''Lecythis ampla'' is a species of

woody plant A woody plant is a plant that produces wood as its structural tissue and thus has a hard stem. In cold climates, woody plants further survive winter or dry season above ground, as opposed to Herbaceous plant, herbaceous plants that die back to t ...

in the family

Lecythidaceae The Lecythidaceae ( ) comprise a family of about 20 genera and 250–300 species of woody plants native to tropical South America, Africa (including Madagascar), Asia and Australia. Well known members of the family include the cannonball tree ...

, which also includes the

Brazil nut The Brazil nut (''Bertholletia excelsa'') is a South American tree in the family Lecythidaceae, and it is also the name of the tree's commercially harvested edible seeds. It is one of the largest and longest-lived trees in the Amazon rainforest. ...

(''Bertholletia excelsa''). Common names include ''coco, olla de mono, jicaro'' and ''salero''. It is found in Central and South America. It has been considered an endangered species in Costa Rica (IUCN, 1988).

Description

''Lecythis ampla'' is a large tree growing to in height with no branches on its lower part. It is

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

with most of the leaves dropping before it blooms and new leaves appearing in flushes with the flowers. The

bark Bark may refer to: Common meanings * Bark (botany), an outer layer of a woody plant such as a tree or stick * Bark (sound), a vocalization of some animals (which is commonly the dog) Arts and entertainment * ''Bark'' (Jefferson Airplane album), ...

is greyish brown and vertically furrowed. The glossy leaves are alternate and elliptical with wavy edges. The flowers appear between May and July and are pollinated by bees. They have six petals that are either pink or pale mauve, but fade to white as the flower ages. The fruit is a woody capsule up to that hangs from the branch. It resembles a little pot and when it is ripe, after about ten months, the lid comes off and the nuts fall to the forest floor.

Distribution

''Lecythis ampla'' is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to Central America, extending from Nicaragua to Ecuador and Brazil. It is common in wet forests on the Atlantic slope in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama, and is found near the Pacific coast in Ecuador and in Colombia's Cauca and Magdalena valleys.

Ecology

In Costa Rica, this tree grows at low densities in the forest, but the seedlings are shade tolerant, and natural regeneration rates are high. It often grows in association with the oil tree ''

Pentaclethra macroloba ''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 monoculture, monocultural stands in some seasonally flooded habitats. It ha ...

'', the almond '' Dipteryx panamensis'' and the mahogany ''

Carapa guianensis ''Carapa guianensis'' is a species of tree in the family Meliaceae, also known by the common names andiroba or crabwood. Description Andiroba is native to the Amazon and is widely used by the indigenous populations of the northern region of ...

''. The seeds are eaten by

paca A paca ia a rodent in South and Central America. Paca or PACA may also refer to: People * William Paca (1740–1799), a Founding Father of the United States * Paca Blanco (Francisca Blanco Díaz, born 1949), Spanish activist * Paca Navas (Franc ...

agouti The agouti (, ) or common agouti is any of several rodent species of the genus ''Dasyprocta''. They are native to Central America, northern and central South America, and the southern Lesser Antilles. Some species have also been introduced else ...

s and

deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...

and are believed to be dispersed by

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...

s and

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

s. The fruit pulp is consumed by

parrot Parrots (Psittaciformes), also known as psittacines (), are birds with a strong curved beak, upright stance, and clawed feet. They are classified in four families that contain roughly 410 species in 101 genus (biology), genera, found mostly in ...

s and peccaries. The wet forest in which it grows has a

biodiverse Biodiversity is the variability of life on Earth. It can be measured on various levels. There is for example genetic variability, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and phylogenetic diversity. Diversity is not distributed evenly on Earth ...

fauna of reptiles and amphibians.

Uses

The sapwood is a creamy colour and fibrous, while the heartwood is dark brown when fresh and reddish brown when dried. The timber is resistant to marine boring invertebrates and is used for shipbuilding, bridges, and general and marine construction. It is also used to make furniture, tool handles, and posts. The bark can be used in tanning and has various other uses. The seeds can be eaten, but excessive consumption causes loss of hair. They are also used in northern Costa Rica to make sweets and caramel and in Panama as

folk medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) refers to the knowledge, skills, and practices rooted in the cultural beliefs of various societies, especially Indigenous groups, used for maintaining health and treatin ...

to treat pneumonia and diarrhoea.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q6512456 ampla Trees of Central America Trees of South America