened plants Trees of Northern America Trees of Central America Flora of the Sierra Madre Oriental Sierra Madre de Chiapas Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Flora of the Sierra Madre de Oaxaca Flora of Los Tuxtlas Cloud forest flora of Mexico Flora of the Chiapas Highlands