Jim King
11-24-2006, 3:53 PM
I received this letter this morning and thought it might be interesting for people to see a bit of daily life in the tree ID work. This is from our scientist Mihaly Czako at the U os SC that works with us. If you google his name you can read more than you want about him. The ID of tropical species in my opinion will take hundreds of years more and then there will be hundreds of additional new species created. It is a never ending situation. Attached is a photo of him in public transport going to the jungle one morning.
Mercedes & Jim,Indicentally I called you about tigre. I have received more papers on the flora of Jenaro Herrera with lists of common names and then I revisited the tigre caspi question. In fact, I secured a dozen good papers of a series published by the Swiss botanical group who worked there. I am not basing my determination on vernacular names but they are helpful. The Swiss authors mention that about 10% of the species appear to be undescribed in lowland Amazonia.I have collected two different species of tigre caspi but it was not obvious to me until I got back to the laboratorio. One of them from the vicinity of Libertad is Zygia latifolia, another one from the Itaya is, tentatively, very likely, Zygia cataractae. I cannot rule out Zygia macbridii without getting a chance to use the microscope with the leaves. TIGRE IS NOT marblewood. In my previous list I thought we had Zygia inaequalis but now I know that is was false. I arrived at Zygia inaequalis based on the list for flora of Allpahuayo. That list, I know now, is based on a very small area where the vegetation was not like near Libertad. I have found more descriptions of Z. inaequalis, and tigre is clearly not tigre caspi.I have learned also that marblewood, as originally defined by botanists, exists in Loreto, they first observed it in Jenaro Herrera. There are two other related species in the Iquitos flora. I have collected samples of two slender trees and even saplings; they may still be alive. Marblewood is a slender tree of higher grounds which are not subject to flooding while tigre dwells in the swamp by the river. Marblewood has a fine figure but it is probably not exploited because I always fing only slender trees. Pashaco is a local name for marblewood, but pashaco also is applied to giant trees with similar foliage; that is why there are so many pashaco varieties. Your people probably do not bother to bring you true marblewood because it is not large enough.I have commercial "marblewood" from supposedly Guyana and it is definitely different from tigre but it also is different from botanically true marblewood because I tested them by chemistry. So now you see how confusing it can get. I believe that several species of "marblewood/tigre" exist throughout the lowlands of South America and a significant portion of commercial marblewood is incorrectly identified. No doubt there is true marblewood on the market but at the moment I cannot swear which piece is correct. The evidence may already be in our hands however because I have collected two slender trees that may represent true marblewood. I need to examine leaves and the flowers which I fortunately have (from Gato's place) before I can pronounce that I have true marblewood (Marmaroxylon racemosum = Zygia racemosa).I will comment on the similarly confusing queenwood (Swartzia)in another email.Mihaly
Mercedes & Jim,Indicentally I called you about tigre. I have received more papers on the flora of Jenaro Herrera with lists of common names and then I revisited the tigre caspi question. In fact, I secured a dozen good papers of a series published by the Swiss botanical group who worked there. I am not basing my determination on vernacular names but they are helpful. The Swiss authors mention that about 10% of the species appear to be undescribed in lowland Amazonia.I have collected two different species of tigre caspi but it was not obvious to me until I got back to the laboratorio. One of them from the vicinity of Libertad is Zygia latifolia, another one from the Itaya is, tentatively, very likely, Zygia cataractae. I cannot rule out Zygia macbridii without getting a chance to use the microscope with the leaves. TIGRE IS NOT marblewood. In my previous list I thought we had Zygia inaequalis but now I know that is was false. I arrived at Zygia inaequalis based on the list for flora of Allpahuayo. That list, I know now, is based on a very small area where the vegetation was not like near Libertad. I have found more descriptions of Z. inaequalis, and tigre is clearly not tigre caspi.I have learned also that marblewood, as originally defined by botanists, exists in Loreto, they first observed it in Jenaro Herrera. There are two other related species in the Iquitos flora. I have collected samples of two slender trees and even saplings; they may still be alive. Marblewood is a slender tree of higher grounds which are not subject to flooding while tigre dwells in the swamp by the river. Marblewood has a fine figure but it is probably not exploited because I always fing only slender trees. Pashaco is a local name for marblewood, but pashaco also is applied to giant trees with similar foliage; that is why there are so many pashaco varieties. Your people probably do not bother to bring you true marblewood because it is not large enough.I have commercial "marblewood" from supposedly Guyana and it is definitely different from tigre but it also is different from botanically true marblewood because I tested them by chemistry. So now you see how confusing it can get. I believe that several species of "marblewood/tigre" exist throughout the lowlands of South America and a significant portion of commercial marblewood is incorrectly identified. No doubt there is true marblewood on the market but at the moment I cannot swear which piece is correct. The evidence may already be in our hands however because I have collected two slender trees that may represent true marblewood. I need to examine leaves and the flowers which I fortunately have (from Gato's place) before I can pronounce that I have true marblewood (Marmaroxylon racemosum = Zygia racemosa).I will comment on the similarly confusing queenwood (Swartzia)in another email.Mihaly