Carapa procera DC.

Meliaceae, Hutchinson and Dalziel. Flora of West Tropical Africa 1:2. 1958

Morphology General Habit

Forest trees

Morphology Leaves

Large leaves clustered at the ends of the branches

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers white and pink, fragrant.

Note

Habit varies from a sprawling tree with arching branches up to about 50 ft high, in swamp forest, to a tall tree with clear bole in lowland rain forest.

Conservation

IUCN Red List Assessment (2021): LC.

Ecology

Habitat according IUCN Habitats Classification: forest and woodland, shrubland.

Meliaceae, Styles & F. White (Department of Plant Sciences, University of Oxford). Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1991

Morphology General Habit

Badly shapen understorey tree (in E. Africa) up to 25 m. tall, but usually smaller (elsewhere sometimes erect and up to 30 m. or more in height); branches widespreading and arching; bole unbuttressed but often fluted and branched low down.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves up to 1.5 m. long, mostly crowded at the ends of stout branchlets, bright red when young; leaflets 6–18 or more, usually oblong-elliptic or oblanceolate-elliptic, up to 40 × 16 cm., apex rounded and usually ending in an abrupt very short glandular acumen, sometimes more distinctly acuminate (especially juvenile leaves), base narrowly or broadly cuneate, slightly asymmetric; lateral nerves prominent, in ± 10 widely spaced pairs; lower surface glabrous, with a network of impressed veins.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescence a pyramidal panicle up to 70 cm. or more long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Calyx lobed, ± 0.2 cm. long, glabrous, except for the ciliolate margin.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Petals up to 0.9 cm. long, glabrous except for marginal cilia.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Staminal tube up to 0.8 cm. long.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Capsules 1–3 per infructescence, subglobose, umbonate or rostrate, 12–15 cm. in diameter.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds (in E. Africa) usually 10–20 per capsule, ± 3 cm. long, dark brown, shining.

Figures

Fig. 20, p.62.

Habitat

In Lake-shore, riparian and mid-altitude forest (especially where drainage is impeded); 1140–1830 m.

Distribution

T1 T4 U2 U4 from Senegal, throughout the Guineo-Congolian rain-forest (and in similar forests beyond) to Angola and East Africaalso on the island of S. Tomé and in tropical America

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation

Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident