Terminalia catappa
Description
Evergreen to briefly deciduous tree 2-35 m. Leaves chartaceous, obovate to broadly so or rarely elliptic-obovate, (8-)12-30(-38) x (5-)9-15(-22) cm, apex rounded to shortly acuminate, base tapering to usually cordate to subcordate (rarely rounded, subtruncate or cuneate), glabrous above, glabrous to appressed-pubescent below; domatia bowl-shaped, always present; venation eucamptodromous-brochidodromous, secondary veins 6-12 pairs, moderately spaced to distant, originating at moderately to widely acute angles, curved distally, prominent, intersecondary veins present; tertiary veins usually irregularly percurrent, often alternate and oblique; quaternary veins sometimes conspicuous; areolation randomly reticulate, imperfect or incomplete; petiole 0.5-2.5 cm long, pubescent, usually biglandular. Inflorescence (8-)13-30 cm long, simple, andromonoecious, with bisexual flowers few and near base; peduncle 3-5.5 cm long, glabrous to sparsely pubescent; rhachis (5-)10-27 cm long, pubescent. Flowers 5-merous, 3-5 x 4-7 mm (male) or 6-10 x 4-7 mm (bisexual); lower hypanthium 3-7 mm long in bisexual flowers, appressed-pubescent, usually densely so near base and sparsely so near apex,upper hypanthium cupuliform or campanulate, 1-2 mm long, sparsely pubescent; calyx lobes erect to patent or slightly recurved when at full anthesis, 1-1.5 mm long, nearly glabrous; stamens 2-4 mm long; disk villous; style 3-3.5 mm long, glabrous. Infructescence with few fruits near base of rhachis; fruit drupaceous but rather fibrous, glabrous, (3.5-)4-8 x 3-5.5 cm, ovoid to ellipsoid, slightly compressed, apex acute to acuminate or stoutly beaked, base rounded to broadly cuneate, obscure to conspicuous ridge or wing up to 6 mm wide along full length on each lateral edge.
Distribution
Guianas present, India to the extreme SE present, NE Australia present, Neotropics, Polynesia present, tropical Asia
Native in tropical Asia, probably from India to the extreme SE, and in Polynesia and NE Australia, naturalised throughout the Neotropics; most American herbarium material does not make it clear whether the specimen came from naturalised (wild) or cultivated trees; about 20 specimens from the Guianas (GU: 5; SU: 6; FG: 9).