''Caryocar'' (souari trees) is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s, in the

South American South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Caryocaraceae described as a genus by

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

in 1771. It is native primarily to South America with a few species extending into Central America and the West Indies.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> ''Caryocar'' consists of

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

s that yield a strong

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

. Some of the species within the genus ''Caryocar'' have

edible An edible item is any item that is safe for humans to eat. "Edible" is differentiated from " eatable" because it does not indicate how an item tastes, only whether it is fit to be eaten. Nonpoisonous items found in nature – such as some mushroo ...

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

s, called souari-nuts or sawarri-nuts.Hoehne (1946) The most well-known species is probably the Pekea-nut (''C. nuciferum''). In

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

the

Pequi ''Caryocar brasiliense'', known as () or souari nut, is an edible fruit popular in some areas of Brazil, especially in Central-West Region, Brazil, Centerwestern Brazil. Taxonomy The pequi tree grows up to 10 m (30 ft) tall. It is ...

(''C. brasiliense'') is most popular; it has a variety of uses, not the least among them being the production of pequi oil. Furthermore, some species are used by

indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

s to produce

poison A poison is any chemical substance that is harmful or lethal to living organisms. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figurati ...

s for hunting. ;Species # '' Caryocar amygdaliferum'' Mutis - Colombia, Panama # '' Caryocar amygdaliforme'' G.Don - Ecuador, N Peru # ''

Caryocar brasiliense ''Caryocar brasiliense'', known as () or souari nut, is an edible fruit popular in some areas of Brazil, especially in Centerwestern Brazil. Taxonomy The pequi tree grows up to 10 m (30 ft) tall. It is common in the central Brazil ...

'' A.St.-Hil. - Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay # '' Caryocar coriaceum'' Wittm. - N Brazil # '' Caryocar costaricense'' Donn.Sm. - Costa Rica # '' Caryocar cuneatum'' Wittm. - Brazil # '' Caryocar dentatum'' Gleason - NW Brazil, Bolivia # '' Caryocar edule'' Casar. -

Bahia Bahia () is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Mina ...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

# '' Caryocar glabrum'' (Aubl.) Pers. - French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil # '' Caryocar microcarpum'' Ducke - Lesser Antilles, French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil, Bolivia # '' Caryocar montanum'' Prance -

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

, Bolívar,

Roraima Roraima ( ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil. Located in the country's North Region, it is the northernmost and most geographically and logistically isolated state in Brazil. It is bordered by the state of Pará to the southeast, Amazonas t ...

# '' Caryocar nuciferum'' L. - Pekea-nut, Butter-nut of Guinea -

St. Kitts Saint Kitts, officially Saint Christopher, is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis constitute one ...

St. Vincent Saint Vincent may refer to: People Saints * Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr * Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia * Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305 ...

, French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Venezuela, N Brazil # '' Caryocar pallidum'' A.C.Sm. - NW Brazil, S Venezuela, Bolivia # '' Caryocar villosum'' (Aubl.) Pers. - French Guiana, Venezuela, N Brazil, Colombia

References

External links

* (1946). ''Frutas Indígenas'' n Portuguese Instituto de Botânica da Secretaria de Agricultura, Indústria e Comércio de

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

.
photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, collected in Panama, ''Caryocar amygdaliferum''photo of ''Caryocar costaricense'', taken in Costa Rica by Reinaldo Aguilar
Malpighiales genera {{Malpighiales-stub