''Roupala montana'' is a species of shrub or tree in the family

Proteaceae The Proteaceae form a family (biology), family of flowering plants predominantly distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The family comprises 83 genus, genera with about 1,660 known species. Australia and South Africa have the greatest concentr ...

which is native to much of the Neotropics. It is a morphologically variable species with four recognised varieties. The species is used medicinally in Venezuela, and as an

aphrodisiac An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases libido, sexual desire, sexual attraction, sexual pleasure, or sexual behavior. These substances range from a variety of plants, spices, and foods to synthetic chemicals. Natural aphrodisiacs, such as ...

in Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela.

Description

The species ranges in size from shrubs to trees, usually tall, but sometimes ranging up to tall. The leaves are usually simple in adult plants, but are occasionally compound. It is an ochlospecies—a species that is highly variable morphologically, and that variability "cannot be satisfactorily accommodated within a formal classification"—with a very wide distribution. Consequently, a large number of species and varieties have been described based on variations between collections.

Taxonomy

The species was first described by

Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet (November 4, 1720 – May 6, 1778) was a French pharmacist, botanist and one of the earliest botanical explorers in South America.JSTOR He was one of the first botanists to study ethnobotany in the Neotro ...

in 1775. The name ''Roupala'' was based on ''roupale'', a name used locally in French Guiana. The Latin

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

''montana'' refers to mountains or coming from mountains. In their 2007 monograph,

Ghillean Prance Sir Ghillean Tolmie Prance (born 13 July 1937) is a prominent British botanist and ecologist who has published extensively on the taxonomy of families such as Chrysobalanaceae and Lecythidaceae, but drew particular attention in documenting th ...

, Katie S. Edwards and coauthors recognised four named varieties within the species: ''R. montana'' var. ''montana'' (the "nominate" variety, based on Aublet's original description of the species), ''R. montana'' var. ''brasiliensis'' (

Klotzsch Johann Friedrich Klotzsch (9 June 1805 – 5 November 1860) was a German pharmacist and botanist. His principal work was in the field of mycology, with the study and description of many species of mushroom. Klotzsch was born in Wittenberg. Origi ...

) K.S.Edwards, ''R. montana'' var. ''impressiuscula'' ( Mez) K.S.Edwards and ''R. montana'' var. ''paraensis'' (

Sleumer Hermann Otto Sleumer (February 21, 1906 in Saarbrücken – October 1, 1993 in Oegstgeest) was a Dutch botanist of Germany, German birth. The plant genera ''Sleumerodendron'' Robert Virot, Virot (Proteaceae) and ''Sleumeria'' Timothy Michael Arthur ...

) K.S.Edwards.

Distribution

''Roupala montana'' ranges from Mexico in the north, through Central America, to Trinidad and Tobago, and across South America to southern Bolivia, Argentina, Paraguay and southern Brazil.

Uses

The species is used for fuel wood, high quality charcoal, medicinally and to a limited extent for woodworking and construction, The wood is commonly used for wood turning and sold in small spindles and blocks. Specialist exotic wood suppliers typically refer to this timber as Leopardwood but it can be confused with other species such as Lacewood (Panopsis -P. rubescens and P. sessilifolia). The wood shows strong figuring in

quartersawn Quarter sawing or quartersawing is a woodworking process that produces quarter-sawn or quarter-cut boards in the rip cutting of logs into lumber. The resulting lumber can also be called ''radially-sawn'' or simply ''quartered''. There is wides ...

sections. It turns well and gives a good finish. Lacewood

It is one of several species including ''

Parinari campestris ''Parinari campestris'' is a species of tree in the plant family Chrysobalanaceae which is native to Trinidad, the Guianas, Venezuela and Brazil. It is reputed to have aphrodisiac properties. Description The species is a tree which grows up to ...

'' and ''

Richeria grandis ''Richeria grandis'' is a tree species in the family Phyllanthaceae which ranges from the Lesser Antilles to South America. The species is reputed to have aphrodisiac properties. Description ''Richeria grandis'' is a large, evergreen tree with ...

'' which known by the common name ''bois bandé''. These species are reputed to have

properties.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7371296

montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

Trees of Northern America Trees of Central America Trees of South America Trees of Trinidad and Tobago Flora of the Cerrado Plants described in 1775 Trees of Argentina Trees of Brazil Trees of Peru Trees of Venezuela