White Mahogany

Description

White Mahogany (Simarouba amara), also known as Bois Blanc in Creole, is an evergreen tree that can reach 15 m in height. Its bark and roots are renowned for their fever-reducing, tonic, and antimicrobial properties.

This smooth-trunked tree has alternate leaves composed of 9 to 16 leaflets, and highly branched, erect panicles of flowers that range from dull yellow-green to whitish in color. Its 1 to 2 cm drupe fruits have a two-angled ellipsoid shape and are bright green, turning red and finally purplish-black when ripe, with a fine white pulp.

Belonging to a dioecious species, the trees are either male or female and produce only male or female flowers.

Habitat

In the Caribbean region, it is found in Guadeloupe, Basse-Terre, in the mesophilic forest, and in Martinique, within tropical forests. Their rapid development requires relatively high light levels.

Its seed dispersal has been observed to be carried out by numerous vertebrates, mainly birds and mammals such as the European flycatcher (Contopus latirostris) and bats of the Phyllostomidae family, but also by cassava ants (Acromyrmex octospinosus) and many others.

Threat Factors

The main threat is deforestation, due to the logging of its wood used in cabinetmaking for furniture. Furthermore, its habitat, the mesophilic forest, is largely cleared by humans for crops such as bananas and sugarcane.